Governance
A broad category of content focused on governance in cities.
Examples: Urban policy, justice, municipal services
On Benjamin Barber: Cities, democracy, and global governance
The passing last month of visionary thinker Dr. Benjamin Barber occurred during a difficult stretch for democracy, the topic that animated Barber the most during his long career. A passionate advocate for democracy, Barber devoted his life to empowering citizens for democratic self-governance.
Barber’s contributions will be missed all the greater because he was more than a fascinating theorist; he put his ideas into practice, as the charismatic driving force behind the Global Parliament of Mayors (GPM). Launched in the Netherlands last September, GPM realizes Barber’s thinking: if cities are bastions of democracy, then cities need to become a more organized force at the global level. GPM advances this cause by giving cities as diverse as Athens, Buenos Aires, Oklahoma City, Rabat, and Seoul a platform on which their leaders can more easily connect, find practical solutions to common problems, and turn their collective ambition into independent action on the world stage.
Improving the Journey to Work Benefits Commuters, Communities, and Companies
Every day an estimated 130 million Americans travel to jobs located in dense urban centers, suburban office parks, and rural communities. The choices these individuals make on how they commute are influenced not only by the convenience and affordability of...
Universal Basic Income: Does the Carrot Work Better than the Stick?
Automation and robots will destroy jobs but create work. How will we secure employment in the future? Since 1970s, social policies on both sides of the Atlantic have been dominated by workfare policies where the payment of benefits is made conditional on participation...
Eight Ten Moneyball Metrics for Competitive Cities
In a world where people can increasingly choose to live anywhere, cities have to compete in ways that they never anticipated. However, there are some not-so-obvious “Moneyball” metrics that will help to promote city attractiveness, sustainability, resilience, and success.
San Jose Tackles Challenge of Digital Equity
As the Capital of Silicon Valley, San José is the “center of the universe” for innovation and disruptive technologies powered by the Internet economy. The San José metro area is the most connected region in the United States according to the 2015 American Communities...
Connecting the Dots Towards Well-Being
Every year, the U.S. Census Bureau fields more than 130 surveys, collecting literally hundreds of millions of data points that tell us how people in our country of nearly 320 million are faring. This is not counting other public, non-governmental and private data...
Bridging Divided Cities, a Challenge to Policy-Makers and City Planners
For the last 200 years humankind has been going through a fundamental social and demographic change: the emergence of a planet of towns and cities. This densification of human and economic relations had to be supported with increasing connectivity and mobility...
The UN’s New Urban Agenda Is Official…Now What?
The statistics are impressive. 30,000 people participated in Habitat III in Quito, Ecuador this year, the bi-decennial conference otherwise known as the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development. Over 500 networking events, panels and...
Corporations Lead in 100 Percent Renewables
This November, Microsoft contracted for a massive 237 MW of wind power in Kansas and Wyoming. Most new electricity generation in the U.S. is from wind and solar, with much of the electricity being purchased by major corporations, like Microsoft. These corporations are...
Voters Support of Municipal Bond Packages Nationwide – Opening Up Huge Contracting Opportunities for Private-Sector Contractors
Deteriorating transportation and water infrastructure, the need for affordable housing, school district overcrowding, transportation and public safety needs along with aging government facilities nearing the end of life expectancy brought out large numbers of voters...
Urban Innovator of the Week: Judy Reese Morse
This profile was originally published by Urban Innovation Exchange in partnership with Meeting of the Minds and Kresge Foundation. For more stories of people changing cities, visit UIXCities.com and follow @UIXCities. Judy Reese Morse is the Deputy Mayor for Citywide...