Planning for Climate Leadership

Abstract

The profession of planning must act now to become an integral player addressing the existential crisis of climate change. This Commentary builds on the findings of the 2020–2021 Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning’s Presidential Climate Action Task Force, which assessed opportunities to enhance the academy’s climate leadership in research, teaching, and operations. We argue that our field must integrate climate research and education into all subfields, refocus on decarbonization, build a pipeline of diverse students involved in climate action, and develop the language and skills to grapple with planning for climate change.

Beyond Urban-Centered Responses: Overcoming Challenges to Build Disaster Resilience and Long-Term Sustainability in Rural Areas

“…Urban and regional planning, an interdisciplinary field focused on applying knowledge to real-world situations, plays a role in addressing the challenges of climate change [1]. The fields of disaster management and planning are increasingly recognizing the distinct challenges faced by rural communities-defined by the U.S. Census as geographies having a population less than 1000 persons per square mile [2].…”