Blog
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September 4, 2026
Making Sense of Emerging Practice: AI in Planning Use Cases
The most common use cases of AI are permitting/development and transportation, but the variety of cases shows that planners and public agencies use AI across all scopes of their work. -
September 4, 2026
The Signals We Send: What Your Body Language Says Before Speaking a Word
Learn how to use body language to build trust, strengthen engagement, and communicate more effectively with colleagues, stakeholders, and community members. -
September 4, 2026
Trump Administration Proposes Federal Funding Guideline Change
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued its proposed Regulation for Federal Financial Assistance for public comment. The proposed rule makes a variety of changes affecting recipients of more than $1 trillion in federal funding. Learn more on the potential impacts on local planning and how APA is working to voice planners' concerns. -
August 27, 2026
New Toolkit Provides Gender‑Inclusive Mobility Strategies for Planners
Modern mobility and transportation systems have been designed primarily with men in mind. It is a reality that makes it harder on those who don’t — or can’t — travel during a default male user’s schedule. -
August 24, 2026
Data Centers and the Future of Economic Development
Data center development is a highly contentious local economic development issue. But it isn't happening in a vacuum. Data center development has the potential to amplify or mitigate five key challenges for the future of economic development. It also isn't the first large-footprint land use to spark widespread concerns. -
August 24, 2026
Turn Community Input Into Evidence, Not Anecdotes
Sponsored Content from Maptionnaire: In community engagement, sticky dots on a paper map look like real input. But who put each dot there, and why? Digital mapping turns that input into evidence, not anecdotes. -
August 24, 2026
Feeling Overwhelmed? Practical Ways Planners Can Rebuild Resilience
Psychologist Janelle McNeal shares how to balance demanding work with rest, recovery, and self-compassion. -
August 20, 2026
Longer Crosswalk Distances Linked to More Collisions
Uncovering JAPA: Longer pedestrian crossing distances are linked to higher collision rates, highlighting how planners can improve safety through targeted interventions such as curb extensions and refuge islands. -
August 19, 2026
Congratulations to the 2026 Divisions Council Achievement Awards Winners
Each year, the American Planning Association (APA) Divisions Council (DC) Achievement Awards recognize some of the most outstanding achievements across the 25 divisions, and the 2026 awards met that standard. -
August 13, 2026
Planner Profile: Meet Kestride Estil, AICP
Kestride Estil, AICP, is a planner, designer, and project manager in Atlanta, Georgia. Estil also is a member of the Georgia Chapter of the American Planning Association. -
August 11, 2026
APA Invites Planners to Shape National Planning Conference (NPC27) in Houston
NEWS RELEASE: APA invites educational session proposals for the 2027 National Planning Conference in Houston, inviting planners to share innovative ideas, research and practical solutions. Proposals are due August 26, 2026. -
August 10, 2026
Five Challenges for the Future of Economic Development
Five interrelated threats to the economic development status quo may necessitate new economic development approaches, methods, or tools: AI-related automation, e-commerce and remote work, declining birth and immigration rates, property tax revolt (redux), and climate change costs. -
August 7, 2026
Check In on Short-Term Rental Regulations Before Long-Term Residents Check Out
Spotlight on Zoning Practice: What have we learned over the past 15 years about what works when it comes to zoning for short-term rentals? -
August 6, 2026
The Evolving Municipal Bond Market for Housing
Uncovering JAPA: Learn how changes in the municipal bond market could affect affordable housing financing, public investment, and long-term housing affordability. -
July 30, 2026
Three Lessons from California's Gentle Density Efforts
Uncovering JAPA: Learn how California’s ADU reforms reveal the opportunities and challenges of using homeowners, and small developers, as drivers of neighborhood densification. -
July 27, 2026
State Limits on Local Zoning: By the Numbers
Over the past 10 years, many states have adopted laws that preempt aspects of local zoning authority. Some of these laws aim to increase housing supply, while others establish protections for specific nonresidential uses. Keeping up with these changes is challenging but necessary for planners. -
July 27, 2026
Rehearsing How to Respond to Uncertainty
Career Resilience: Learn how mental rehearsal can help make stressful situations feel less fraught with the unknowns. -
July 23, 2026
Behind-the-Scenes Secrets of Online Civic Engagement
Uncovering JAPA: Learn how digital engagement platforms can strengthen and undermine meaningful public participation, and what planners should consider before relying on such platforms. -
July 16, 2026
Designing Parks for the Ebb and Flow of Use
Uncovering JAPA: Learn how smartphone data is helping planners uncover the daily and seasonal rhythms of park use, leading to time-based park classifications that can inform more responsive design, programming, and management. -
July 14, 2026
Planner Profile: Meet Luis Balderrama, AICP
Planner Profile: Luis "Will" Balderrama, AICP, is a military planner and a member of the Alabama Chapter of the American Planning Association. -
July 13, 2026
Housing Reform: What's Inside the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Law
The following Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) provide a comprehensive overview of the bipartisan 21st Century ROAD to Housing law and its broader implications for the American housing market. -
July 11, 2026
American Planning Association Celebrates Enactment of Bipartisan Housing Law to Boost Supply
NEWS RELEASE: APA applauds the enactment of the bipartisan 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act into law, a landmark investment in planning-led housing solutions that provides communities with new tools to increase housing supply, improve affordability, and expand housing choice. -
July 10, 2026
Could a Zoning Overlay Turn the Tide on Coastal Resilience?
Spotlight on Zoning Practice: Planners need new tools to mitigate climate-related risks in coastal communities. One such tool is the Coastal Hazards Overlay District (CHOD), new type of zoning overlay that encourages communities to diversify their risk reduction strategies. -
July 10, 2026
Lessons from Rural Community Development
Uncovering JAPA: Learn how rural community development informs planning through local capacity, collaboration, and community-driven solutions that bridge the urban-rural divide and address rural needs. -
July 2, 2026
Where Will the Warehouses Go?
Uncovering JAPA: Learn how planners are using zoning to manage warehouse development and why stronger environmental justice policies are essential for more equitable freight planning. -
June 30, 2026
What New Zealand Taught Me About Climate Planning
As an Axford Fellow, Paul Holland, AICP, was eager to explore the link between security challenges in the Pacific Islands and the climate impacts affecting land use, as well as how New Zealand addresses climate policy challenges. -
June 29, 2026
The Art of Listening: How Creativity Helped Shape Petaluma River Park
Petaluma's Poets to Parkmakers used poetry, visual art, music, and storytelling to engage more than 5,000 residents in shaping a community-driven vision for a 35-acre riverfront park. -
June 23, 2026
Housing Reform Win: 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act Crosses the Finish Line
The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act has been signed into law, marking a years-in-the-making win for planning advocates and their communities nationwide. -
June 23, 2026
Mapping Pride: Atlanta's Effort to Document LGBTQ History
Atlanta established and maintains a process for documenting its LGBTQ+ history while identifying opportunities to recognize and preserve places that played important roles in the community's development. -
June 23, 2026
American Planning Association Applauds Historic Passage of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act
NEWS RELEASE: APA applauded the passage of the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, a bipartisan package that supports planning-led solutions to expand housing supply and affordability. -
June 22, 2026
Integrating Wildfire Planning: Lessons from Chile and Victoria, Australia
Uncovering JAPA: Learn how planning approaches in Chile and Victoria, Australia, can better integrate wildfire risk into land use planning and development decisions. -
June 18, 2026
Rethinking Staff Reports: Lessons from Fashion and Art
Uncovering JAPA: Discover how creative formats and group reflection can improve planning staff reports by making complex information clearer, more engaging, and easier for commissioners and staff to understand and use in decision-making. -
June 16, 2026
Planners on the 'ROAD' to Housing Advocacy
Planners brought their expertise and community stories to virtual meetings with Capitol Hill to advocate for federal support for housing action through the highly anticipated 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act. -
June 11, 2026
How Can We Fix Zoning’s Blank-Slate Bias?
Spotlight on Zoning Practice: How can planners and local officials break down zoning barriers to new uses or structures on previously developed sites? -
June 10, 2026
USDOT Pilot Program Seeks Innovative Transportation Proposals
U.S. Department of Transportation recently announced a $28.5 million Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to invest in making mass transit more family-friendly and affordable. -
June 8, 2026
Bonnie Johnson, PhD, FAICP, Named Book Review Editor of Journal of the American Planning Association (JAPA)
NEWS RELEASE: APA welcomes Bonnie J. Johnson as the new book review editor of the Journal of the American Planning Association (JAPA). -
June 1, 2026
Five Tips for Creating Resilient Planning Careers
Five key takeaways from the NPC26 Career Center in Detroit on how planners can build resilient, fulfilling careers through mentorship, continuous learning, and community connection. -
June 1, 2026
Here's How FEMA Could Change — and Why It Matters
FEMA review council’s proposed reforms could shift more disaster planning, housing, mitigation, and recovery responsibilities to state and local governments — making planners far more central to resilience efforts while raising concerns about capacity and funding. -
May 22, 2026
Preserving Cultural Identity Along the Green Line: The Little Mekong Story
The Little Mekong initiative in St. Paul demonstrates how community-focused planning and cultural placemaking can preserve a thriving Southeast Asian business corridor in coordination with transit-oriented development. -
May 21, 2026
Landmark Housing Legislation Advances: U.S. House Passes 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act
The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives in a 396-13 vote on Wednesday, May 20, marking another significant step forward for federal action on housing solutions for communities nationwide. -
May 20, 2026
Planner Profile: Meet Sarah Lucas, FAICP
Sarah Lucas, FAICP, the director of the Michigan Office of Rural Prosperity, is dedicated to supporting rural communities in the state. -
May 19, 2026
Integrating Art and Creativity Into Public Engagement
Thousands of planners convene each year in a designated host city for the American Planning Association's (APA) National Planning Conference (NPC). The Planners' Day of Service provides visiting planners with an opportunity to make a positive impact on NPC's host community. -
May 18, 2026
AI and Knowledge Work: Critical Thinking
While AI in knowledge work presents opportunities for growth and upskilling, the use of AI may also lead to overreliance or other changes to the way we do our jobs and work with communities. Understanding both the pros and cons of using AI in planning work is essential for making informed decisions about integrating it into the workplace and job descriptions. -
May 18, 2026
Housing Supply Accelerator Convenes to Drive America’s Housing Comeback Forward
Planners, homebuilders, realtors, and city leaders gathered in Detroit on Friday, April 24, to share what’s driving America’s Housing Comeback. With an agenda focused on land use and zoning reform and their impact on local housing systems, experts provided what’s worked for them in their communities and how they got there. -
May 14, 2026
Would Your Zoning Let Vertical Farming Grow?
Spotlight on Zoning Practice: Planners and local officials can remove unintentional zoning barriers to vertical farming by establishing clear use permissions for intensive indoor agricultural operations and tailoring zoning standards for vertical farming to its specific operational characteristics. -
May 12, 2026
Thank You AICP and APA!
After an amazing weekend in Detroit at the American Planning Association’s (APA) National Planning Conference (NPC26) in Detroit, I feel compelled to say thank you to the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP) and APA. I can’t imagine where I would be without either of them. -
May 11, 2026
Recognizing APA Presidential Award Recipients
Honoring the recipients of the 2026 APA President Awards. -
May 6, 2026
No Place to Stop: What Truck Data Reveals About the Parking Gap
Sponsored Content from Altitude by Geotab: New data reveals where and when truck drivers park on ramps due to limited authorized spaces. Learn why planners should view parking as a critical safety and infrastructure need, not just a convenience. -
May 4, 2026
Tips for Maintaining Capacity in Planning to Avoid Burnout
Get tips for how to manage capacity to help prevent burnout in the workplace. -
May 4, 2026
The Silent Signal: What the Insurance Crisis Means for Planners
Explore how climate-driven insurance market failures (canceled policies, soaring premiums, insurer exits) are reshaping where housing is viable and argues that planners must treat "insurability" as a key input to land-use decisions, equity, and managed retreat planning.
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