Paris is tackling its housing crisis not only by building more homes, but by changing how the existing housing stock is used. From vacancy taxes and tourist-rental restrictions to office conversions and public acquisitions, its experiment asks how far a city can regulate housing use without undermining the private rental market.
Read MoreParis Housing Policy: Can the City Unlock the Homes It Already Has
The Happy City Index 2026 ranks 250 cities using 64 indicators, but does it actually measure happiness? New Polis examines the methodology and compares the ranking with residents’ own assessments of urban life, revealing where the two perspectives align and where they diverge.
Read MoreHappy City Index 2026: What Does It Really Measure?
In conversation with MVRDV architect Dimitrije Milić, we explore what changes when carbon, density, ecology, and uncertainty are treated not as themes around architecture, but as material within the design process.
Read MoreBeyond Iconic Architecture: Dimitrije Milić on Designing with Consequence
Artificial light at night supports urban safety and mobility, yet excessive and poorly designed lighting affects ecosystems, sleep, energy use and the visibility of the night sky. This article examines the pace of light pollution, its consequences in Europe, and three possible approaches to designing safer and more sustainable urban lighting.
Read MoreUrban Light Pollution: How Cities Can Balance Safety, Nature and the Night Sky
Cycling is increasingly recognised as one of the most effective investments in sustainable urban mobility, yet cities across the Western Balkans continue to struggle with car dependency and limited cycling infrastructure. In this interview, one of Serbia's leading cycling advocates discusses the progress being made, the political and cultural barriers that remain, and why cycling infrastructure in the Western Balkans is essential for healthier, more liveable and more resilient cities.
Read MoreCycling Infrastructure in the Western Balkans: Why Streets Must Work for People, Not Cars
World Cup stadiums are more than sporting venues - they are long-term urban development projects that reshape land use, investment and governance. Their legacy depends not only on architecture or sustainability, but on how they transform the cities and communities around them.
Read MoreWorld Cup Stadiums: Land, Power and the Urban Legacy Beyond Football
Modern libraries have evolved far beyond their traditional role, becoming essential institutions that support education, digital inclusion, AI literacy, and community resilience. This article explores how libraries contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals through lifelong learning, equitable access to information, and partnerships that strengthen sustainable development.
Read MoreLibraries and Sustainable Development: How Libraries Support the Sustainable Development Goals
Urban heat resilience strategies increasingly rely on digital tools, heat mapping, and building performance models, yet trees remain largely excluded from the systems used to guide investment and regulatory decisions. This article examines why urban forests continue to be treated as contextual elements rather than critical cooling infrastructure, despite extensive evidence of their thermal, social, and public health benefits. It argues that integrating tree canopy data into urban heat resilience planning is essential for equitable and effective climate adaptation.
Read MoreThe tree in the machine: Why urban heat resilience planning still can’t see the tree
This comprehensive analytical review breaks down the newly released WMO Global Annual to Decadal Climate Update for 2026–2035. Presenting data from 13 leading global prediction centers, it details a critical 91% probability of temporarily breaching the 1.5°C warming threshold within the next five years. Ultimately, the analysis translates these accelerating macroeconomic climate risks into actionable strategic adaptations required by modern urban planners and renewable energy engineers.
Read MoreIs the Earth Getting Hotter? New WMO Forecast Charts a Path to Unprecedented Global Warmth
World Bicycle Day is more than a celebration of cycling; it is a reminder of the growing importance of urban cycling infrastructure in shaping sustainable cities. From Paris and London to the Western Balkans, investments in protected bike lanes are improving air quality, reducing congestion, and making active mobility a realistic transport option.
Read MoreWorld Bicycle Day: Why Urban Cycling Infrastructure Is Becoming Essential for Modern Cities