SELECTED LINKS
ONLINE JOURNALS ON URBAN TOPICS
http://www.designerbuildermagazine.com/
Designer Builder Magazine: A Journal of The Human Environment is an independent magazine that brings social justice and issues of equity to the debate over the built and human environments. It focuses on a wide variety of issues, including architecture, building, planning, urban design, quality of life, affordable housing, homelessness, race and equity, housing options, ecology, and sustainability from a point of view not being addressed in other places. Designer Builder is about an architecture that serves humankind. It serves to inspire designers to create a built environment that reflects the principles and values of racial, economic, and social justice.
Monu Magazine on Urbanism is based in Rotterdam, New York City, Berlin and Kassel. It is a young and fresh resource for young writers, designers and photographers working on urban topics.
Mudot (magazine for urban documentation, opinion and theory) is a follow up publication to Monu -Magazine on Urbanism.
The Architect’s Newspaper is a comprehensive source of information on the latest projects and commissions in the New York Metropolitan area, unfolding politics and debate, current events and cultural developments related to architecture, with an emphasis on the tri-state region.
Dérive - Zeitschrift für Stadtforschung. Issued in German language, it focuses on topics such as urban culture, gentrification, ecology.
http://www.stamfordreview.com/
The Stamford Review is dedicated to real estate, land use, architecture, and urban affairs.
New Urban News is a professional newsletter for planners, developers, architects, builders, public officials and others who are interested in the latest developments in New Urbanism and Smart Growth.
Urban projects, ideas, plans. Virtual tours in ghetto space, urban planning students network and phylosophy from the Urban Planning Department of Columbia University.
http://www.places-journal.org/
Places: Forum of Design for the Public Realm is about the design of places, the experiences they make possible and the consequences they have in our lives. Being in places involves social encounters, immersion in the sights, sounds, sun, wind and atmosphere of a locale, and curiosity about the traces of thought, imagination and investment that have guided their construction and use over time. PLACES is about the dynamics of nature and culture and the conscious stewarding of resources.
http://www.radicalurbantheory.com/
Radical Urban Theory - Writings on the modern urban condition.
Italian magazine on architecture, visual arts and culture.
http://architettura.supereva.com/
Arch’it - Digital architectural Review.
Edited by Uwe Altrock (BTU Cottbus); Planungsrundschau is a magazine (on paper and on the web) on theory and politics of planning.
URBAN PORTALS AND OTHER RESOURCES
Authoritative online urban planning portal. It has an extensive database of urban planning related articles that can be searched by theme and city.
Comprehensive database of housing and community news articles & papers. Powered by Fannie Mae Foundation.
The Taub Urban Research Center at NYU publishes the work and research of NYU Faculty and PhD students.
Hierarchical directory with links to thousands of planning and urbanism related websites. Powered by the Department of Urban Planning of the University of Buffalo.
http://www.conferencealerts.com/urban.htm
Listing of Urban Studies Conferences Worldwide: upcoming events in urban studies, architecture and related fields.
http://www.urbanplanningnow.com
Urban planning jobs database.
Fine selection of urban planning related articles.
The site offers a platform to explore aspects of urban management. Urbanicity information targets city managers, local level policymakers, urban planners and directors of urban service and infrastructure provision. The objectives are to advance their knowledge and understanding of urban issues and to present the tools they need to plan, manage and govern their cities.
BLOGS
http://gregorydonovan.org/cyberenviro/
Cyberenvironmentalism is a neologism created as a way to label current and/or future activism that is informed by environmental research and which aims to affect the redistribution of power in the Informational Age.
Cities of Theory: a blog on planning theory and practice.
http://www.urbancartography.com/
Collaborative blog dealing with cartography and related subjects, including urban planning.
http://newurbanist.blogspot.com
New (Sub)urbanism: Commentary on current issues in metropolitan development.
http://citycomfortsblog.typepad.com/cities/
Blog of City Comforts by author David Sucher.
http://massengale.typepad.com/
VERITAS ET VENUSTAS - Writings on architecture, urbanism, classicism, tradition, metaphysics and culture, along with urban photography.
http://squattercity.blogspot.com/
Blog about squatters and squatter cities around the world.
INSTITUTIONS
http://www.planning.orgThe official website of the American Planning Association. It features a monthly magazine called ‘Planning’ which is accessible to APA members.
The Taub Urban Research Center at NYU publishes the work and research of NYU Faculty and PhD students.
The Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy is the leading academic research center in New York City devoted to the public policy aspects of real estate, land use and housing development.
Based in Washington, D.C., the American Institute of Architects (AIA) is the leading professional membership association for licensed architects, emerging professionals, and allied partners in the US since 1857. AIA has more than 83,500 members its main activities are in the fields of education, legislative and regulatory development, professional education, and research.
UN Habitat analyses and studies human settlement patterns, and develops methods for controlled settlement with the preservation of the environment in mind. UN Habitat’s mission is to promote socially and environmentally sustainable human settlements development and the achievement of adequate shelter for all..
The Municipal Art Society of New York is a non-profit membership organization whose mission is to promote a more livable city. Since 1893, it advocates for excellence in urban design and planning, contemporary architecture, historic preservation and public art.
MULTIMEDIA
http://www.youtube.com/user/Urbanreinventors
The Urban Reinventors Multimedia Channel: a rich collection of selected up-to-date urban-related videos, including topics such as architecture, urban development, politics, gentrification, displacement, homelessness, rezoning, right to the city, anti-sprawl movements, new urbanism, smart growth. Also featuring continuosly updated videos from New Orleans’ reconstruction and New York’s rezoning plans.
http://www.flickr.com/groups/urbanreinventors/
The Urban Reinventors Image Archive. A Flickr.com group devoted to the most talented urban photographer and artists featured - and to be featured in "The Urban Reinventors" Online Urban Journal. This group is intended to be a network for professionals and amateurs of urban photography, visual arts and more: it is open to photographers, artists, journalists, reporters, and videomakers who want to submit their material for publication on “The Urban Reinventors” online urban journal.
http://www.hrw.org/doc/?t=videos
Human Rights Watch Multimedia: Outstanding collection of videos, audio commentaries, photo essays, podcasts from every corner of the world, curated by Human Rights Watch.
Justice for New Orleans Multimedia
A wealth of insightful videos related to issues of social injustice and inequality in the recostruction of New Orleans after Katrina.
“Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price” features the stories and everyday lives of families and communities struggling to survive in a Wal-Mart world. Released simultaneously in theaters and DVD in November 2005, the film has been seen by millions worldwide. Families, churches, schools, and small busineses owners have screened the film over 10,000 times. The film is intended to support the movement forcing majors and companies to act responsibly.
Smart City Radio is a weekly, hour-long public radio talk show that takes an in-depth look at urban life, the people, places, ideas and trends shaping cities.
URBAN PLANNING - GROUPS AND NETWORKS
The Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) is the leading organization promoting innovative development strategies as an alternative to sprawl. CNU advocates the restructuring of public policy and development practices to support the restoration of existing urban centers and towns within coherent metropolitan regions. It stands for the reconfiguration of sprawling suburbs into communities of real neighborhoods and diverse districts, the conservation of natural environments, and the preservation of our built legacy.CNU takes a proactive, multi-disciplinary approach to urban redevelopment: members are planners, developers, architects, engineers, public officials, investors, and community activists. The Congress for the New Urbanism was founded in 1993; today, CNU has over 3,100 members in 20 countries and 49 states. There are now over 210 New Urbanist developments under construction or completed in the United States.
Smart Growth Online is a web-based catalogue of Smart Growth related news, events, information and resources. Developed and funded through a cooperative agreement between the US EPA and the Sustainable Communities Network, this tool is designed to advance public understanding of smart growth and how growth can improve community livability.
http://www.shrinkingcities.com/
Cities are shrinking all over the world! Shrinking cities are a cultural challenge. In the Shrinking Cities project, architects, academics and artists investigate recent developments in Detroit, Ivanovo, Manchester / Liverpool and Halle / Leipzig - and make suggestions. Shrinking cities is a project (2002-2005) of the Federal Cultural Foundation, under the direction of Philipp Oswalt (Berlin) in co-operation with the Leipzig Gallery of Contemporary Art, the Bauhaus Dessau Foundation and the magazine Archplus.
http://www.plannersnetwork.org
Planners Network is an association of professionals, activists, academics, and students involved in physical, social, economic, and environmental planning in urban and rural areas, who promote fundamental change in our political and economic systems.
URBAN ACTIVISM - GROUPS AND NETWORKS
INURA is a network of people involved in action and research in localities and cities. The Network consists of activists and researchers from community and environmental groups, universities, and local administrations, who wish to share experiences and to participate in common research. Examples of the issues that Network members are involved in include: major urban renewal projects, the urban periphery, community-led environmental schemes, urban traffic and transport, inner city labour markets, do-it-yourself culture, and social housing provision. In each case, the research is closely tied to, and is a product of, local action and initiative. INURA is a non-governmental and non-profit organization with a self-organizing, non-hierarchical, decentralized structure. Regional Offices take turns annually in organizing the conference and publishing the INURA Bulletin.
Network against the extensive pro-demolition urban politics of new Berlin.
Network for the preservation of the Palast der Republik in Berlin.
Ogino Knauss is a collective active since 1995. It started as “mutant cinema laboratory” in autonomous social centre, acting a constant drift through languages and communication practices, from film production to video installation, photography, Vjing, graphic and sound design. In search for a sinthesys between the narrative of the editing process and the hypnoticity of rave, oginoknauss leads a steady exploration of new contexts and spaces to confront with: cultural centers, public spaces, temporary occupied spaces, galleries, festivals, dancefloors. The action of the group develops at the crossing point between etherotopic spaces’ exploration and disclosing practices’ exhibition of the audiovisual device.
RIGHT TO THE CITY, CIVIL RIGHTS, SOLIDARITY
Human Rights Watch – Defending Human Rights Worldwide
Human Rights Watch is the largest human rights organization based in the United States. Human Rights Watch researchers conduct fact-finding investigations into human rights abuses in all regions of the world. Human Rights Watch then publishes those findings in dozens of books and reports every year, generating extensive coverage in local and international media. This publicity helps to embarrass abusive governments in the eyes of their citizens and the world. Human Rights Watch then meets with government officials to urge changes in policy and practice -- at the United Nations, the European Union, in Washington and in capitals around the world. In extreme circumstances, Human Rights Watch presses for the withdrawal of military and economic support from governments that egregiously violate the rights of their people. In moments of crisis, Human Rights Watch provides up-to-the-minute information about conflicts while they are underway.
The purpose of Amnesty International is to investigate and expose abuses, educate and mobilize the public, and help transform societies to create a safer, more just world. Amnesty received the Nobel Peace Prize for its life-saving commitment. With more than 2.2 million supporters, activists and volunteers in over 150 countries, independent from government, corporate or national interests, Amnesty works to protect human rights worldwide. The vision is of a world in which every person - regardless of race, religion, gender, or ethnicity - enjoys all of the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights standards. Founded in 1961, Amnesty has campaigned successfully in recent years for the International Criminal Court and a UN Torture Treaty.
Habitat International Coalition acts as an international pressure group in defence of the rights of the homeless, the poor, and the inadequately housed. It promotes the creation of awareness among the public in general about human settlements problems as well as the exchange of information among its members.
http://www.righttothecity.org/
Right to the City (RTTC) is a newly formed alliance of base building organizations from cities across the country as well as researchers, academics, lawyers, and other allies, standing together under the notion of a Right to the City for all. Right to the City offers a framework for resistance and a vision for a city that meets the needs of working class people. It connects fights against gentrification and displacement to other local and international struggles for human rights, land, and democracy. The goal is to build a national urban movement for housing, education, health, racial justice and democracy.
UN Habitat analyses and studies human settlement patterns, and develops methods for controlled settlement with the preservation of the environment in mind. UN Habitat’s mission is to promote socially and environmentally sustainable human settlements development and the achievement of adequate shelter for all.
Free Tibet Campaign was established in 1987 to give a voice to Tibetan people suffering under the Chinese occupation and denied the freedom to tell the world of the human rights abuses taking place there. Since then they have grown to be the largest organisation working for Tibetan freedom in the UK with over 12,000 supporters.
http://www.tibetanyouthcongress.org/
The Tibetan Youth Congress (TYC) is a worldwide Organisation of Tibetans for the restoration of complete independence for the whole of Tibet, which includes the tradition three provinces of U-Tsang, Do-toe, and Do-med. An independent Organisation, with a written constitution and its own plans and programmes, TYC has emerged as the largest and most active non-governmental Organisation of Tibetans in exile. It has more than 30,000 members worldwide.
http://www.defendneworleanspublichousing.org/
Network in defense of public housing in New Orleans, doomed to demolition after Katrina. The current 4605 low-income public housing apartments in New Orleans will be replaced by 744 low-income public housing apartments. That results in a loss of 3,861 low-income public housing units – or 82%. Even including the market rate and mixed income apartments – there is a total loss of 2,764 apartments to New Orleans. The $762 million spread over the 1841 apartments comes to well over $400,000 per apartment. So, HUD’S plan is to spend three-quarters of a billion dollars to reduce public housing in New Orleans by 82%.
http://justiceforneworleans.org/
Government reports confirm that half of the working poor, elderly and disabled who lived in New Orleans before Katrina have not returned. Because of critical shortages in low cost housing, few now expect tens of thousands of poor and working people to ever be able to return home.
http://www.picturethehomeless.org/
Picture the Homeless was founded on the principle that homeless people have civil and human rights regardless of race, creed, color or economic status. Picture the Homeless was founded and is led by homeless people. They oppose the 'quality of life laws' that criminalize homeless people in any form by the city, state and national governments. They work to change these laws and policies as well as to challenge the root causes of homelessness. Their strategies include grassroots organizing, direct action, educating homeless people about their rights, public education, changing media stereotypes, and building relationships with allies.
NEW YORK - RELATED LINKS
Gotham Gazette attempts to explain issues facing New York and New Yorkers. They also have subsites with more specific focus. City Government (formerly Searchlight) is a guide to New York City government and politics. Immigrants (also called The Citizen) is a selection of articles from New York's immigrant/ethnic press, translated into English from some three dozen languages. Community Gazettes (also called Community) are a pioneering effort at covering every community in the city. Gotham Gazette has won many awards, including an Online Journalism Award for General Excellence, given by the Online News Association; the Innovator Award from the Pew Center for Civic Journalism; the Journalism Award from the New York chapter of the American Planning Association; a "Best of Reference" designation as one of the 25 most useful reference resources by the New York Public Library.
First published in 1976 as a newsletter for a group of housing organizations, City Limits quickly evolved into an independent news source with a reputation for hard-hitting reporting. In the 1970s and 1980s, they led the media with our coverage of arson-for-profit schemes, lead paint poisoning and racial steering in public housing. They also published award-winning articles on destructive real estate speculation and won praise for their exposés on the widespread sexual harassment of women tenants by landlords and building managers. In the 1990s and 2000s, they uncovered widespread fraud in HUD's 203(k) program, tracked controversial developments in the city’s policies towards homeless New Yorkers and revealed gaps in the support systems for low-income families and young people in New York. Today, they provide information and analysis on policies and players, strategies and programs--from the front lines of advocacy to affordable housing, from federal spending to local campaigns, from community gardens to inclusionary zoning.
Curbed is the publisher of several cutting-edge real estate, restaurant, and retail blogs. Fueled by a dedicated team of on-the-ground bloggers, Curbed’s network sites report daily on new developments, hot restaurants, store openings and a host of other issues central to the way we live today.
VOTE People is a communiuty organization working to speak the voice of communities impacted by economic, political and legal reform and to secure the fundamental rights of those communities. Currently, VOTE People is focusing on defeating New York City's proposal to rezone 125th Street, Harlem's main street. The rezoning would bring the mass displacement of long-time residents and small businesses while allowing for towering buildings to replace Harlem's internationally known and loved neighborhood charm. Worst of all, the plan was developed without meaningful consideration of the needs and interests of the community. VOTE People itself lives, works, and communes in Central Harlem and as such takes particular offense to the systematic exiling of its people and culture.
The Coalition to Save Harlem (CSH) is a movement of the people of Harlem to preserve and protect the Harlem black community. They represent community-based organizations, religious institutions, civic groups, local small businesses, artists and residents.
Gothamist is the first site in the Gothamist LLC network of blogs and the most popular local blog in New York. Founded in early 2003, Gothamist has been described by The New York Times as a "marvelous, not-to-be-missed Web site" that "reflects everything worth knowing about this city." Forbes described Gothamist as a "sophisticated, deliciously urbane city blog."
On the strength of its standout news coverage and writing and photography, The Villager was awarded the New York Press Association’s highest honor, the Stuart C. Dorman Award for Editorial Excellence, in 2005.
VillageVoice.com is an award-winning website with a monthly average audience of 2 million, covering cultural and political aspects of NYC life. When it was founded by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher and Norman Mailer in October of 1955, The Village Voice introduced free-form, high-spirited and passionate journalism into the public discourse. The recipient of three Pulitzer prizes, the National Press Foundation Award, the George Polk Award, Front Page Awards, Deadline Club Awards and many others, the Voice has earned a reputation for its groundbreaking investigations of New York City politics, and as the premier expert on New York's cultural scene. In addition, the Voice's daily-updated Web site www.villagevoice.com has twice been recognized as one of the nation's premier online sites for journalistic quality and local content. The site is a past winner of both the National Press Foundation's Online Journalism Award and the Editor and Publisher EPpy Award for Best Overall US Weekly Newspaper Online.
The New York Times Real Estate page is the primary source for informations on real estate, commercial properties, mortgages, land use in the New York Metropolitan Area.
http://vanishingnewyork.blogspot.com/
Vanishing New York a.k.a. The Book of Lamentations: a bitterly nostalgic look at a city in the process of going extinct.
