By Michael Totty
Cities are hot (as in buzz, not global warming) among environmental thinkers, thanks in part to the growing consensus that dense urban areas represent the most sustainable way for billions of people to live (at least when compared with suburban sprawl). So we asked some economists, planners and urban experts to suggest the most influential books on sustainable cities. Here are their recommendations:
Matthew Kahn is a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, teaching in the school's Institute of the Environment and the departments of economics and public policy.
"Sustainability and Cities: Overcoming Automobile Dependence" By Peter Newman and Jeffrey Kenworthy
"The Transit Metropolis: A Global Inquiry" By Robert Cervero
Both books introduced me to the broad idea of how a city's urban form affects its residents' travel behavior. Put simply, when people live and work at higher density in closer proximity to fast public transit, they are more likely to use public transit, and the end result is a smaller per capita carbon footprint. It is important to note that none of these authors are economists—economists can learn plenty from urban planners!
Peter Weingarten is the director of architecture in the San Francisco office of the Gensler architecture, design and planning firm.
"Living in the Endless City" By Ricky Burdett and Deyan Sudjic, editors
"Living in the Endless City" is a companion to the 2008 publication "The Endless City." These two books are essential reading for anyone interested in a comprehensive understanding of the state of contemporary cities. Economic sustainability underpins any truly sustainable development. Few books do as good a job as these two at articulating the scope of challenges today's cities face. The contributors lay out a veritable mountain of information and statistics on the changes facing contemporary cities, from urban migration to energy consumption and climate change. READ MORE >>
via online.wsj.com
