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Upward Mobility Framework
2023This website details a framework and methodology on how to boost upward mobility for local communities. -
An Active Roadmap: Best Practices in Rural Mobility
July 2023This report belongs to the Active Transportation and Complete Streets collections. -
The Case for Climate-Informed Zoning: A Study of Fiscal Impact in Norfolk, VA
June 2023by: Katherine Burgess, Michael Rodriguez, Jordan Howard, Jared Klukas, Megan WrightThis article belongs to the Climate Change and Hazard Mitigation collections -
Planning and Zoning Guidance for Electric Vehicle Charger Deployment
August 2023This guide provides recommendations to help cities, towns, and counties plan and deploy electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure. -
Colorado Department of Local Affairs: Comprehensive Plans
Community Development and PlanningThis web page, maintained by the Colorado Department of Local Affairs: Division of Local Government details examples of both County and Municipal plan samples from selected for different attributes. -
Hawaii Office of Planning and Sustainabile Development: Hawaii State Planning Act
Hawaii State Planning ActThis web page, maintained by the Office of Planning and Sustainable Development, details the State Plan and Statewide Planning System. -
The Pathway of Urban Planning AI: From Planning Support to Plan-Making
Journal of Planning Education and Research, June 2023by: Zhong-Ren Peng, None, Yanghe Liu, Wei ZhaiThis article discusses the current and future problems and solutions that urban planners will face with AI and planning. -
West Chicago, IL, Adelante West Chicago Forward
Adopted 2021The city’s comprehensive plan was adopted on April 2021, organizes its core outcomes in 3 main pillars and 14 sub sections. -
Wake County, NC, PLANWake
Adopted April 2021The county’s comprehensive plan was adopted on April 2021, organizes its core outcomes in 3 main pillars. -
Maine Department of Agriculture, Conversation & Forestry: Comprehensive Plans
Municipal Planning Assistance ProgramThis web page provides links to local comprehensive plans in Maine. -
Fairfax, VA, 2035 Comprehensive Plan
Adopted February 2019The city’s comprehensive plan was adopted on February 2019, organizes its core outcomes in 5 main Chapters and 12 sub sections. -
Hilton Head Island, SC, Comprehensive Plan
Adopted October 2020The city’s comprehensive plan initially adopted on October 2020, organizes its core value in six subsequent chapters. -
Greensboro, NC, GSO2040
Adopted June 2020The city’s comprehensive plan initially adopted on June 2020, organizes its policy recommendations under 6 Big Ideas. -
Addressing the Sustainability Gap in the Development Review Process
September 2021by: Michael OrangeThis guide belongs to the Climate Change, Green Building, and Improving Development Review collections. -
An Open Letter to the Planning Community Regarding the Ethical Use of Artificial Intelligence in Planning
2023This briefing paper summarizes the potential applications of generative artificial intelligence models to planning tasks and offers guidance for planners to minimize risks associated with these technologies. -
Boston, MA, Interim Guidelines for Using Generative AI
May 2023This guide provides recommendations for city staff in Boston to help them use generative artificial intelligence in their work. -
Making ChatGPT Work for You: A Generative AI Prompt Guide for Public Servants
2023This guide compiles examples of potentially useful ChatGPT prompts for planners and other public-sector workers. -
18F Methods
March 2023This toolkit provides links to descriptions of various methods project leaders can use for specific human-centered design processes or process steps. -
DT Tools
2021This toolkit details all the steps of the design process in easy to read and understand processes to help streamline implementation. -
Design Thinking — Project in a Day
Toolbox of Smart Urban Innovation Participatory Methods & Tools, 2017This guide explains how planners can use information and communication technology (ICT) tools to engage participants in design thinking. -
Learning Brief: Design-Thinking to Accelerate Solutions for the Sustainable Development Goals
July 2020This briefing paper explains how teachers and other community stakeholders can use design thinking concepts to engage youth in projects to advance the United Nations’ sustainable development goals. -
Design for America Process Guide
Version 3.2, 2020This guide explains how interdisciplinary teams can use design thinking to solve complex problems in communities. -
Design Thinking Handbook
May 2017by: Eli WooleryThis guide presents a five-step design thinking framework to help designers better understand their end users and create lasting and meaningful change. -
Explainer: What Is “Human-Centered Design”?
Bloomberg Cities, January 2019by: Bloomberg CitiesThis article explains that concept of “human-centered design” and examines how and why cities should be using it to garner wider and more meaningful engagement. -
Design Thinking Is Fundamentally Conservative and Preserves the Status Quo
Harvard Business Review, September 2018by: Natasha IskanderThis article critiques the use of design thinking in many risk-averse organizations. -
Innovating the Planning Process Through Community-Centered Design
Planetizen, August 2015by: Sean O'Malley, Andrew Watkins, AICPThis article describes how planners and architects can use human and user-centered design concepts in their work. -
Human-Centered Design and Community Engagement
National Civic Review, Spring 2019by: Michelle CrandallThis article explores the concept of human-centered design in the context of local governmental community engagement processes. -
Harnessing Design Thinking to Transform Organizations and Inspire Innovation
ICMA, May 2013This article briefly explores the potential benefits of applying design thinking to local governmental processes. -
Design Enters the City: Requisites and Points of Friction in Deepening Public Sector Design
International Journal of Design, Vol 16(, No 3),: December 1–19, 2022by: Antti Pirinen, Kaisa Savolainen, Sampsa Hyysalo, Tuuli MattelmakiThis article explores the challenges and opportunities local officials in Helsinki, Finland, faced when applying design thinking principles to service design. -
Collaborative Planning, Transitions Management and Design Thinking: Evaluating Three Participatory Approaches to Urban Planning
Australian Planner, 54(1):1-10, May 2018by: Katrina Raynor, Andreanne Doyon, Tanja BeerThis article analyzes three participatory approaches to planning: collaborative planning, transitions management, and design thinking. -
Cycling Towards Sustainability: The Transformative Potential of Urban Design Thinking in a Sustainable Living Lab
Transportation Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives, 9: 100269, 2021by: Julian AlexandrakisThis article discusses how multi-sectoral partnerships that engage users in innovation to advance sustainable living can use urban design thinking to analyze problems and implement solutions. -
Co-Creating Smart Cities — Design Thinking for 21st Century Urban Planning
European Research Studies Journal, XXV(2): 301–3015, 2022by: Maria SchuldersThis article details why design thinking and co-creating smart cities as a planner is important to interact and conceive a city in as many different angles as possible. -
Art & Creative Placemaking (We-Making) Repository
2021This clearinghouse is searchable to find recent or current examples of projects within the WE-Making theory of change, while also centering pandemic recovery and/or racial justice. -
The Toolkit for Health, Arts, Parks and Equity
July 2020by: Matthew Clarke, Geneva VestThis toolkit offers health advocates case studies, and policy guidelines regarding place-based arts and culture in order to reach health equity. -
How Design Thinking Transformed A Neighborhood’s Creative Placemaking Strategy
January 2020by: Sarah Corlett, Caitlin BehleThis article describes how the design thinking process can strengthen creative placemaking strategies. -
Using Exploratory Scenarios in Planning Practice: A Spectrum of Approaches
Journal of the American Planning Association 86(4): 403-416, 2020by: Uri Avin, FAICP, Robert Goodspeed, AICPThis article illustrates different approaches to using exploratory planning in plan making contexts. -
Oregon Scenario Planning Guidelines
August 2017This guide provides a process that metropolitan areas can use to develop an initial framework of scenario planning processes, create an analysis of alternatives, and consider implementation strategies. -
Introduction to Exploratory Scenario Planning
June 2020This video series explains exploratory scenario planning methods. -
Scenario Planning for Slow-Growing Regions: A Guidebook and Case Study
January 2022by: Izzie Varley, AICP, Robert Goodspeed, AICP, K. John Egelhaaf, AICPThis guide discusses utilizing scenario planning strategies in areas with low growth rates. -
How Scenario Planning Affects Regional and Local Plans and Planning Practices
June 2020by: Arnab Chakraborty, FAICP, Stephen ShermanThis briefing paper discusses how regional scenario planning can influence both regional and local plans. -
Study on Metropolitan Planning Scenario Development: Costs and Benefits
March 2018This report evaluates the cost and benefits that metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) will see when developing scenarios as part of the Metropolitan Transportation Plan. -
Metropolitan Transportation Commission / Association of Bay Area Governments Scenario Planning Workshop
April 2018This report highlights presentations and activity results of a scenario planning workshop hosted by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission/Association of Bay Area Governments. -
Parks that Protect: Leveraging Waterfronts for Resilient Communities
March 2023This report uses case studies of waterfront park projects that were designed to improve health and quality of life while also reducing the threat of rising water levels and severe weather. -
Scenario Planning for Urban Planners: Toward a Practitioner's Guide
Journal of the American Planning Association 81(1): 18-29, 2015by: Arnab Chakraborty, FAICP, Andrew McMillanThis article describes the building blocks of scenario planning to help planners understand how to use it as a tool. -
San Jose, CA, Information Technology Department Generative AI Guidelines
July 2023This guide provides recommendations for using generative artificial intelligence (AI) models in the context of city operations. -
Seattle, WA, Generative Artificial Intelligence Policy
POL-209, October 2023This standalone policy establishes permissive uses of generative artificial intelligence for city staff members in Seattle, Washington. -
Re-Imagining Urban Spaces With DALL-E 2 AI
August 2022by: Jamie LittlefieldThis guide provides recommendations to help planners use DALL-E 2 generative artificial intelligence model to create generated images to assist with planning projects. -
The Constellation of Plans: Towards a New Structure of Comprehensive Plans in US Cities
Land 2022; October 2022by: Christine Quattro, AICP, Thomas DanielsThis article details how US cities are structuring their comprehensive plans around smaller neighborhoods, special topic, and sub plans to greater reach/expand the scope of their focus. -
Fate, TX, Forward Fate
Adopted October 2021by: The City of Fate, TexasThe city’s comprehensive plan, initially adopted in October 2021, includes 3 chapters. -
The Future of the Comprehensive Plan
Journal of Comparative Urban Law and Policy; Volume 5; Issue 1; 2022by: David Rouse, FAICPThis article explores how comprehensive plans will need to evolve in response to broad social, environmental, technological, and economic trends.