Planning
Book Review of “Building and Dwelling: Ethics for the City” by Richard Sennett
by Andrew Kinaci
Renowned sociologist and public intellectual Richard Sennett’s forthcoming book, “Building and Dwelling: Ethics for the City,” is a sweeping, interdisciplinary examination of urban planning and urban life. Sennett sets a...
City Branding: What Role in Placemaking? #TheGlobalGrid Pre-Chat Post
by Sarah Essbai
Cities around the world are competing to attract talent, investment, and business; the pillars of economic success and growth. The effects can be found in planning documents, economic development strategies and growth vi...
Book Review of “The New Urban Crisis” by Richard Florida
by Karsen Maruca
In "The New Urban Crisis: How Our Cities Are Increasing Inequality, Deepening Segregation, and Failing the Middle Class - And What We Can Do about It," author Richard Florida identifies and wrestles with one of the great...
Tiergarten: Berlin’s Central Park Becomes A Home for the Homeless
by Brittany Garcia
Tiergarten literally translates to “animal garden” from German to English. The parliamentary, government and diplomatic district in the German capital is named after this so-called animal garden. Tiergarten is considered...
Book Review of “A $500 House in Detroit” by Drew Philp
by Sean Glowacz
“A $500 House in Detroit: Rebuilding an Abandoned Home and an American City,” by Drew Philp, is the story of Philp’s exploration for significance and purpose, and an expansive assessment of life in urban America. Drew Ph...
What makes a business 'sustainable'? Here are two examples of award-winning green businesses in Boston
by Alyssa Curran
Pop Quiz: what is a sustainable business? From the first Earth Day in 1970 to the hundreds of Chief Sustainability Officers appointed in corporations and city governments today, “going green” has incrementally come in...
Autonomous Driving: Are Cities Ready? #TheGlobalGrid January Twitter Chat Recap
by Sarah Essbai
On Wednesday, January 17th, we hosted #TheGlobalGrid inaugural Twitter chat of 2018. Autonomous driving was the highly requested topic of the month and for good reason. We’ve all heard of the self-driving cars' promise t...
Famous Tempelhof Airport Remains Berlin's Playground
by Brittany Garcia
Oxford Dictionary defines “airport” as, “a complex of runways and buildings for the take-off, landing, and maintenance of civil aircraft, with facilities for passengers.” People have now been traveling by air for just ov...
Berlin's East Side Gallery: A Symbol of Unity in a City Once Separated
by Brittany Garcia
President Ronald Reagan once famously proclaimed: “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” Reagan was referring to the Berlin Wall, which physically and ideologically divided Germany from 1961 until 1989 due to the Cold War...
Autonomous Driving: Are Cities Ready? #TheGlobalGrid Pre-Chat Post
by Sarah Essbai
We’ve all read it or heard it: It’s only a matter of time before self-driving cars, also known as autonomous vehicles, become part of our streetscape. For the first time in decades, here is an innovation that promises to...
5 Reasons Why Berlin's Urban Form is Different from the Rest of Germany
by Brittany Garcia
Many visitors that explore Berlin are often puzzled by the eclectic appearance of its sea of buildings, and often dislike this incoherence. Generally, people wonder why Berlin lacks a coherent style that is undeniably r...
How Berlin Wall's Fall Increased Access to Green Public Open Spaces
by Brittany Garcia
The wise Kermit the Frog once said, “It’s not easy being green,” and he couldn’t have been more right. “Why is that?” you may ask. The simple answer to your question: urbanization. According to United Nations fore...