Upcoming Events

Earlier this year, Berkeley Law released a paper analyzing the approval and permitting processes of five Bay Area cities. Their research shows that these processes vary widely, making development more difficult and uncertain than it needs to be. Though statewide reforms have gotten attention, the inconsistency of local implementation means it’s hard to predict on-the-ground results. Join us to understand more about the paper’s findings and what comes next. + Aaron Aknin / City of Redwood City + Eric Biber...

How can new forms of private transportation — car shares, ride shares, scooter shares, e-bikes, autonomous vehicles and things we haven’t thought of yet — support public transit? Hear how design and policy leaders are creating better urban mobility hubs that put transit riders first and combine transit with the growing number of mobility options in a seamless and user-friendly way. Co-presented by SF Transit Riders. + Sahar Shirazi / WSP + Gerry Tierney / Perkins+Will + Danielle Harris /...

The places we live affect our health in complex ways. In New York, the state health department has partnered with community leaders to explore ground-up ways of creating healthier communities — helping nearly half a million New Yorkers improve their access to healthy food and safe public spaces. Hear how San Jose can apply what New York learned about the critical intersection of community-based health, urban planning and community organizing. Generously sponsored by The Health Trust. + Nupur Chaudhury /...

Carpooling cuts down on the number of cars on the road, which has the cascading effect of reducing gridlock and air pollution due to auto emissions, leading to shorter commute times, money savings and a cleaner planet. But carpooling is not without its challenges, logistical and otherwise. Come learn about the future of carpooling and the efforts underway to encourage people to get places together. + Charlie Knuth / Scoop + Barbara Laurenson / Bay Area Metro + Ron Drabkin / Miles

San Francisco’s Nonprofit Sustainability Initiative helps local nonprofits secure new space and facilitate long-term leases. Earlier this year, the initiative hit a major $5 million milestone, enabling more organizations throughout the city to grow and expand arts resources, child care, job training, health care and senior services. Hear from the city, nonprofits and other experts about how nonprofits are connecting the dots between policies and resources. + Brett Andrews / PRC + Lex Leifheit / San Francisco Office of Economic...

San Francisco’s local density bonus program, also known as HOME-SF, was created to incentivize the building of affordable and family-friendly housing throughout the city. However, since it was signed into law over a year ago, only a few projects have been able to utilize it. Hear about the program’s hopes for the future and how recent amendments are expected to make it more usable. + Kabir Seth / Presidio Bay Ventures + Supervisor Katy Tang / San Francisco Board of...

Fare policy is a powerful tool that impacts all aspects of the transit system: the number of people who ride, boarding times, operating costs, mode choice, customer satisfaction and affordability. Well-designed fare policies can simplify the customer experience, help manage demand and make switching between transit systems simple and hassle-free. Hear about the efforts underway in the Bay Area to restructure fares. + Ryan Greene-Roesel / BART + Arielle Fleisher / SPUR + Priyoti Ahmed / San Francisco County Transportation...

The disruptive force of environmental disasters is a wake-up call, posing questions about what’s important and how we want to live. This prods us to build resilience and create social cohesion now, without waiting for disasters to strike. Hear how communities are pursuing these goals from a panel that will launch a new documentary podcast series. “Disaster Collectivism,” from Shareable, Upstream Podcast, and the Post Carbon Institute, uncovers our natural tendencies to support our neighbors during crisis. Co-presented by Shareable.

A little over a year ago, San Francisco launched a visioning process with community members from the Excelsior, the Outer Mission and adjacent neighborhoods. These dialogues asked questions about how these neighborhoods could become an even better place to live and visit and what it might take to make those improvements happen. Learn how the strategy has succeeded from those who have been deeply involved with the process. + Sue Exline / San Francisco Planning Department + Jorge Rivas /...

Sustainable urban design can create social, economic and climate benefits when it is prioritized. California has typically led the world in sustainability policy but has a mixed record in urban form, while China is in the middle of an urban design transition from auto-oriented to people-oriented cities. What lessons can we learn from these two dynamic worlds? Hear how China’s urban growth could help build a sustainable and prosperous California. + Hal Harvey / Energy Innovation + Peter Calthorpe / Calthorpe Associates

By many accounts, the Bay Area is the leading innovation region in the United States, if not the world, but how does it really compare with other major metropolitan areas? What benchmarks can we use to encourage the Bay Area to look for guidance and inspiration from other leading regions, including Shanghai, Singapore and London? + Micah Weinberg / Bay Area Council Economic Institute + Sean Randolph / Bay Area Council Economic Institute

Individuals are often encouraged to vote with their forks to change the food system. Institutional consumers, though, have much bigger forks with which to vote. Explore the recent trends across the country at improving the food system through institutional procurement at hospitals, universities and more and hear from the leaders who make decisions about sustainable, healthy and regional food in their institutions. + Sapna Thottathil / University of California Office of the President + Kathleen Reed / Kaiser Permanente +...

What will the Bay Area be like in 50 years? How can we shape its future? Join us for an inside look at the making of SPUR’s regional strategy, a civic vision and road map for the Bay Area’s growth over the next half-century. Learn about the research questions and how you can get involved. Then, at 1:30pm, join us to share your voice and your vision for the future in this listening session and interactive workshop. Pre-registration is required.