#forewordFriday

#ForewordFriday: Markets and the Environment Edition

A clear grasp of economics is essential to understanding why environmental problems arise and how we can address them. So it is with good reason that Markets and the Environment has become a classic text in environmental studies since its first publication in 2007. Now thoroughly revised with updated information on current environmental policy and real-world examples of market-based instruments, the primer is more relevant than ever.

#ForewordFriday: Thanksgiving Edition

As Thanksgiving approaches, take a moment to consider your food. Ask children where food comes from, and they’ll probably answer: “the supermarket.” Ask most adults, and their replies may not be much different. Where our foods are raised and what happens to them between farm and supermarket shelf have become mysteries. How did we become so disconnected from the sources of our breads, beef, cheeses, cereal, apples, and countless other foods that nourish us every day?   

#FOREWORDFRIDAY: Complete Streets Edition

This week, NACTO held its fourth annual Designing Cities conferencein Austin, TX. The Designing Cities conference convenes transportation leaders and practicioners from across the country to discuss key trends in urban street design and transportation policy.

#FOREWORDFRIDAY: Resilient Business Edition

As we are learning the hard way, the new normal of climate change and a volatile, hyper-connected global economy mean that sudden natural disasters and unforeseen supply chain disruptions are here to stay—and pursuing business as usual is no longer a viable option. But how can businesses adjust? Joseph Fiksel argues that the key is resilience—an organization’s capacity to survive, adapt, and flourish in the face of change.

#FOREWORDFRIDAY: Start-Up City Edition

More than ever, cities are charged with carrying out national-level policies and are expected to be at the forefront of our response to climate change, housing inequality, job-creation and public health. At the same time, most city government agencies are perennially understaffed and impeded by cumbersome, often backward regulations that leave them at odds with the private sector. Seemingly insurmountable frustrations are everywhere. So the big question is: Can meaningful changes get made in spite of these realities?

#FOREWORDFRIDAY: Urban Design Edition

As the storm surge of Hurricane Sandy overwhelmed his neighborhood of Red Hook, Brooklyn, New York City’s chief urban designer Alexandros Washburn took refuge on the upper floors of his house. For years he had played an integral role in creating the city that has become a model of vibrant urban design, and now he watched as flooding wreaked havoc. When the water receded, he saw devastation—but also dedication. The disaster revealed that what makes New York great is not only its physical setting, but also its citizens’ will to rebuild their communities better than before.

#FOREWORDFRIDAY: WILD EDITION

Have humans really tamed every inch of the world? On our overheated and overcrowded planet, are wild places now extinct? 

#ForewordFriday: Religion Edition

What does religion have to do with the environment? Let John Grim and Mary Evelyn Tucker explain in their must-read book, Ecology and Religion. Grim and Tucker argue that the engagement of religious communities is necessary if humanity is to sustain itself and the planet. As the Pope wraps up his visit to the US, check out this important text on the burgeoning field of religious ecology.

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