Urban studies and planning

Nithya Raman MCP '08 has announced her decision to run for Los Angeles Mayor, reports Jill Cowan and Shawn Hubler for The New York Times. Raman “represents a district that encompasses a diverse array of neighborhoods, including some where immigrants live in dense apartments and some in the fast-growing San Fernando Valley, where wealthy Hollywood executives live in hillside bungalows,” they write. “That diversity, Ms. Raman has said, has given her unique insight into the needs of vastly different communities in the city of nearly four million.” 

Prof. Carlo Ratti speaks with Matt Fortin of NBC Boston about his work designing this year’s Olympic torch. “For us it’s very exciting to do this,” says Ratti, “because it’s a way you can actually push design beyond what you normally do.”

The torch for this year’s Winter Olympics was designed by Prof. Carlo Ratti, reports Laura Baisas for Popular Science. Dubbed “Essential,” the torch clocks in at just under 2.5 pounds, and "boasts a unique internal mechanism that can be seen through a vertical opening along its side. This means that audiences can peek inside and see the burner in action. From a design perspective, that reinforces Ratti’s desire to keep the emphasis on the flame itself and not the object.”

David Zipper, a senior fellow at the MIT Mobility Initiative, writes for Fast Company about the risks associated with introducing driverless vehicles to European cities. “Technological marvels they may be, but robotaxis are still cars and cars are a uniquely inefficient means of moving large numbers of people when space is at a premium,” writes Zipper. “By inviting robotaxis into their narrow, busy streets, European cities risk worsening congestion.” 

Prof. Albert Saiz speaks with Boston Globe reporter Andrew Brinker about the barriers to homeownership in the United States, specifically in the Greater Boston area. “Unless we do something about housing stock — building, building, building — this is a dangerous situation for working class folks who used to depend on housing as their main way to accumulate wealth,” says Saiz.

Prof. Carlo Ratti speaks with Reuters reporter Catherine Early about the growing number of initiatives aimed at creating more walkable neighborhoods in urban cities. “Small, tangible changes – like pedestrianizing a block, repainting a square, or hosting a street festival – help people understand what proximity feels like in practice,” Ratti explains. “When people are involved in shaping their environment, skepticism often turns into ownership.” 

Writing for Bloomberg, Prof. Carlo Ratti explores how street configuration and design can help reduce traffic speeds. “In studies we have conducted at our Senseable City Lab, we found that the posted speed limits often have little effect on how fast people drive,” writes Ratti. “Instead, the policies that work involve the design of the street itself.” 

Work from the MIT Senseable City Lab is featured in the new “Urban Natures” exhibition at Harvard University’s Druker Design Gallery. The exhibit spotlights how MIT researchers are measuring tree canopy cover in cities as part of an effort to design cities that are more sustainable and livable. The lab’s Treepedia project “uses digital tools to keep tabs on urban tree canopies the world over,” writes Mark Feeney for The Boston Globe.

Writing for the Financial Times, Prof. Carlo Ratti explores the need for creativity in architecture. “More than ever, architecture needs experimentation,” explains Ratti. “In the face of a burning planet, we must draw on all forms of intelligence — natural, artificial and collective — to confront the challenges ahead. We need to try new materials, experiment with different ways to harness energy and test morphologies that will better sustain what the ancient Romans called civitas: the community of citizens. We need to explore new methods, engaging in a feedback loop of trial and error that mirrors the adaptive logic of nature itself.”

Writing for the Financial Times, Prof. Carlo Ratti makes the case that “in a hotter world, trees should be considered more than decoration. This ancient infrastructure can cool not just our buildings but the cities themselves. And with AI, we can now plant better, with precision urban forestry. In a warming world, the smartest climate tech may be rooted in the ground — and it doesn’t strain the power grid.”

Writing for The Guardian, Prof. Carlo Ratti highlights his work using “AI to compare footage of public spaces from the 1970s with recent video” from the same locations in Boston, New York and Philadelphia. “The findings are striking: people walk faster, linger less, and are less likely to meet up,” explains Ratti. “By using AI to study urban public spaces, we can gather data, pick out patterns and test new designs that could help us rethink, for our time, our modern versions of the agora– the market and main public gathering place of Athens.” 

Prof. Carlo Ratti speaks with The Boston Globe columnist Jason Schwartz about how a proposed seven-story office building behind Fenway Park could make the beloved Green Monster wall appear a bit less monstrous. “The wall has always felt monumental not just because of its size, but because it stood against an open sky,” says Ratti. “When the backdrop becomes a building, the view compresses, and the Monster might lose some of its presence.”  

Writing for the Los Angeles Times, Prof. Carlo Ratti and CoMotion founder John Rossant explore the concept of a reimagined Los Angeles. “Dismissed as the nemesis of sustainable urbanism, L.A. can, in fact, be well-positioned for the next chapter,” they write. “Technologies like rooftop photovoltaics, vehicle-to-grid systems and AI-optimized resource flows do not depend on compactness. They benefit from space, sunlight and flexibility — qualities that Los Angeles has in abundance across its 1,600 square miles of urbanized area.”

A study by researchers at MIT has found that “pedestrians are walking 15 percent faster and stopping to linger 14 percent less than they used to,” reports Rima Sabina Aouf for Dezeen. “Using computer vision and artificial intelligence to analyze videos of four public spaces across three American cities, the study found that walking speeds rose notably between 1980 and 2010, while instances of people lingering or interacting with others fell,” writes Aouf. 

Researchers at MIT have found that “pedestrians in three major northeastern U.S. cities – Boston, New York and Philadelphia —are moving 15 percent faster than they did in 1980,” reports Lucy Notarantonio for Newsweek. Notarantonio explains that: “The researchers hope their work will inform how cities design and redesign public areas — especially at a time when digital polarization is reshaping how people connect in real life.”