Mission

In many communities, unfettered, poorly planned development is spreading across the landscape at unprecedented rates that far exceed population increases. This development, often referred to as sprawl, consumes open space, increases air and water pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, and energy consumption, and leads to a loss of biodiversity, heightened potential for catastrophic disasters, and inequities among different population groups.

The CSCD works to inform, educate, and build societal capability to help solve these problems and move communities toward sustainable design. Addressing these problems requires deeper public engagement, and better planning to protect landscape ecosystems, encourage affordable green community designs, ensure basic public health and safety, support more walkable, transit-oriented neighborhoods, and facilitate economic vitality to achieve sustainable communities – a process referred to as “sustainable community design.”

The CSCD strives to:

• Increase our understanding of the impact of urban growth and change on humans and the natural and built environments in which they live, and to increase our knowledge regarding the effects of environmental design on human settlements.
• Educate the next generation of professional leadership committed to the health of our planet through student training, faculty development, and educational endeavors.
• Disseminate research findings to the research community and to practitioners so they can use this information to seek solutions to complex problems associated with human communities.
• Provide assistance and consultation to state, national and international agencies charged with responsibility in sustainable design of human settlements, urban ecology, environmental justice, and investments in new technologies for green building and urban infrastructure systems.