The cure for congested cities? Kenya is building new ones.

City Plants, an organization in Los Angeles, is partnering with other nonprofits, government agencies, scientists, and residents to create a more equitable urban forest throughout the city. By working together and using technology, they have planted more than 65,000 trees to combat climate change, systemic racism, and high temperatures that affect all Angelenos.

Environmental design interventions in Philadelphia (which include LED streetlight upgrades, vacant lot cleanups, community gardens, and planter installations) have contributed to measurable reductions in gun violence (including a 21% drop in nighttime gun violence after streetlight upgrades and a 39% decrease in gun crimes near remediated buildings). These interventions have also fostered community bonds and strengthened feelings of safety.

In an area long-known for poverty and poor health outcomes, residents in Mumbai are joining forces to lead a community-building initiative that works to create shared community spaces, such as libraries, workshops and designated areas for rest and play, specifically with women and children in mind, as city planning historically overlooks these needs and groups.

Students are paving the path for a more sustainable and environmentally conscious future in Azerbaijan. In a state that doesn't sort its garbage, this group of student-volunteers started "Papillon," a project aimed at up-cycling discarded waste into useful and aesthetic interior decorations and accessories.

Favelas, what some people might perceive as gang-filled slums surrounding the developed part of Rio de Janeiro, are in fact brimming with creative resilience that demonstrates the ingenuity of people in the face of a government that turns its back on them. Though gangs do exist, there are photographers attempting to show all views of the city. One man has transformed a trash hill into a garden. Others have built governing authorities to support their neighborhoods. All these people continue to innovate in the face of daily challenges.

Los Angeles is partnering with two nonprofits, the Los Angeles Neighborhood Initiative (LANI) and the Los Angeles Conservation Corps (LACC), to accelerate sidewalk repairs ahead of the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games. LANI has spent over two decades helping council districts fix broken sidewalks more cheaply and flexibly than the city's official process, and LACC pairs the repair work with paid job training for youth ages 18–26, with 30 participants already completing the program.

The Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk region of Connecticut implemented a coordinated anti-sprawl strategy focused on dense, mixed-use development near transit stations and downtown areas, using tactics like zoning reforms and eliminating parking minimums. The approach helped the region jump from the 7th worst for sprawl nationally to the 2nd most compact among mid-sized metros by 2020.

The Walls Project is using public murals, youth programming, and community volunteering to address blight and disinvestment in South Dallas. Since partnering with the city of Dallas in 2019, the organization has installed more than 14 murals across North Texas, generated over $6 million in economic opportunities for artists, and mobilized nearly 1,200 volunteers to address more than 860 instances of blight between 2020 and 2024. Community members report that murals have deterred vandalism, attracted visitors, and boosted neighborhood pride.

To address issues with the city’s old, slow subway system, Boston's MBTA implemented an aggressive repair and staffing strategy that included replacing 250,000 feet of aging track and expanding the workforce from 5,700 to 8,000 employees through increased wages and sign-on bonuses. As a result, on-time performance soared from 25% to 92%, rider satisfaction nearly doubled, and the system now runs 278 more trains daily.

The city of Lancaster invested nearly $12 million to create a walkable mixed-use development area along a main thoroughfare, with nine blocks of businesses and community spaces such as a library and a museum. The development has generated more than $270 million in economic output and residents say the area is now welcoming and encourages a sense of community.