Sustainability

Tucked at the end of a dead-end street in an industrial area just north of uptown Charlotte, Mecklenburg’s recycling processing plant sits as a storyteller of the area’s challenges in figuring out how to reduce its dependence on landfills. KEEPING WATCH This article is part of the three-year KEEPING WATCH initiative. Learn more about the […]

Although the vast majority of Charlotteans (roughly 98 percent) don’t commute to work on public transportation, the opening of the Lynx Blue Line in 2007 has made a visible difference in the county’s transportation choices. But is another change afoot as well? Nationally, Americans are driving less than they used to. The Atlantic Cities website […]

The UNC Charlotte Urban Institute, in partnership with the UNC Charlotte College of Arts + Architecture, has launched KEEPING WATCH, a three-year initiative designed to bring a higher profile to, and engage the public in, issues about the natural environment. The initiative will foster collaboration across various interest groups and disciplines. An exhibit opened Friday, […]

It was a challenge thrown at the feet of the city of Charlotte in September 2008. In a package in The Charlotte Observer looking at the region’s future, writers Neal Peirce and Curtis Johnson urged Charlotte and nearby cities to position themselves as a “Green, Great & Global” region.* One way to signal this aim, […]

I’m not immune to the charms of a dozen roses on Valentine’s Day – or any day for that matter – though I’m always disheartened by those with no discernible fragrance and perfect buds that inexplicably shrivel and droop. These are not attributes one cares to associate with romance. I try to limit my purchase […]

Whether you want to look up data or understand an issue or trend affecting the Charlotte region, the online resources of the UNC Charlotte Urban Institute are available to help you. There are also many other programs on campus that work with local groups. The institute offers articles and data on a range of issues […]

Mary Newsom, associate director of urban and regional affairs at the UNC Charlotte Urban Institute, will moderate a panel of local experts Thursday at AARP’s “Making a More Livable Mecklenburg Summit.” Speakers will include Charlotte City Manager Ron Carlee and Mayor Patsy Kinsey. The event will explore Charlotte’s evolution into a larger city and how […]

A strong majority of Mecklenburg County residents surveyed said they think there’s solid evidence the Earth has warmed in recent decades. An even larger majority said it’s a somewhat or very serious problem. Yet despite nearly unanimous consensus among climate scientists that global climate change is occurring due to human activity, only about half the […]

If you’ve been paying any attention to national politics in recent weeks, you’ve surely heard remarks like: Why don’t politicians listen to the people? How can we get through to them? Why can’t government get anything done? But when people say “the government,” what government do they mean? It’s likely they’re thinking of the sclerotic […]

TORONTO – Maybe the game-changer is 3-D printing. Or maybe it’s robotic cars and “autonomous driving,” an innovation that may well mean we’ll never again have to learn to parallel park. Maybe it’s “the Internet of everything” – the idea that sooner or later almost everything will be connected via the Internet. It’s obvious big […]