True Urbanism: Planning Healthy, and Child-Friendly Communities

[i]48th International Making Cities Livable Conference [/i] Charleston, SC, October 17-21, 2010 Co-Sponsors: City of Charleston & IMCL Council This conference focuses on ways to improve children’s health and development by improving the built environment. The conference will bring together 350-400 delegates - elected officials, practitioners and scholars in planning, urban design, land use development, landscape architecture, architecture, public health, pediatrics and child development from around the world to begin to develop tools for changing the way developers build, and how cities reshape existing neighborhoods. Those wishing to present papers on topics listed below should submit a 250 word abstract for consideration [b]before November 15, 2009[/b]. Please submit online, following the Call for Papers Guidelines on the web at http://www.livablecities.org/conferences/forthcoming-conferences/18.html. Your application form should state title of paper, name of author, affiliation and full contact information. Paper abstracts must be prepared for blind peer review: they should include title of paper, and omit identifying information. Notification will be sent within 4 weeks of submission. Final papers will be due June 15, 2010. Accepted papers must be presented in person at the conference and will be published in the digital conference proceedings. Selected papers will also be published in Documentation Sets on focused topics. Paper topics include: - Healthy cities Urban planning for physical and social health. Aligning health and planning policies. Healthy land use and transportation policies. - Child-friendly communities Walkable, bikable streets. Making nature and community accessible for children. Neighborhood design for children’s independent mobility. - Nature in the urban environment Designing and restoring nature classrooms, natural playgrounds, gardens, parks, wild and incidental nature. Restoring biodiversity. Making nature accessible for all ages. - Rebuilding place-based community Facilitating community through land use and urban design. - Public places for social life and civic engagement Designing and reviving town squares for community social life. Civic plazas to support civic engagement. Beauty and amenity to generate well-being. - Mixed-use urban fabric Mixed use and walkability. New neighborhoods with mixed-use fabric. Urban regeneration through mixed-use infill and restoration. New designs for human scale multifamily mixed-use. Zoning changes to encourage compact mixed use. - Promoting healthy transportation modes Making cities pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly. Bicycle planning principles and techniques. Planning for commuting by foot and bike. Integrating transit and land use for the walkable city. - Community participation Children and youth participate in public art, neighborhood improvement, restoring nature. Social consequences: building skills and self confidence, cross-generational networks, etc. - Urban villages and towns Designing complete towns. Transforming suburban malls into mixed-use town centers. Creating transit oriented urban villages. - Regional planning for healthy cities Sustainable regional transportation & land-use planning. Promoting regional identity. Cities and counties collaborate to curb sprawl. Focusing development in town centers. Achievements in limiting big box retail. - Traditional architecture and town planning New town planning on traditional principles. Historical models. Regional architecture and identity. Can we learn from Europe? - Green buildings, green neighborhoods Sustainable land-use planning and urban design. Sustainable community development. Green buildings and health. - Innovative teaching models Integrating public health and planning. Human aspects of architecture & urban design.