San Francisco relies on MUNI, BART, Caltrain, and other transit systems to keep the city moving. But as COVID relief funding runs out, major budget challenges are looming for the region’s public transit starting in 2026. Join Sebastian Petty, Senior Policy Advisor at SPUR, for a conversation about the future of Bay Area transit, the funding crisis it faces, and how we can ensure these essential systems survive and thrive. Hosted by the San Francisco Public Library as part of the 2025 Everybody’s Climate program series.

This session explores how arts and culture can drive community well-being, social cohesion, and economic development. Authors from the Routledge Handbook of Urban Cultural Planning will discuss strategies for fostering cultural and artistic expression to strengthen belonging, renew neighborhoods, and support resilient city development. On a practical level, the session will address how communities can sustainably create and maintain spaces for cultural production and consumption.

Join SPUR and the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition for a beginner-friendly bike ride to celebrate a major win for San Francisco’s public spaces! With the passing of Proposition K, the Upper Great Highway is now permanently closed to cars and reimagined as Sunset Dunes — a space for people, nature, and community.

As Bay Area cities like Oakland and San Francisco consider potential revisions to their city charters, now is the time to deepen our understanding of what a city charter is, and why it matters. A city charter functions as the foundational legal document for local government, outlining the “rules” for everything from the powers of elected officials to how departments are organized and how public services are delivered.

What does it take to permit a 5 mile busway in California? In one case, a 5 mile busway in Coastal California required approval from 7 permitting entities, which placed 341 pre-construction conditions on the project, costing $15 million more than budgeted. While many permits are necessary for health and safety, the transit permitting process has become defined by the opaque, rigid - and often excessive- procedures that have accumulated over time and can negatively impact the actual delivery of public infrastructure and services. Learn more about these challenges and a policy roadmap to change them.

How can artists and cultural institutions help cities meet their climate goals—and how can cities support them in return? Join this webinar to hear from leaders in San José and Alameda who are embedding the arts into climate action. Learn how creative partnerships can spark public engagement, advance resilience goals, and build momentum for new programs like climate arts leadership trainings, resilience hubs, and more. Discover how your city can take similar steps to harness the power of culture for climate justice, education, and adaptation.

Join us to hear from affordable housing policy and funding experts on the federal budget landscape and updates including the permanent expansion of the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC), the Neighborhood Homes Investment Act, a new federal tax credit to incentivize creation of affordable homeownership opportunities, and funding for HUD programs including rental assistance and how advocates, developers and states are responding. The panel will also provide a round-up of federal housing policy legislation that has been introduced this session.

In 2023, Abidin Kusno published Jakarta, City of a Thousand Dimensions (NUS Press, 2023), which explored the practice and politics of urban development in the second largest city in the world. The conversation between Kusno and Zarobell will consider some of the complexities that planning in Asian megacities introduces, as well as the everyday lives of its denizens who generate cities of their own. The program will also engage some of the themes of Pedro Lange-Chúrion’s photographs from the exhibition on the first floor, opening after the conversation.

Join us for the opening night o f Jakarta: A Mirror of a Thousand Reflections – Dimensions, an exhibition that explores the complex, ever-evolving landscape of Jakarta through the lens of urban research and photography. A collaboration between scholar John Zarobell and photographer Pedro Lange-Churión, this exhibition builds on the themes of the Comparative Urbanism: Learning from Jakarta conference, held in August 2024 at SPUR, San Francisco.