News

This section provides news about PASCAL together with significant developments in policy and research relating to the areas of interest to PASCAL. It is based on regular scanning of policy, practice and academic literature, including web-based sources.

We invite readers to submit items for consideration. Please send your contributions to our Submissions Administrator.

Safer Places, Passive Surveillance and Placemaking | Policies for Places

Safety is a vital ingredient of a successful place, yet stories in the media of violence and harassment in city streets and other ‘third places’ are everywhere. How should towns and cities respond? In this piece I want first to explore the idea of a safe place a little and outline broad perspectives which commonly underpin responses to promote place safety. Second, I set out some measures which are commonly taken relating to each perspective, and then third I will try to relate the implications of all this for the lived experience of cities and neighborhoods.

Should U.S. Cities and Urban Regions Have Their Own Economic Development Strategies? Part Two: The Question of Costs and Benefits - The Urban Lens Newsletter

Bob Gleeson started this thread of discussion last week and plans to continue building his line of thought soon.  While his discussion takes a broad, strategic look at this question, my own answer is more pragmatic: “Yes, they should.”  But the costs and benefits of each should be carefully, openly and honestly evaluated on a case by case basis.

Dark Days Ahead: A Fresh Look at Jane Jacobs's Warnings About Urban Life in the 21st Century - The Urban Lens Newsletter

The name Jane Jacobs is familiar to many of our readers.  Jacobs, who died in 2007, celebrated almost everything about cities.  Although she was born and raised amid the economic and social decline of Depression-era Scranton, Pennsylvania, Jacobs became a devoted believer in the positive potential of cities to overcome economic crises and create widespread prosperity and rich cultural experiences for all residents. 

15-minute Heritage, city neighborhoods and place identity | Policies for Places

I have already written several pieces here on the idea of the 15-minute city, currently much in vogue in city planning in numerous cities around the world. One of the claims of advocates of the concept is that by ‘living locally’ there can be increased sense of place and place identity and stronger social cohesion among residents.  These are usually claimed to be as a result of greater use of public spaces, more active travel and reduced car dependency and more frequent social contact through the use of local shops and facilities.

"Woke" and American Urban Policy, Present and Past: Part Two - The Urban Lens Newsletter

Based on our considerations of these, we tentatively recommended that the term should be expunged from serious policy discussions or decisions about urban America.

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14th PASCAL International Observatory Conference - South Africa

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