It’s an exciting time for change agents working toward more livable communities, with leadership at the federal level finding new ways to collaborate across the issues of transportation, housing and land use.

And Rail~volution, a national conference kicking off today, will offer insight into that process with a dynamic conversation… more

Miami Mayor Manny Diaz's ambitous  and comprehensive plan to reshape his city into one that is pedestrian friendly, offers a mix of uses and is less car-centric passed 4-1 on the final reading tonight.  That's good news for the city and property owners who would like to see their property… more

If your entrepreneurs and creative communities are looking for alternative funding models, here’s a site that offers itself as a platform for funding new endeavors for artists, designers, musicians, filmmakers, journalists, inventors, explorers and more.

Kickstarter taps into ideas of crowdsourcing as a means of funding “creativity… more

If you’re interested in a snapshot of resident sentiments in other parts of the world, here’s a survey of Istanbul’s residents, undertaken by Ipsos for the Urban Age City Survey.

According to the study, Istanbul residents’ top three reasons for liking Istanbul are job opportunities, health services and… more

Denver has nearly doubled its public transit ridership, despite the fact that planned light rail track additions have yet to be built.  How?

Warren Karlenzig’s article notes these factors:

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21. That's how many cities we've visited since March 31 to present the Talent Dividend.  Thanks to the Lumina Foundation and DeVry, cross-sector groups of urban leaders -- people making things happen in cities -- have met to hear the difference just a one percentage point increase in college attainment… more

A simple buffet -- meatless lasagna, salad and garlic bread. Ten people, eight locals, two outsiders.   A two-minute opportunity for each to plant new ideas about how to make San Francisco a better place.

Today a friend sends the economic development plan for a university district in a different city,… more

Want to change behavior?  Make it fun to do the right thing -- like taking the stairs.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lXh2n0aPyw

Philadelphia's Center City District continues to innovate when it comes to retaining the young talent the city has worked so hard to attract by making the core appealing to that same talent once they couple and have kids.  Today the Center City District launched a new website, KidsinCenterCity.com,… more

From the Baltimore Sun comes this sickening and all-too-frequent news:

City fire and police pensions: Heads we win, tails taxpayers lose

"There are plenty of problems with Baltimore's fire and police pension system, but probably the most egregious is an unusual benefit retirees there receive. When the stock… more

Loved this post from Marisa Belger at TodayShow.com on the freedom cities like New York offer from car dependence. 

What forms of freedom does your city deliver?

Here is Ed Glaeser making the case for investment in education as the single factor that best explains the success of cities from 1900 to  2000. Rich nations that fail to invest in education, as shown by his study of Argentina, are bound to lose ground to nations that… more

Is the love affair between cars and young people starting to cool?

That could be the case, according to a new study of auto-related online commentary among teens and young adults by J.D. Power and Associates reported by the LA Times.

Between January and August, the market research… more

Seriously?  McMansions are on the wane? 

The trends seem to suggest that, yes, it's true.  The median size of new houses in the U.S. shrank last year, reversing a decades-long trend. And this year,  the trend continues, with houses nearly 200 square feet smaller than two years ago.  Average new… more

Kevin Slavin of area/code and Sarah Williams of Columbia's Spatial Information Design Lab were surprise hits at the CEOs for Cities Urban Leaders Summit in DC.  Both showed examples of using digital media to "see" the city differently and to interact with it differently.

For those who can't… more

We had the pleasure of curating a panel on talent retention at the Council on Foundations' community foundations conference earlier this month. Framed by the Talent Dividend, The Sticky City conversation focused around creating distinctive places, fostering entrepreneurship, connecting talent in place and messaging with authentic voices.

Here are some… more

We are making the case for talent development in America.  So is Paul Krugman in today's NYT.

I just had to share this article from my hometown, Memphis, on County Commissioner James Harvey who, after not finishing college in the traditional timeframe, went back in 2007 and is about to graduate with his bachelor's degree at the age of 47.  Shelby County (where Memphis sits) has 132,000… more