Africa
Cities and Revolution
Sarah Goodyear notes that while the internet shutdown in Egypt is getting all the attention, the real activism is happening on the streets of Cairo. City streets are the true gathering places for revolution.
Making the Desert Productive
Officials in Jordan are moving closer to creating an ambitious project aimed at producing food, fresh water and energy in the Sahara Desert.
Cairo 2050 Plan Makes Big Shifts in City
The Egyptian government is undertaking a broad plan to reimagine Cairo. The plan would redistribute the city's people and shuffle its industries to the outskirts of town. Some there see the plan as too much of a change.
A Prefab Prototype for Kenyan Villages
A Kansas City design team hopes its model for a prefabricated village can bring "simple, high-quality vernacular architecture" to the country's rural communities.
Meeting Slum Sanitation Needs Sustainably
With a collective population of more than 10 million, Kenya's slums face major sanitation issues. A new project offers a sustainable solution.
White Elephant Stadia Plague South Africa
Just months after the completion of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, expensive stadia built for the event sit empty and unused.
Nigerian Urban Renewal Project May Leave 200,000 Homeless
A waterfront redevelopment project in Port Harcourt is drawing fire from human rights advocates.
The Downfall of 'the Paris of the Middle East'
Historic architecture is rapidly being replaced by cookie-cutter high-rises in Cairo, much to the displeasure of local architects and historians.
Ghost Town Swallowed by Desert
A town built in the Namibian desert has been abandoned for decades. The sand has taken over.
Anger Upstream on the Nile
Egypt runs on the Nile's water. But with a growing population, Egypt's Ministry of Irrigation expects that the Nile will barely be able to meet the country's water needs by 2017. Its neighbors are increasingly angry about its overuse.
Pedestrianism a World Cup Legacy in Cape Town
Pedestrianism is on the rise in Cape Town, South Africa, where the recent World Cup has inspired more citizens to get out of their cars and put their feet on the street.
Friday Funny: Animal-Shaped Cities Planned in Sudan
Officials in Southern Sudan are floating a fleet of proposals to build new cities in the shape of animals and fruits.
Two Conflicting Population Issues Affecting The World
A population research group reports on two simultaneously occurring population trends in the world affecting developed and less developed nations: Working age adults have dropped precipitously, while poorer nations grow too fast.
Benefits and Burdens in Post-World Cup South Africa
The 2010 World Cup has ended in South Africa. What's left behind are a number of physical and cultural legacies that will be both landmark developments and potential economic hazards.
Mapping Kenya's Largest Slum
A new project has created a digital map of Kibera, a large slum outside Nairobi, Kenya.
Battling Over the Nile's Water, Forgetting About its Ecosystem
Despite flowing through ten different nations, the Nile's water is only technically the property of Egypt and Sudan. The other eight nations are trying to change that. But as the debate heats up, the river's ecosystem may be caught in the cross-fire.
Rapid Growth Puts Pressure on Planners in Cairo
"Officials argue that the main problem with Cairo is not that it is too big, but that three-quarters of its inhabitants are concentrated in a 20km radius from the center," reports Heba Saleh
As World Cup Ends, Olympic Dreams Spark in South Africa
Officials in South Africa say the country's successful hosting of the 2010 World Cup positions it to be a viable host for the Olympics.
Cairo Opens Design Competition for Its New Pedestrian Center
Cairo is revising its downtown area into a "pedestrian friendly plaza." Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif will expand the successful 'daytime pedestrian zones,' and has launched an international design competition to produce a master plan.
Four Cool World Cup Stadia and Their Uncertain Futures
The 2010 World Cup in South Africa has caused the creation or redesign of ten stadia. The Architect's Newspaper offers this list of four of the most interesting stadia and what future these expensive buildings may have.
Placer County
City of Morganton
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Dongguan Binhaiwan Bay Area Management Committee
City of Waukesha, WI
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority
Indiana Borough
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
