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How Stockholm Is Sprouting Healthy Trees From Concrete

Peter Yeung

March 04, 2025 |

Reasons to be Cheerful |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Sweden, Stockholm

The "Stockholm tree pit” model involves digging a pit and constructing a frame underground around an urban tree’s roots, then filling this pit with a mixture of soil and stone to both aerate and fertilize the soil while also allowing rain water to be collected. The circumference of select planted trees increased from 30 to 35 centimeters to 100 and 136 centimeters between 2004 and 2024, even surpassing that of trees without the tree pits that have been there for more than 80 years.

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How Upzoning in Cambridge Broke the YIMBY Mold

Kriston Capps

March 03, 2025 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Cambridge’s new zoning reform lessens housing restrictions by allowing property owners and developers to build six-story apartments — through a process called upzoning — to accommodate more residents on a single lot in areas that were previously restricted to single-family homes. The city previously aimed to build 350 new units by 2040, but with the new zoning reform, that estimate has grown to 4,880.

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A Free-Transit Prescription for Healthier Communities

Elizabeth Hewitt

January 24, 2025 |

Reasons to be Cheerful |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Kansas City, Missouri

Kansas City is the largest U.S. city to adopt a zero-fare policy since its public bus system stopped charging riders in 2020. This policy change gives riders more financial flexibility and improves social and physical health outcomes as residents are walking more to get to bus stops and are also more connected to the community through increased access to transportation.

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How 'Superblocks' Can Create People-Centered Cities

Kaja Šeruga

January 16, 2025 |

Reasons to be Cheerful |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Spain, Barcelona

Superblocks are areas in congested cities where traffic has been rerouted to prioritize people. Outfitted with green spaces and communal areas to connect, superblocks help reduce air and noise pollution. Residents living in the area report a higher quality of life and increased social interaction with their neighbors. The idea of superblocks has traveled around the world to cities like Vienna, Berlin, Buenos Aires, and Los Angeles.

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Texas Trees launches a five-year plan to make South Dallas more green

María Ramos Pacheco

December 04, 2024 |

Dallas Morning News |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Dallas, Texas

The Texas Trees Foundation is bringing thousands of trees to Dallas communities experiencing the worst of the urban heat island effect to help keep them cool. The organization supplies the trees and teaches residents how to care for them.

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Building for the climate: How it's done in Switzerland

Jens von Larcher

November 24, 2024 |

Deutsche Welle (DW) |

Video |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: Switzerland

A cooperative in Switzerland is building sustainable apartments using recycled materials and green building practices to create carbon-neutral communal living spaces. These “cluster apartments” cut down on living space per person and save energy.

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In Warsaw, Falling Road Deaths Signal a Traffic Safety Turnaround

Agnieszka Barteczko

November 01, 2024 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Poland, Warsaw

In an effort to reach Vision Zero, the Swedish safety strategy that aims to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries, Warsaw has implemented measures that have dropped the number of road deaths by 55% over the last 10 years. Strategies like upgraded crosswalks, increased fines for lawbreaking drivers and the creation of roundabouts are just some of the methods that have helped make the roads safer, and the city plans to double its investment over the next four years.

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Borno's New Mass Transit Lightens Commuter's Load, but Challenges Persist

Hadiza Ibrahim Ngulde

October 21, 2024 |

Prime Progress |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Nigeria, Borno State

The government’s new mass transit system is making transportation cheaper and more accessible amid fare increases. With its fleet of buses and taxis, the Borno State Mass Transport System is strategically placing shuttle buses in areas with high commuter traffic, making affordable transportation more accessible.

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Inside the 'Utopias' of Mexico City

Andrea Navarro

October 15, 2024 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Mexico, Iztapalapa, Mexico City

Mexico City’s Utopias are large community centers that offer a wide variety of services and amenities, including skills workshops, gym classes, landromats, food and music lessons. There are currently 15 across one borough, and the incoming administration plans to develop more than 100 in total.

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Where Has Vienna's 'Coolness' Gone?

Naz Küçüktekin

October 07, 2024 |

Transitions Online |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Austria, Vienna

Vienna’s cool streets provide a safe outdoor space to escape the heat in the summer. The city used a heat map and population data to select streets with high concentrations of residents who are particularly vulnerable to extreme heat, like children and the elderly. At the selected locations, traffic was limited and asphalt was covered with turf, benches, mist machines, and water fountains.

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