Handbook of Biophilic City Planning & Design Press Kit

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Handbook of Biophilic City Planning & Design

By Timothy Beatley Washington, DC (January 5, 2017) — What if, even in the heart of a densely developed city, people could have meaningful encounters with nature? The idea of a green city, a sustainable city, and even a resilient city are well-understood. Now, the emerging ideal of a biophilic city—which goes beyond green infrastructure to connect urban dwellers with nature on a deeper level—is a useful and necessary addition to the way we think about city planning and design.

The Handbook of Biophilic City Planning & Design (Publication Date: January 5, 2017) is the most comprehensive resource on this emerging field. Written by Timothy Beatley, a leader in sustainable urbanism and creator of the international Biophilic Cities Network, the book offers practical advice and inspiration for how cities of the future might look, feel, and function to promote holistic well-being and create an emotional connection to the earth among urban residents.

Divided into four parts, the Handbook begins by introducing key ideas, literature, and theory about biophilic urbanism. Chapters highlight urban biophilic innovations in more than a dozen global cities and case studies address a range of diverse topics around the world, including community engagement in Bangalore, India; bird-friendly urban design in Chicago, Illinois; pocket park programs in London, United Kingdom; green roofs in Mexico City, Mexico; stream restoration in Seoul, South Korea; and national park planning in Nairobi, Kenya. The final part concludes with lessons on how to advance an agenda for urban biophilia and an extensive list of resources for continued exploration.

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The Handbook of Biophilic City Planning & Design is about more than greening cities—it speaks compellingly and passionately about our need to nurture, protect, care for, and connect with nature. It is essential reading for students and practitioners looking to place nature at the core of their planning and design ideas and encourage what preeminent biologist E.O. Wilson described as "the innate emotional connection of humans to all living things."

Penned by a pioneer in the field of biophilic urbanism, the Handbook envisions a world where cities and nature support each other.

Timothy Beatley is Chair of the Department of Urban and Environmental Planning and Teresa Heinz Professor of Sustainable Communities at the School of Architecture at the University of Virginia, where he has taught for over twenty-five years. He is the author of many books, including Planning for Coastal Resilience, Biophilic Cities, and Green Urbanism (Island Press).

Handbook of Biophilic City Planning & Design Island Press Hardcover and Paperback Original Publication Date: January 5, 2017 312 pages | 7x10 | Price: $80.00 (C)/$40.00 (P)/$39.99 (E) ISBN: 9781610916196 (C)/9781610916202 (E)/9781610916219 (E) https://islandpress.org/books/handbook-biophilic-city-planning-design Founded in 1984, Island Press works to stimulate, shape, and communicate the information that is essential for solving environmental problems. Today, with more than 1,000 titles in print and some 30 new releases each year, it is the nation’s leading publisher of books on environmental issues.

Island Press is driving change by moving ideas from the printed page to public discourse and practice.

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Katharine Sucher, 202-232-7933 x43 ksucher@islandpress.org www.islandpress.org

BIOGRAPHY Timothy Beatley Timothy Beatley is Chair of the Department of Urban and Environmental Planning and Teresa Heinz Professor of Sustainable Communities at the School of Architecture at the University of Virginia, where he has taught for over twenty-five years. His primary teaching and research interests are in environmental planning and policy, with special emphasis on coastal and natural hazards planning, environmental values and ethics, and biodiversity conservation.

He has published extensively in these areas, including the following books: Ethical Land Use; Habitat Conservation Planning: Endangered Species and Urban Growth; Natural Hazard Mitigation; and An Introduction to Coastal Zone Management. In recent years, much of his research and writing has been focused on the subject of sustainable communities, and creative strategies by which cities and towns can reduce their ecological footprints, while at the same time becoming more livable and equitable places. His books that explore these issues include Biophilic Cities, Resilient Cities, and Green Urbanism (Island Press).

His research has been funded by a variety of agencies and organizations including the National Science Foundation, Virginia Sea Grant, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, among others. Beatley holds a PhD in City and Regional Planning from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, an MA in Political Science from UNC, a Masters of Urban Planning from the University of Oregon, and a Bachelors of City Planning from UVA.

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