by Gary Esolen – In 2009 Planetizen (a website focused on urbanism the name of which suggests being a citizen of the planet) asked its users to identify the urban thinkers who had influenced them most. The overwhelming top choice
by Valeri LeBlanc – To build a better society we have to create better places. So start with the basics…what is a place? If we are the PLACES consulting people, we ought to be able to say what a place
by Valeri LeBlanc – In his book Bowling Alone, Bob Putnam coined the term social capital. Like its cousins financial capital and human capital, it refers to a source of value—in this case the value (economic and otherwise) of good
by Valeri LeBlanc – A notable bit of bickering happened in the blogspace awhile back about the most high-minded of topics: the relationship of buildings which make a major architectural statement to their (urban) surroundings. It all started when the
by Valeri LeBlanc – Wherever you live—in a large or small city, a village, town or rural area, a dense urban neighborhood or a sprawling suburb—chances are the place you live has a lot of problems. Education problems, problems with