Parks: A Wise Infrastructure Investment

It’s time to recognize the multiple benefits of parks and fund them as infrastructure if we want our cities to be successful and prepared for the future.

Beware the privatization of your town's water

If your community hopes Trump's infrastructure bill will fix your water system, be sure to read the fine print. And if you're lucky enough to control your own water, never give it up without a fight. 

Saving More Than Seeds

Gene banks and seed vaults are saving and protecting crop seeds and the genetic diversity within crops, crop races, and some closely related species. There are some 1,700 gene and seed banks in the world with perhaps the most well-known being the Svalbard Global Seed Vault (Norway), but others include the International Center for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas (Syria), Kew Millenium Seed Bank (UK), Global Crop Diversity Trust (Germany), and National Seed Storage Laboratory (USA). They are capable of storing and protecting many millions of species and crop cultivars.

Suburban Remix: The Next Generation of Urban Places

Qualities that began reviving cities 20 years ago — walkable density, community placemaking, a mix of uses geared to a diverse population — are bringing new life to North America’s suburbs.

Got Water? Thank (and Save) a Forest

If you’ve got clean, abundant water, thank a forest — and do what you can to protect it. Don’t wait for the well, or the taps, to run dry.

Republicans and Democrats on Climate? An Environmental Mediator Weighs In

As a mediator, I am always interested in unlikely bedfellows snuggling up to solve a problem, particularly in cases where there is no mediator, no third party to make the bed and tuck them in. These bold hookups, generated by the parties themselves, can result in creative solutions that one side or the other would have never considered but that end up meeting the needs of both.

#ForewordFriday: Guide to Green Building

Since the publication of the first edition in 2000, Sustainable Landscape Construction has helped to spur a movement towards resilient outdoor environments, in the U.S. and throughout the world. The third edition has been updated to include important recent developments in this landscape revolution. It remains essential reading for everyone with an interest in "green" design of outdoor spaces and infrastructures.

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