Some facilities in Ocean County, N.J. are experimenting with the ultimate in low-energy daytime lighting: using the sun directly to light spaces. This alternative to light bulbs can save energy and boost productivity.

Petroleum is Florida’s number one energy source and demand is growing. Transportation and power generation are the two areas where petroleum use must be reduced in order to reduce dependence on oil. This report is a synopsis of petroleum supply and demand in Florida, followed by a best-case scenario for reducing use of petroleum.

Portland, Ore., and California’s Silicon Valley are leaders in a new paradigm, a high efficiency and environmentally low impact model, reversing Americans’ profligate, high-impact, low-efficiency culture of the past half century. One element in the transition: demand for oil is exceeding supply. Shifts have to be made.

Rutgers University planning school Dean James W. Hughes recently imparted two essential lessons about planning and the economy in the 21st century. First, resource constraints and reduced consumption are the future. And second, distance matters again.

A course offered as part of the AICP's Certification Maintenance program. Streets ought to be for everyone, but in too many communities streets are the domain of speeding cars or traffic jams. In this course, you'll learn how to complete the streets to make them safe and inviting for pedestrians, bicyclists, wheelchair users, transit riders, and drivers. Learn a six-step process to development and implement a complete streets program.

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom recently issued an executive order to city departments to fast-track permitting for small wind projects. "Everybody's doing solar now; it's exciting," Newsom said. "But wind hasn't gotten to that level." A team of technical advisors and a Wind Taskforce will be working to encourage small-scale wind projects.

As oil prices surged this year, manufacturers raised the prices of a lot of products — not just gasoline but lotions, toothpaste, plastics and many more items that use oil as a raw material. But even now that oil prices are dropping, the manufacturers are loath to lower their prices until they recoup what they lost in the runup - and are sure the prices won't go up again.

Alaskan towns like Haines Borough are seeing greatly increased food bills due to high freight costs. These greater expenses compound the impact of already burdensome increased energy costs.

New London, Connecticut is turning the clock back on a public square that was 're-muddled' in the 1970s. In fact, there's a lot to learn from the ways we built and organized our communities before the modern era. The success of our cities in the post-carbon era may depend on it.

In Montpelier, Vermont, city leaders are enlisting the help of residents to keep their neighbors safe during the winter, when many are expected to be at risk due to the cost of heating fuel. The volunteers will be helping to share information and assembling a bit of a social safety net.