✨Missed the deadline to submit a paper to a SS at #RSA26? There's still time to submit to the general pool ✨

⏳ Deadline: 19th February

For more information on the conference: bit.ly/4atPUlH

Join the RSA community in Gothenburg

➡️ Regions as Arenas in a Changing World
📆 15-18 June 2026

😀🔄

Fingal County Council celebrated the official opening of the Ongar Barnhill Road, Dublin 15, a major strategic investment that unlocks housing potential, boosts sustainable transport & delivers stronger, efficient connections throughout the area. #fingal #roads #ongar #barrnhill #dublin15 #housing

Has planning for nature got lost in the woods?

Confused by how exactly the planning system can support nature recovery?

You're not the only one.

This blog provides insights from 4 focus groups with planning & ecology practitioners involved in local government, national policy and the development & biodiversity sectors:

Dublin City Council has published the pre‑planning design for #GrowCollegeGreen.
The updated design creates a safer, greener&more accessible public space–shaped by thousands of submissions and extensive engagement since 2024.

Open until 11 March 2026.

Have your say→ engage.dublincity.ie

YouTube video by UCD Research From play to policy: a new way for children to reimagine traffic safety using Minecraft

UCD researchers from the #REALLOCATE project have developed an innovative way to allow children to meaningfully contribute to traffic safety and urban-design decisions in their neighbourhood using #Minecraft.

➡️Read the case study here: lnkd.in/dtEb2DPJ

youtu.be/lb3KzFfAqQI

A street scene with a Minecraft character walking down the middle between buildings. Text reads "Games-based approaches for citizen participation in research. Presented by Dr Italo de Sena Friday 27 February 10.30am-12.30pm in Link 3 James Joyce Library". White UCD Citizen Science logo with two UCD crests and Library and research text.

Join Dr Ítalo de Sena @ucdengarch.bsky.social for a look at games & how they can serve as rigorous methods for #CitizenScience. There will be time for Q&A and to play a board game!

📆27 Feb 10.30-12.30
📍Link 3, James Joyce Library (& online via Zoom)

Details & register➡️ buff.ly/pkcDCNe

Flooding is stabilising and clean‑up is underway. Some roads remain closed—avoid floodwater and follow local authority updates.

Govt supports are available for affected homes, businesses and communities.

More info: gov.ie/FloodResponse

🌊✋ Is the planning system broken, or is the solution to flooding less engineering and more nature-based? UCD Assistant Professor Fiachra O'Loughlin of
@ucdengarch.bsky.social joins @thejournal.ie The Explainer podcast to discuss flood defences and the devastation caused by recent storms.

A street scene with a Minecraft character walking down the middle between buildings. Text reads "Games-based approaches for citizen participation in research. Presented by Dr Italo de Sena Friday 27 February 10.30am-12.30pm in Link 3 James Joyce Library". White UCD Citizen Science logo with two UCD crests and Library and research text.

Join Dr Ítalo de Sena @ucdengarch.bsky.social for a look at games & how they can serve as rigorous methods for #CitizenScience. There will be time for Q&A and to play a board game!

📆27 Feb 10.30-12.30
📍Link 3, James Joyce Library (& online via Zoom)

Details & register➡️ forms.gle/cZhNbRNF4TZ2...

Horizon Europe: over €466 million available to fund new climate, energy and mobility research projects The European Commission has launched new calls for projects under Horizon Europe's 2026-2027 Work Programme for Cluster 5 – which groups together topics on climate action, energy and mobility.

Worth checking out: €466.7 million is available under Horizon Europe’s 2026-2027 Cluster 5 Work Programme to support research and innovation projects in #Climate, #Energy and #Mobility. Deadlines stretching into March and April 2026. #HorizonEU

cinea.ec.europa.eu/news-events/...

Horizon Europe: over €466 million available to fund new climate, energy and mobility research projects The European Commission has launched new calls for projects under Horizon Europe's 2026-2027 Work Programme for Cluster 5 – which groups together topics on climate action, energy and mobility.

Worth checking out: €466.7 million is available under Horizon Europe’s 2026-2027 Cluster 5 Work Programme to support research and innovation projects in #Climate, #Energy and #Mobility. Deadlines stretching into March and April 2026. #HorizonEU

cinea.ec.europa.eu/news-events/...

Check out the REALLOCATE featured in the new Social Innovation Mission Facility (SIMF) publication, which highlights how #CoCreation and participatory tools can support #InclusivePlanning in practice.

simissionfacility.eu/publication-...

Check out the REALLOCATE featured in the new Social Innovation Mission Facility (SIMF) publication, which highlights how #CoCreation and participatory tools can support #InclusivePlanning in practice.

simissionfacility.eu/publication-...

The historic Skerries Carnegie Library has officially reopened following a major €8.9 million restoration and redevelopment project. Watch the video here youtu.be/Y9DELRJvgPI Find out more at www.fingal.ie/news/skerries-carnegie-library-reopens-after-eu89-transformation-quadrupling-size

The historic Skerries Carnegie Library has officially reopened following a major €8.9 million restoration and redevelopment project. Watch the video here youtu.be/Y9DELRJvgPI

Find out more at www.fingal.ie/news/skerries-carnegie-library-reopens-after-eu89-transformation-quadrupling-size

Read this article in @irishtimes.com by @briancaulfield.bsky.social Prof in Transportation @tcddublin.bsky.social and member of the RIA's Climate Change and Environmental Sciences committee, which looks at how the aftermath of storm Chandra ‘has shown that our infrastructure is not fit for purpose’.

Revisiting Abercrombie’s ‘The Preservation of Rural England’ one hundred years on | Town Planning Review Exactly 100 years ago, Town Planning Review published Abercrombie’s seminal paper on planning for rural places – ‘The Preservation of Rural England’. To mark the centenary of its publication, in this commentary we revisit Abercrombie’s work on rural ...

Check out PEP's Prof. Mark Scott's ( @markscott-ucd.bsky.social ) collaboration with Menelaos Gkartzios and Prof. Nick Gallent on this Viewpoint article in Town Planning Review, reflecting on Abercrombie’s seminal rural planning work.

www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/10.3828/...

Revisiting Abercrombie’s ‘The Preservation of Rural England’ one hundred years on | Town Planning Review Exactly 100 years ago, Town Planning Review published Abercrombie’s seminal paper on planning for rural places – ‘The Preservation of Rural England’. To mark the centenary of its publication, in this commentary we revisit Abercrombie’s work on rural ...

Check out PEP's Prof. Mark Scott's ( @markscott-ucd.bsky.social ) collaboration with Menelaos Gkartzios and Prof. Nick Gallent on this Viewpoint article in Town Planning Review, reflecting on Abercrombie’s seminal rural planning work.

www.liverpooluniversitypress.co.uk/doi/10.3828/...

Fingal County Council has welcomed a major investment in active travel, with funding now confirmed for key walking, cycling and public realm projects across the county. Mayor Cllr Tom O’Leary outlines the key projects receiving allocations, along with upcoming works to further enhance how people move around Fingal. Find out more at www.fingal.ie/news/eu331m-funding-approved-active-travel-fingal

Fingal County Council has welcomed a major investment in active travel, with funding now confirmed for key walking, cycling and public realm projects across the county. Mayor Cllr Tom O’Leary outlines the key projects. Find out more at www.fingal.ie/news/eu331m-funding-approved-active-travel-fingal

Regeneration plan published for Mountjoy Square, Dublin’s only ‘true’ Georgian square Georgian lawns to be restored and 1930s community centre demolished under proposals

Interesting, food for thought, does "reverting" to an original historic plan inherently create a safer and better public space, or are there other critical design principles to consider? #MountjoySquare #UrbanRegeneration

www.irishtimes.com/ireland/dubl...

Flyer with USF for the Call for Papers "Commodification and Resistances in Land and Housing:" and the text "This event is part of the Seminar Series Awards “Land commodification and housing affordability under capitalist urbanisation. Global dynamics and local resistance in Peru, the United Kingdom and the United States” This academic conference is concerned with the various manifestations of urban development and land commodification across the Global North and South. It is expected to bring together researchers and academics from around the world to debate, interrogate, and critique the current dynamics of urban development, the issue of land commodification, and its impact on access to housing in different regions." on a grey backroung.

Flyer with USF for the Call for Papers "Commodification and Resistances in Land and Housing:" and the text "This event is part of the Seminar Series Awards “Land commodification and housing affordability under capitalist urbanisation. Global dynamics and local resistance in Peru, the United Kingdom and the United States” This academic conference is concerned with the various manifestations of urban development and land commodification across the Global North and South. It is expected to bring together researchers and academics from around the world to debate, interrogate, and critique the current dynamics of urban development, the issue of land commodification, and its impact on access to housing in different regions." on a grey backroung.

📢 Call for Papers
Commodification & Resistances in Land and Housing
📍 PUCP, Lima | 🗓️ 14–16 Oct 2026
🌍 Global North–South dialogue
#USFSeminarSeriesAwards–funded event
⏰ Deadline: Feb 1

🔗 ow.ly/XTUF50XZtsQ
#UrbanStudies #HousingJustice #LandCommodification #CFP

With one month left to nominate for the #UrbanismAwards, where are the places you think the AoU should be learning from?

If you need some inspiration, head to theaou.org/2Qs and when you're ready to nominate, visit theaou.org/nominate

Sidewalk Resource Guide: Restoring Social Life in Our Communities A guide to our best articles about creating better sidewalks to revive social life, build great neighborhoods, grow economic activity, and save the planet.

The best way to create world class streets is to start with world class sidewalks. Sidewalks are the foundation of what make cities affordable, accessible, and loved.

Our resource guide: www.sociallifeproject.org/sidewalk_res... by Fred Kent & @drtpanova.bsky.social

#UrbanDesign #Placemaking

Why public procurement can be a game-changer for urban food systems

New year, new procurement? Maybe not everywhere on the calendar, but across cities in Europe, public procurement is clearly being rethought.
foodclic.eu/news/why-pub...

The 7th Guangzhou Award is now open for submissions, inviting cities and regions worldwide to showcase innovative approaches to urban governance and sustainable development. Apply by 30 April 2026, with an early submission window until 31 March 2026.
www.guangzhouaward.org/p/the7th?lan...

The abstract for a roundtable on "Youth participation and the city: From epistemic justice to prefigurative planning" has been accepted for #AESOP2026 in Helsinki. Congrats to Dr. Caterina Villani (UCD), who is co-convening the session with Dr. Francesca Ranalli (Utrecht University). #UCDPlanning

The abstract for a roundtable on "Youth participation and the city: From epistemic justice to prefigurative planning" has been accepted for #AESOP2026 in Helsinki. Congrats to Dr. Caterina Villani (UCD), who is co-convening the session with Dr. Francesca Ranalli (Utrecht University). #UCDPlanning

Human Flourishing Geographic Index (HFGI): A County-level Dataset for Measuring Regional Flourishing in the United States - RSA Main Policymakers often rely on familiar indicators such as GDP, employment rates, and education levels to assess regional well-being. Yet these metrics tell only part of the story. Human flourishing, enco...

🌟 New RSA blog:
The Human Flourishing Geographic Index (HFGI) offers a new way to study regions—tracking happiness, belonging, purpose, and well-being at fine spatial and temporal scales across the U.S.
By Stefano Iacus & Devika Jain

🔗 www.regionalstudies.org/rsa-blog/202...

🎄✨ Happy Nollaig na mBan! Each January 6, Women’s Christmas traditionally recognised the work of women during the festive period. On this day, men took on the household work, giving women the space to rest and spend time together.

#nollaignamban #womenschristmas

#12DaysofIrishResearch: Dolphin House, Dublin’s largest public housing complex, is undergoing regeneration. Dr Joe Whelan (@tcddublin) is documenting life in the flats and how change is experienced using arts-based techniques. Funded under New Foundations:https://pulse.ly/uexy3qulwm

Fixing South Kerry's depopulation problem An alarming drop in the number of children in South Kerry is running counter to the population rise elsewhere, and it's all down to housing policy, writes Orla Hegarty

Fixing South Kerry's depopulation problem

An alarming drop in the number of children in South Kerry is running counter to the population rise elsewhere, and it's all down to housing policy” ..my piece in @irishexaminer.bsky.social today
www.irishexaminer.com/news/munster...