Before we know it the fall semester will be upon us and another batch of interesting conferences! In order to begin planning for possible Student Planning Association subsidy of student registration fees, please indicate whether you are interested in attending the 18-21 October 2007 Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning conference in Milwaukee.
An extraordinary time, to be sure, for planning-related news! Just a week ago, Michael Bloomburg, Mayor of New York City (and a Republican, at that!), announced an aggressive policy slate that included a number of non-trivial environmental steps the implementation of which would result in a New York City even more sustainable than it is now. PLANYC proposes to reduce the city’s carbon dioxide emissions by a 30% through a multidimensional environmental program addressing land, air, water, energy, and transportation. He’s even pushing a plan to implement a congestion pricing cordon for most of Manhattan! While controversial and attacked in some quarters as having an disproportionate impact on the poor, the repercussions of our self-inflicted global warming crisis require dramatic — and immediate — action.
And check out the Tony Blair heir-apparent, Gordon Brown’s call for the development of a number of new eco-towns. Ostensibly designed to help relieve a shortage in affordable housing in Britain and constructed on brownfield sites, these “new towns” will significantly advance the cause of sustainable development by incorporating such features as “renewable energy, rainwater harvesting, [and] locally-sourced and reclaimed materials.”
