Environment
Lessons from Rockaway: What to Save from the Flood
In a personal reflection on growing up in middle-class Rockaway, Yael Friedman calls for more nuanced understanding of how planning for a more resilient city can — and must — incorporate more than environmental concerns alone.
City of Soil: A Walk Down Stratford Avenue with Paul Mankiewicz
Biologist and plant scientist Paul Mankiewicz explains the Gaia Hypothesis, the inherent environmental productivity of organisms, and why the city's waste stream is our greatest untapped ecological and economic asset.
A Diagram of Occupy Sandy
Adam Greenfield maps the flows and processes of an Occupy Sandy relief hub to demonstrate the potential of a permanent mutual-aid infrastructure for New York.
Energy Drink
The city’s watershed includes 19 reservoirs, three lakes, 7,000 miles of water pipes, tunnels and aqueducts, and 7,400 miles of sewer lines — and perhaps many megawatts of untapped energy.
From the Editors: Build It Back Smarter
The editors of Urban Omnibus reflect on the scale of Superstorm Sandy in terms of government response, climate change, and infrastructure investment.
Cities and Climate Change: Small Enough to Act, Big Enough to Matter
Shin-pei Tsay calls on urbanists to better communicate the crucial role cities can play in addressing the global challenges of climate change.
Urban Industry Redefined: The Brooklyn Navy Yard
Caitlin Blanchfield looks at how a historic shipbuilding facility is fostering a new culture of industry in New York, one informed by a sophisticated understanding of local dynamics, regional economics, and global challenges.
Undercity: The Infrastructural Explorations of Steve Duncan
Steve Duncan — historian, photographer and explorer — reflects on wastewater infrastructure, underground rivers, and the thrills and urban lessons he's discovered beneath the surface of cities.
Making Connections: Planning for Green Infrastructure in Two Bridges
Kerri Culhane explains how geographical, historical and architectural factors make the Two Bridges neighborhood uniquely suited to realize the environmental, economic and social benefits of green infrastructure.