Climate Cities
All Stories
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![A man pours a bucket of shells.]()
![A man pours a bucket of shells.]()
A new solution for flood-prone cities? Concrete made from shellfish waste.
Researchers have developed a type of concrete that uses discarded shells to trap water. It's now combating floods and food waste in urban gardens and along cycling paths.
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Oakland’s new school buses don’t just reduce pollution — they double as giant batteries
A new fleet of buses can send power back to the grid, stabilizing it instead of straining it.
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![Collage of Los Angeles smog, President Richard Nixon signing a bill, cars on a California freeway, and a vintage cartoon clipping]()
![Collage of Los Angeles smog, President Richard Nixon signing a bill, cars on a California freeway, and a vintage cartoon clipping]()
The forgotten fight to ban gas-powered cars in the 1960s
Half a century ago, an obscure state senator fought to ban gas-powered cars — and almost won.
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![An evacuee from Hurricane Katrina sits on his cot while on the floor of the Reliant Astrodome September 7, 2005 in Houston, Texas.]()
![An evacuee from Hurricane Katrina sits on his cot while on the floor of the Reliant Astrodome September 7, 2005 in Houston, Texas.]()
They settled in Houston after Katrina — and then faced a political storm
The backlash against an effort to resettle 200,000 evacuees holds lessons for future disasters.
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Mississippi officials saw the Jackson water crisis coming — and did nothing
A new report from the EPA inspector general found the state’s health department saw evidence of elevated lead levels as early as 2015.
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![Four cars and a truck are half submerged in water on a highway with green exit signs in the background]()
![Four cars and a truck are half submerged in water on a highway with green exit signs in the background]()
Climate change is messing with city sewers — and the solutions are even messier
As heavy rains overwhelm aging pipes, Boston and NYC are choosing very different paths forward.
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High-tech textiles can protect workers from the heat — but not from their bosses
As the planet warms, laborers need special clothes to cope. But they also need government protections.
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![Digital collage of woman wearing a hardhat and a hi-viz vest holding papers looking at an orange and yellow sunset on a silhouetted city]()
![Digital collage of woman wearing a hardhat and a hi-viz vest holding papers looking at an orange and yellow sunset on a silhouetted city]()
Can chief heat officers protect US cities from extreme heat?
Appointed officials have the life-saving solutions the public needs to stay safe from rising temperatures. But they don’t have political power.
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The delight — and power — of your neighborhood’s unplanned green spaces
Just like an impromptu hangout can be as fun as a formal gala, even an informal green space can provide the benefits you’d get from an official park.
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![a collage of a person looking at a circle filled with a color rendering of the proposed city 'California Forever.' Outside of the circle, the landscape consists of dry fields and turbines]()
![a collage of a person looking at a circle filled with a color rendering of the proposed city 'California Forever.' Outside of the circle, the landscape consists of dry fields and turbines]()
Is it possible to build a dream city from scratch?
Sustainability is at the heart of California Forever’s ambitious plan for a new city — and its problems.
