Peter Calthorpe on Smart Neighborhood-Building

Peter Calthorpe was one of my early inspirations for getting into this field.  I read Peter's work in the mid-1990s, and,as an advocate for a major national environmental organization, I felt for the first time that I had a positive vision to advocate as an alternative to sprawl. 

Among his substantial contributions to sustainability, I'm not sure if Peter coined the phrase "transit- oriented development," but he certainly popularized it.  I mention that because this awesome little video in which Peter appears purports to be about Portland and TOD.  But, listening to Peter talk, I think the title is misleading: it isn't so much about TOD as about the elements of a complete, walkable neighborhood, whether or not it is also transit-oriented.  And, although the photography happens to show Portland, the narrative doesn't (and needn't) mention any particular location.  This is about simply about good neighborhood-building, period.  Enjoy:

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Cross-posted from my NRDC blog, where I write (almost) daily about community, development, and the environment.