SCOTT K. JOHNSON – 12/17/2017, Ars Technica Enlarge Texas Military Department 104 The story explaining the incredible flooding in Houston during Hurricane Harvey has many chapters, ranging from meteorology to the history of groundwater use and development zoning. The chapter on climate change has already had a few pages filled in, thanks to a study quickly published by MIT hurricane scientist Kerry Emanuel. This week, …
Road to zero wealth
Excerpt from Josh Hoxie, in Newseek, Dec 2017 Wealth, the basic measure of how much a family owns minus how much they owe, is concentrating in fewer and fewer hands — and those hands happen to be overwhelmingly white. A report I co-authored, The Road to Zero Wealth, shows that the typical black family saw an inflation-adjusted decrease in their household …
Book of the Day: Elinor Ostrom’s Rules for Radicals,Cooperative Alternatives beyond Markets and States
Originally published in Pluto Press. Elinor Ostrom was the first woman to win the Nobel Prize for Economics. Her theorising of the commons has been celebrated as groundbreaking and opening the way for non-capitalist economic alternatives, yet, many radicals know little about her. This book redresses this, revealing the indispensability of her work for green politics, left economics and radical democracy. …
RMI in 2017: Creating a Low-Carbon Future Making efficient energy systems that emit little or no CO2
When you’re in a hole, stop digging. Our climate got shifted onto a path to catastrophic warming because the ways we produce, use, and waste energy emit a massive amount of carbon into the atmosphere every single day. With the help of our partners and supporters, we are reducing those carbon emissions by transforming global energy systems. And we’re proving …
Charging higher polluting vehicles to drive into city center is shifting more drivers to rail and bus services, prompting more consideration of EVs and less driving
December 22nd, 2017 by Cynthia Shahan on Clean Technica Biggest Response To London’s Increased “T-Charge” = Shift To Public Transit Some cities are working to quell city air pollution faster than others. UK cities are beginning to charge higher-polluting vehicles to drive into their center. As one big example, London’s “T-Charge” is increasing the cost of a journey by up to £21.50 for the …
Woonerfs come to the US
PUBLIC SQUARE A CNU Journal, Dec 2017 The Wharf. Photo by Payton Chung. TRANSPORTATION A radical mixing of cars and people works as planned The recently opened nine-block development in Southwest DC is the largest expanse of “shared space” in the US. PAYTON CHUNG DEC. 8, 2017 When the Wharf, a new development in Southwest DC, opened recently, it instantly became the largest expanse of …
Why downtown parking garages may be headed for extinction
12 Dec 2017, Philadelphia Inquirer, Stateline Brandywine Realty Trust’s FMC Tower near 30th Street Station was developed to include a 1-acre public park 90-feet above street level on top of a parking garage. by Mindy Fetterman, STATELINE For decades, providing downtown parking was a top priority for urban planners. Huge parking garages for commuters’ cars occupied prime real estate that otherwise …
RPA to Cities: Autonomous Vehicles are Coming. Start Preparing Now
October 9, 2017 Read the Report Also see: http://fourthplan.org/about/executive-summary 70-90 Percent of Vehicles Could be Autonomous by 2045; New RPA Report Outlines a Plan for Urban and Suburban Policymakers to Ensure Maximum Benefit for Region’s Residents Regional Plan Association (RPA) has released a report entitled New Mobility: Autonomous Vehicles and the Region, which offers cities and their suburbs a comprehensive roadmap for how to prepare for …
3 Finance and Policy Fixes That Could Dramatically Reduce Transportation Emissions
By Angie Schmitt, Streetsblog, Dec 8, 2017 Transportation now surpasses electric power as the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions. Graph:Bloomberg Toward the end of last year, the U.S. transportation sector surpassed electric power as the nation’s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions. At Bloomberg, Tom Randall writes that the Trump administration’s attack on fuel efficiency standards could slow down attempts to clean up transportation …
NACTO curb management strategies supporting reliable transit and safer streets, better managing curb demand
Cities across North America are recognizing the value of their curbsides as flexible zones. To make corridor-level changes possible, leading cities are adopting and acting on policies that prioritize reliable transit and safe bicycling infrastructure first, followed by other important uses of the curb like deliveries, passenger pick-ups, green stormwater infrastructure, and small public spaces—as well as managed parking. This …