Urban Voids. Ground for Change. Competition. 2005 (links)

Books

• Anderson, Elijah. Code of the Street: Decency, Violence, and the Moral Life of the Inner City. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2000.
• Nash, Gary B. Forging Freedom: The Formation of Philadelphia’s Black Community, 1720-1840. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1991 (reprint).
• Stevick, Philip. Imagining Philadelphia: Travelers’ Views of the City from 1800 to the Present. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1996.
• Alotta, Roberta. Mermaids, Monasteries, Cherokees and Custer. Santa Monica: Bonus Books, 1990.
• Nese, Jon M. and G. Schwartz. Philadelphia Area Weather Book . Philadelphia : Temple University Press, 2005.
• Kavanagh, James. Philadelphia Birds. Phoenix, AZ: Waterford Press, 2001.
• Colimore, Edward. The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Guide to Historic Philadelphia. Philadelphia: Camino Books, 2003.
• Mauger, Ed. Philadelphia Then and Now. San Diego, CA: Thunder Bay Press, 2003.
• Weigley, Russell E. (Ed). Philadelphia: a 300 Year History. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1982.
• Lapsansky, Emma Jones and Anne A. Verplanck (Eds). Quaker Aesthetics: Reflections On a Quaker Ethic in American Design. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2003.
• Rockland, Michael Aaron. Snowshoeing Through Sewers: Adventures in New York City, New Jersey, and Philadelphia. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1994.

 Reports

• www.philaplanning.org/plans/areaplans/areaplans.html
  Reports on neighborhood blight and redevelopment by the Philadelphia City Planning Commission
• www.philaplanning.org/plans/vls.pdf
  Vacant Land in Philadelphia, a 1995 report by the Philadelphia City Planning Commission
• www.lgean.org/documents/Revitalization%20of%20Vacant%20Properties.pdf
  The Revitalization of Vacant Properties, a report by the International City/County Management Association
• www.nrdc.org/water/drinking/uscities/pdf/philadelphia.pdf
  The National Resources Defense Council’s 2003 report on pollution in Philadelphia’s drinking water
• www.housingalliancePA.org/Issues/Issues_Home.htm#Reclaiming%20Abandoned%20PA
  The Housing Alliance of Pennsylvania’s report and action guide for vacancy in Pennsylvania

Websites

The City of Philadelphia and Its Neighborhoods

• www.phila.gov
  The official website of the City of Philadelphia includes links to agencies, officials, and policy documents
• www.pasda.psu.edu
  Pennsylvania Spatial Data Access website with Pennsylvania GIS information, including online GIS tutorials
• www.cml.upenn.edu
  The cartographic Modeling Lab at the University of Pennsylvania
• http://citymaps.phila.gov
  Maps and photographs from the city of Philadelphia, including aerial photos, zoning maps, and a searchable photo archive
• www.ushistory.org/philadelphia
  Historical background on Philadelphia from the Independence Hall Association in Philadelphia
• www.pbs.org/philadiary
  The website companion to the PBS film “Philadelphia Diary” based on interviews with Philadelphia residents
• www.epa.gov/epahome/commsearch.htm
  The EPA website, with a searchable “EnviroMapper” and “Envirofacts,” as well as watershed information

Vacancy and Vacancy Initiatives in Philadelphia

• www.cml.upenn.edu/nbase
  Philadelphia NIS NeighborhoodBase, with GIS maps and charts of Philadelphia neighborhoods
• www.philaplanning.org/plans/areaplans/areaplans.html
  Blight and redevelopment plan information from the Philadelphia City Planning Commission
• www.phila.gov/nti
  The City of Philadelphia’s Neighborhood Transformation Initiative (NIS), lead by Mayor John Street

Philadelphia’s Natural Resources

• www.phila.gov/fairpark
  Philadelphia’s city parks system
• www.fow.org/park/park.htm
  Friends of the Wissahickon website, with information on the geology, soils, vegetation, wildlife habitats, and water quality of this valley in Fairmount Park
• www.nlreep.org/amy’s.htm
  Downloadable PDF brochures on Philadelphia’s native flora
• www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/distr/lepid/bflyusa/chklist/states/counties/pa_101.htm
  Philadelphia’s butterflies, from the Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center of the US Geological Survey
• www.fow.org/download/checklistofthebirds.pdf
  PDF brochure on birds found in Wissahickon Valley
• philadelphia.extension.psu.edu/
  Penn State Extension for Philadelphia, with information on soil testing, plant cultivation, and the Penn State Urban Gardening Program

http://www.vanalen.org/urbanvoids/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=77&Itemid=49

Institute for Global Futures

The Top 10 Trends of The Extreme Future

1.      Fueling the Future – The energy crisis, the post-oil future, and the future of energy alternatives like hydrogen. The critical role that energy will play in every aspect of our lives in the 21st century.

2.      The Innovation Economy – The transformation of the global economy based on the convergence of free trade, technology and democracy, driving new jobs, new markets, globalization, competition, peace and security. The Four Power Tools of the Innovation Economy are Nano-Bio-IT-Neuro.

3.      The Next Workforce – How the workforce of the U.S. is becoming more multicultural, more female and more Hispanic. Why the future workforce must embrace innovation to become globally competitive.

4.      Longevity Medicine – The key forces that will radically alter medicine such as nanotech, neurotech, and genomics, leading to longer and healthier lives.

5.      Weird Science – How science will transform every aspect of our lives, culture and economy—from teleportation to nanobiology to multiple universes.

6.      Securing the Future – The top threats to our freedom and our lives, from hackers to terrorists to mind control. Defining the risk landscape of the 21st century.

7.      The Future of Globalization – The new realities of global trade and competition; the rise of China and India; the clash of cultures and ideologies; and the cultural-economic battle for the future.

8.      The Future of Climate Change – How the environment is changing and how we need to prepare for increased global warming, pollution, and threats to biodiversity.

9.      The Future of the Individual – The risks and challenges from institutions, governments, and ideologies in the struggle for human rights and the freedom of the individual in the 21st century.

10.    The Future of America – The power of America and its destiny to champion global democracy, innovation, human rights and free market

The Top Ten Energy Trends for the 21st Century

Energy is a metaphor for the future economic mobility of the world. Deep changes are coming. Energy is mission-essential to the growth, social stability and security of all nations. Oil overdependence and petro-fuel decline offer the world an incentive towards the discovery of renewable energy.

1.      Global demand for energy in the near future will outpace supply within twenty-five years unless new sources are found to support global growth.

2.      Energy terrorism and theft will become a future weapon of choice, threatening global peace and security.

3.      Energy, being linked to all vital services such as health, food, transportation and commerce will be a key driver of future global business.

4.      Clean, renewable energy sources such as solar, hydrogen and wind will be essential for future productivity.

5.      Oil-dominated energy is politically and economically unsustainable as a reliable source of fuel for the future. Although oil reserves are in supply decline and increasingly costly, oil will continue to play an important role in the 21st century.

6.      GDP, growth and productivity will decline if new and cost-effective non-oil energy sources are not found fast to protect future growth and prosperity, and to help rebalance the future of the world.

7.      New sources of renewable abundant and cost-effective energy must be fast developed within 20-30 years to manage the population’s expectations of enhanced quality of life worldwide.

8.      Carbon based pollution, from fossil fuels, will be linked to a growing number of future public health risks.

9.      Energy security will be one of the chief concerns in the 21st century leading to global competition, conflict and the collaboration of nations and corporations.

10.    Exciting new energy frontiers are emerging such as nanotechnology which will offer promising alternatives to traditional sources of energy in the future.

http://globalfuturist.com