American Planning Association

What do improv comedy and planning have in common? According to Phil Green, AICP —more than you'd think. A practicing planner and seasoned improviser, Phil shares with APA Editor in Chief Meghan Stromberg how tools from the improv stage—like active listening, quick thinking, and collaborative storytelling—can empower planners to navigate tough questions, community tensions, and even mundane fence...

Episode sponsor: Eastern Washington University Episode URL: https://planning.org/podcast/critical-conversations-in-transportation-planning-wes-marshall-and-trung-vo-aicp/ In this episode, co-hosts Divya Gandhi and Em Hall were excited to take the podcast show on the road, recording episodes at the 2025 National Planning Conference in Denver. This dispatch of Critical Conversation in Transportation...

What does being an introvert in a profession centered on community and collaboration mean? For Katelynn Morgenstern, AICP , Director of Planning and Zoning in Kennett Township, Pennsylvania , navigating networking and building a brand used to feel daunting—until she discovered the power of social media to build authentic connections, explore planning passions beyond her day job, and grow her confi...

In this episode of the Trend Talk series, a companion podcast for APA's 2025 Trend Report for Planners , Joe DeAngelis, AICP, research manager at the American Planning Association, chats with author and urban planning professor Justin Hollander, FAICP. Listen as they examine the potential for human settlements on the Moon and Mars, and discover the unique challenges and ethical questions that come...

In this special NPC25 episode of the APA podcast, APA President Sue Schwartz, FAICP, interviews keynote speaker Dr. Mary Beth Janke about her experiences and insights on advancing wellness and building resilience. Dr. Mary Beth, who has over 30 years of experience in psychology, security, and investigative work, shares her thoughts on setting and achieving personal goals, including her experiences...

In this episode of the Trend Talk series, a companion podcast for APA's 2025 Trend Report for Planners , Joe DeAngelis, AICP, research manager at the American Planning Association, chats with recent graduate and current transportation planner, Beneeta Mary Jose. The two explore the latest trends in micromobility, electrification, and the essential balance between proactive and reactive planning. B...

In this episode of the APA podcast, host Dina Walters is joined by David Salazar, FAICP, and Annette Koh to discuss an initiative in Long Beach, California, that is looking to pave the way for future urban planners. Through engaging youth in high schools and teen centers, the program introduces students to the world of urban planning, providing them with tools and knowledge to improve their commun...

In this special NPC25 episode of the APA podcast, host Michael Brown, AICP, conference committee chair for NPC25 , engages in a thought-provoking conversation with Leah Rothstein. Leah is co-author along with her father, Richard Rothstein, on the book Just Action , and has specialized in community development and affordable housing policy, practice, and finance throughout her career. Leah delves i...

Sacramento, California, is at the forefront of zoning reform, tackling some of the biggest challenges in housing supply and affordability. Tom Pace, the city’s director of community development , shares how the city has embraced policies to remove barriers to housing production, modernize outdated regulations, and promote sustainable growth. And, he offers ideas for how other places can approach z...

In this episode of Critical Conversations in Transportation Planning, hosts Divya Gandhi and Em Hall interview Jacky Grimshaw and Nina Idemudia, AICP, from the Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT) in Chicago. They discuss the evolution of transportation planning, the importance of community engagement, and the emergence of millennial leadership in the planning profession. Jacky shares her exte...

In this episode of the Trend Talk series, a companion podcast for APA's 2025 Trend Report for Planners , Joe DeAngelis, AICP, Research Manager at the American Planning Association, chats with APA President, Sue Schwartz, FAICP. The two discuss the evolving landscape of public sector planning and delve into current hiring challenges, the impact of political polarization on community engagement, and...

Planners have a difficult job. In addition to being experts on their own technical field of planning, they must also understand a variety of other disciplines — like architecture, landscape and ecology to name just a few. These fields are complex in their own right, and planners must consider and translate these concepts for laypeople and elected officials alike. Nico Larco experienced this inform...

In this episode of the Housing Supply Accelerator series, Emily Pasi, Director of Public Affairs at the American Planning Association, chats with Robert Broeksmit, President and CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association . The two discuss why MBA joined the Housing Supply Accelerator; how the economics of the housing crisis impacts the real estate finance industry; the importance of bringing the lend...

In this episode of People Behind the Plans, Julia Freedgood, author of Planning Sustainable and Resilient Food Systems, talks about the complex and fragile web behind the food we eat, and the important role planning plays, especially in rural areas. Freedgood, a senior fellow and senior program advisor at the American Farmland Trust, digs into rural and urban agriculture, food insecurity, and even...

In this third episode of the series, Emily Pasi, Director of Public Affairs at the American Planning Association, chats with Kevin Sears, President of the National Association of Realtors . The two discuss how real estate professionals have been specifically impacted by the housing crisis, what barriers and opportunities exist for growing the nation's housing supply, and why it is important for NA...

In this episode of the APA Podcast, Jason Jordan, APA's Principal of Public Affairs, chats with Burlington, Vermont's former mayor, Miro Weinberger, and former planning director, Meagan Tuttle, AICP. In this discussion, they share how they worked together to provide the political leadership and the critical insights needed for Burlington to enact one of the nation's most important and far-reaching...

Welcome to the third episode of Short Takes, a three-part miniseries from the American Planning Association. Short Takes, hosted by Sophia Burns, brings listeners into the field with planners pursuing inventive new approaches to everyday issues: community engagement, land use and zoning, and career advancement. In this episode, we share how three planners helped community members navigate change w...

Welcome to the second episode of Short Takes, a three-part miniseries from the American Planning Association. Short Takes, hosted by Sophia Burns, brings listeners into the field with planners pursuing inventive new approaches to everyday issues: community engagement, land use and zoning, and career advancement. In this episode, we dive into the journeys of two planners who have transformed career...

Welcome to the first episode of Short Takes , a three-part miniseries from the American Planning Association. Short Takes , hosted by Sophia Burns, brings listeners into the field with planners pursuing inventive new approaches to everyday issues: community engagement, land use and zoning, and career advancement. This episode retraces three planners’ steps as they implement and evaluate novel appr...

In this second episode of the series, Emily Pasi, Director of Public Affairs at the American Planning Association, chats with Carl Harris, Chairman of the National Association of Home Builders . The two discuss the NAHB's role as a core partner in the Housing Supply Accelerator , as well as what some of the barriers home builders face to building more housing nationwide. They also look at some of...

In this first episode in a new series, Emily Pasi, director of public affairs at the American Planning Association chats with Clarence Anthony, CEO of the National League of Cities (NLC). Clarence and NLC are partners alongside APA on the Housing Supply Accelerator . The Housing Supply Accelerator is a national campaign to improve local capacity, identify critical solutions, and speed reforms that...

Zoning reform has become a topic of national interest, not just among planners and local decision makers, but also in the national media and in everyday conversations. While the national housing crisis is well-documented, information on the role of local zoning rules has been harder to find — until now. The National Zoning Atlas is going state by state to create a map of local land use policies. I...

Planners can design places for many purposes: to promote commerce, to protect us from natural disasters, to uplift historical significance. As mental health and social relationships become increasingly significant, new questions rise to the top: What about planning for the way people feel? How can planners better understand how environments impact well-being and then learn to shape more joyful, he...

The history of planning includes policies and practices that have resulted in entrenched inequity and enduring systemic barriers. Understanding the complexities and impacts of those barriers is necessary to dismantling ingrained inequalities and achieving transformative change. A recent edition of the Journal of the American Planning Association (JAPA) called “Antiracist Futures: Disrupting Racist...

Jewell Littles Walton is an urban planning and real estate professional with a career spanning multiple decades. She joins Dina Walters, a member of APA's Prioritize Equity team, for this special episode to share the story of uncovering her family’s connection to the early 20th century Greenwood neighborhood in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Greenwood was known as “Black Wall Street”, one of the most prosperous...