I’m elated to announce that I just received a complimentary review copy of the beautiful new book, Conservation Communities: Creating Value With Nature, Open Space, and Agriculture, from LandChoices’ member Ed McMahon. Ed is someone I greatly admire for his wonderful work advancing conservation development. I’ve started to read this sensational book and love it! [...]
Our new “Top 10 Ways to Preserve Land and Water in Your Community” gives planners and officials in your community an easy guide to preserve clean water, natural areas, wildlife and working farmland by making the following mandatory for new developments in your community: 1. Inexpensive Preliminary Sketch Plan Include a sketch plan of greenway land, [...]
Tryon Farm, my favorite conservation community and one of LandChoices’ good friends and supporters, recently sponsored an educational day for the kids of Lydia Home Association in Chicago. I learned about this wonderful event on the Tryon Farm Facebook page. The games and events were successfully led by educators from the Indiana Soil and Water [...]
The following is a repost from my earlier post (September 4, 2009): I like Randall Arendt’s approach to conservation subdivisions: “Do It Backward”. First, set aside land for conservation. This eliminates the left-over conservation areas that are traditionally created. Last, divide up the land into parcels. This allows the developer to penpoint the prime developable area, [...]
Envisioning Better Communities, the new planning book by Randall Arendt, is a gem. (Full disclosure: Randall Arendt is a dedicated member of LandChoices. I’m a big fan.) This week I received a review copy of the book from the American Planning Association. I will review the book in a series of blog posts. The subtitle, Seeing [...]
Natural neighborhoods, also known as “conservation subdivisions“, “ecological development”, or “green development”, shown in this video, preserve natural areas, water, wildlife and working farmland. Wildlife conservation and farmland conservation are an important part of natural neighborhoods, along with water conservation as large swaths of natural areas filter and absorb storm water. Learn more about natural neighborhoods. [...]
The following is a guest post by LandChoices’ friend Jordan Mercedes: It’s not safe to care, but it’s good to care. Caring makes you walk on the edge of something burning strongly in your heart…and jump! It’s scary to stand up when everyone else sits down. If we’re going to make a difference to save [...]
Enjoy our new short two minute test drive video through natural neighborhoods, aka conservation subdivisions. Less-wide, safer streets and swales instead of curb and gutter reduce stormwater run off pollution. Large swaths of preserved land and natural landscaping filters stormwater, protects wildlife, groundwater, natural areas, and working farmland. Please share this video with your local [...]
I’ve been studying the fantastic book Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard, by Chip Heath and Dan Heath. The book is helping all of us at LandChoices clarify our goal of taking conservation subdivisions nationwide. The book teaches the importance of breaking our somewhat ambiguous goal into very doable and easy to [...]
This is a short video we created to promote natural neighborhoods, our new alternate name for “conservation subdivisions“. Please share this video by clicking on the “Share/Save” button below to help spread the word. Image courtesy Randall Arendt, Conservation Design for Subdivisions, Island Press, 1996. Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com. //
