Sustainable Built Environments

Dry border Oct. 26, 2022

With $6M Grant, Researchers Will Explore How Southwest Communities Can Best Adapt to Climate Change

University of Arizona researchers, including CAPLA's Ladd Keith, are furthering their efforts to examine how water, aridity and heat impact communities in the American Southwest thanks to a $6 million grant from NOAA's Climate Adaptation Partnerships program.

Sandra Bernal Cordove Oct. 11, 2022

Learning as Rich Experience: Sandra Bernal Cordova, Lecturer and UArizona Hispanic Serving Institution Fellow

UArizona Hispanic Serving Institution Fellow Sandra Bernal Cordova, who joined CAPLA in 2018 as a lecturer, uses her built environment research, community service and cross-campus collaborations to inform the classes she teaches and co-teaches, which include Water Efficiency in Building, Equitable Cities and the Sustainable Built Environments Capstone.

Oct. 5, 2022

Lecture Recap and Video: Seth Okyere on 'Walking the Unwalkable City: An Exploration of Walking Conditions, Experiences and Interventions in the Global South'

Seth Okyere lectures on "Walking the Unwalkable City," a discussion which brings forward conditions and experiences of a walking city that is not walkable and, most importantly, resident improvisations to minimize walking inequities.

Sunlit urban street with cyclist Sept. 15, 2022

Timely, Essential ‘Planning for Urban Heat Resilience’ Report Wins Planning Awards

CAPLA Assistant Professor of Planning and Sustainable Built Environments Ladd Keith and ASU Associate Professor Sara Meerow have been honored with the Western Planner 2022 Sheldon D. Gerber Merit Award for Excellence in Environmental Planning and 2022 APA Arizona Open Category (Applied Research) Award for their Planning for Urban Heat Resilience.

June Williamson Sept. 12, 2022

Designing Suburban Futures: June Williamson, Visiting Professor of Architecture

Visiting Professor of Architecture June Williamson has joined CAPLA for the Fall 2022 semester from The City College of New York. Her research focuses on northern American suburban form and its discontents, documenting how underperforming suburban property types and development patterns are being redeveloped, reinhabited or regreened.

Welcome to Meltsville sign Aug. 12, 2022

The Washington Post Built a Fake City to Demonstrate Extreme Heat: CAPLA’s Ladd Keith Provides Expert Analysis

“Welcome to Meltsville,” reads the new sign for a fake metropolis featured this week in The Washington Post. The interactive article relies on the expert analysis of Ladd Keith, assistant professor of planning and sustainable built environments at CAPLA, who provides insight on extreme heat's effects on infrastructure.

City highway in heat July 29, 2022

Why do roads, runways and railways warp in extreme heat?

Buckled roads, warped train tracks and expanded bridges are a stark reminder of the need to adapt our infrastructure to a warming planet. Heat can impact all types of physical infrastructure, but roads, runways and railways may be among the most vulnerable, says CAPLA Assistant Professor Ladd Keith.

CAPLA faculty at Cool Pavement Project July 13, 2022

The Washington Post Interviews CAPLA Professor on Creating ‘Cool Corridors’ to Counter Extreme Heat

Assistant Professor of Planning and Sustainable Built Environments Ladd Keith was interviewed by The Washington Post about the City of Tucson's Cool Pavement Program as well as the inequitable impacts of extreme heat on communities, the concepts behind "cool corridors" and more.

Los Angeles heat June 14, 2022

Cities are Heating Up—Here's How Urban Planners Should Prepare

As heat waves blaze across the United States, CAPLA's Ladd Keith, assistant professor of planning and sustainable built environments, says city planners should take the lead in managing and mitigating extreme heat. Read this Q&A to learn more.

Shamara Smith May 24, 2022

Sustainable Influence: Shamara Smith '22 BS SBE

BS in Sustainable Built Environments student Shamara Smith came to UArizona from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In this video profile, she discusses how she became interested in sustainability, her passions for leaving the world better than she found it, why community engagement is important and the value of networking in building a new career.

Drachman Institute relaunch event April 22, 2022

Drachman Institute Relaunches with Showcase Event and Appointment of Director Courtney Crosson

Assistant Professor of Architecture Courtney Crosson has been appointed director of the University of Arizona’s Drachman Institute by CAPLA Dean Nancy Pollock-Ellwand. Crosson's introduction was combined with a project showcase on April 13 in a "relaunch" of this important, community-focused institute.

April 18, 2022

City of Tucson's Climate Action and Adaptation Plan

Faculty members Courtney Crosson and Ladd Keith, along with community partners, develop a Climate Action and Adaptation Plan (CAAP) to help the City of Tucson establish a path to reduce carbon emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change. 

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