Years ago, Topeka city leaders heard criticism from stakeholders that the government was not transparent. City leaders are now committed to providing the public with timely and reliable information on decisions and performance.

On Thursday, June 26, MPC and Enterprise Community Partners hosted a conversation with several community leaders to discuss the short and long term impacts of the COVID-19 on Chicago’s immigrant communities, necessary actions, and the intersections with the Movement for Black Lives.

The Bandung project sought to increase access to public procurement information and improve various actors’ ability to monitor the public contracting system, including government staff, vendors, civic groups and journalists. Despite strong initial interest and uptake of the data, maintaining engagement has proved challenging. In this post, Michael introduces the project and offers words of advice to those carrying out similar initiatives. 

When cities adapt smart city solutions to meet emerging needs, they risk jeopardizing public confidence in future initiatives. Leaders in the smart city space emphasize the importance of engaging citizens to get their support for smart city projects.

The creators of “tactical urbanism” sit down with Streetsblog to talk about where their quick-build methods are going in a historic moment that is finally centering real community engagement.

Learning from Bryant Park: Revitalizing Cities, Towns, and Public Spaces, is an entertaining and important book for urbanists across America.

Making public space unwelcome is a perversion of its purpose, writes ASLA president Wendy Miller in this op-ed, and we need to keep it open to all.

Microsoft funds Digital Skills Ed, how human-centered design helped city officials in Seattle massive increase testing for COVID-19, the U.S. Senate introduces a new $100 billion broadband infrastructure bill, and more.

Among the complex medley of moving parts that guide protest movements, urban design might seem like a fairly peripheral concern. But try telling that to demonstrators from Houston to Beijing, two cities that have geographic characteristics that complicate public protest. Low urban density can thwart mass participation. Limited public space can deprive protesters of the visibility and hence the momentum they need to sustain themselves. On those occasions when proceedings turn messy or violent, alleyways, parks, and labyrinthine apartment buildings can mean the difference between detention and escape.

Cities and communities are beginning to develop new ways of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic that seek to make the most of the collective intelligence of urban areas.

A study found that gamified e-participation is linked to increased engagement, motivation, civic learning and enjoyment amongst other outcomes. 

Smart city leaders from Houston, New Orleans and Columbus, Ohio, discussed their vision for tomorrow's cities following widespread disruptions brought on by the pandemic, economic hardships and social unrest.

A year-long trial of ways in which residents South Ribble can get more involved in decision-making in the district is set to begin. Amongst the changes to be tested is a revamp of the borough’s five longstanding “My Neighbourhood Forums”, which provide a platform for residents to raise concerns and requests for action in their area.

The effects of climate change will disproportionately threaten New Yorkers of color. Green participatory budgeting can tackle both climate change and create a more equal, democratic society.

Walter Hood, ASLA, author of “Black Landscapes Matter”, discusses planning and designing landscapes that allow for a diversity of narratives and perspectives, instead of homogenized landscapes that just say one thing to one group of people.

Grassroots-generated skepticism points to a real need for better-designed processes around local, smart city deployments — processes that safeguard resident opinions, resident consent, and procedural justice as urban innovation is pursued.

Having access to reliable, high-speed internet is not a reality for many millions of people across the United States. With so many of Americans’ day-to-day tasks—such as learning and working—relying on broadband access, what are communities doing to get more people connected?

Some projects, like road safety improvements, need community vetting before they can move forward, but in-person public meetings can’t happen right now. What are governments doing? Are public meetings online worse, or better, than their in-person counterparts?

Both the coronavirus pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement create opportunities to reshape cities in more equitable ways. Why predictions of the impending end of cities are overblown — and why they may come back stronger.

Does the potential of the 21st Century data-collecting, responsive, hyperconnected city benefit us all equally? Is it built with resident understanding, feedback, and consent?

Building relationships and using respectful communication are the most effective routes to change attitudes, beliefs and ultimately behaviors. Explore several bodies of research that inform this theory.

The cities of Albuquerque, Austin, Grand Rapids, Louisville and Philadelphia are taking important steps in transforming their city government and programs to embrace racial equity.

The critical role that good pedestrian infrastructure plays in city life has been exposed by the coronavirus lockdowns. Why can’t cities fix their sidewalk gap?

A listing of organizations whose work falls into four categories: 1) Data-Driven Research, 2) Data Driven Activism and Advocacy. 3) Data-Driven Journalism, and 4) Data to Measure Racial Injustice.