Winners Announced for VT UAP “What is Urban Planning?” YouTube Contest

August 17, 2011

VTMURP2011 (Dustin Akers, Scott Lail and Devon Prater) and Hershey5833 have been named the winners of the Virginia Tech Urban Affairs and Planning YouTube video contest. Contestants were asked to submit a short 2-3 minute video on the topic “What is Urban Planning?”. See the VTMURP2011 video at http://youtu.be/vAt-LwbLf5A and the Hershey5833 video at http://youtu.be/mfqDuRmbeZg.

Both winners will receive $250 USD and their videos will be featured on the VT Urban Affairs and Planning You Tube channel (YouTube username UAPVirginiaTech).

Please join us in congratulating both winners!

Job Oppty: Public Transit Policy Analyst

JOB ANNOUNCEMENT
Public Transit Policy Analyst

The Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC) has an immediate opening for a Transit Policy Analyst. This challenging position offers outstanding opportunities to interact with local and state elected officials and their staffs in order to improve traffic congestion, air quality and energy efficiency through public transit and ridesharing.

Duties includes performing policy analysis and research involving transit performance; serving as staff liaison to the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, the Virginia Railway Express (which is co-owned by NVTC) and the Transportation Planning Board; and providing technical expertise in such subjects as transit technology, air quality, emergency response, bicycle/pedestrian access, land use and vanpool incentive programs. A complete job description is attached.

NVTC has a small staff located in new offices in the vibrant Court House area of Arlington. The mission and responsibilities of NVTC include financial management and legislative advocacy as well as project management. The agency is funded by its state and local government members in a district covering over a thousand square miles with a population of 1.6 million. Please refer to NVTC’s website at www.thinkoutsidethecar.org.

This position requires a college degree and at least three years of relevant experience supported with strong references. It requires a passion for public transit, an analytical mind, creativity, strategic thinking and skills in statistics. Excellent written and oral communication and expertise in spreadsheets, statistical packages and graphics are mandatory.

Outstanding benefits are provided (life, health, dental, disability insurance; pension; pre-tax child care and medical cafeteria plan; free parking or parking cash-out; tax-free transit benefit of $230 monthly). The competitive salary depends on experience and qualifications.

The job will remain open until filled. NVTC is an equal opportunity employer. Please provide a complete resume including your salary history and requirements, as well as a letter describing your qualifications and interest in this specific position, to:

Executive Director
NVTC
2300 Wilson Boulevard
Suite 620
Arlington, VA 22201

Email: nvtc@nvtdc.org

Keeping up with Communication Technology: An online workshop on the practical use of social media and web-based tools | Conferences

Keeping up with Communication Technology: An online workshop on the practical use of social media and web-based tools | Conferences

Wed Aug 17: Sustainable Communities Grant Program Webinar

We're glad to share this announcement from PolicyLink:

Wednesday
August 17, 2:00-3:00 pm EDT

Sustainable Communities Grant Program: Making Equity in Housing, Transportation, and Jobs the Heart of Your Region's Application

"The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has recently announced its second year of Sustainable Communities funding to allow regions to plan for strengthening their economies. The $65 million HUD-DOT-EPA Sustainable Communities Regional Planning grants and the $28 million HUD-DOT Challenge grants are an important and new opportunity to make this happen. Please see the Notice of Funding Availability. Pre-applications are due August 25th, with full applications due September 26th. A key success factor in the creation of sustainable regions is planning for greater economic and social inclusion of communities, workers, and places that have been left behind.  

Join PolicyLink, HUD, and leading regional planners to discuss best equity practices to drive planning and investments in housing, health, environment, transportation, and other infrastructure needs. And learn about the PolicyLink 2011 Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant Guide to help build best practices for addressing equity into a winning application and planning process. The guide also highlights successful applicants from the 2010 grant rounds.

Speakers:

• Dwayne Marsh, Senior Advisor, HUD Office of Sustainable Housing and Communities
• Jeff Taebel, Director, Community and Environmental Planning, Houston-Galveston Area Council
• Tracy Reich, Director, Community Programs, Impact Capital, Seattle Washington

Moderator:

• Kalima Rose, Director, PolicyLink Center for Infrastructure Equity

We look forward to having you on the webinar." 

Call for APA Conf Session Proposals on Food Planning, Due Aug 23

American Planning Association’s (APA)
Food Interest Group
Call for Food Planning Session Proposals
For APA’s 2012 Conference in Los Angeles
Deadline: August 23

The APA has released a call for session proposals for their April 14-17 conference in Los Angeles. The exciting news about this conference is that there is a special track devoted to Food System Planning. APA had a special track on food system planning in both 2005 and 2006. APA describes this track on their web site:

Whether it's eating locally, raising chickens in the backyard, protecting land for food production, or addressing urban food deserts, planners are developing a systems approach to the issues of food planning. Examine how food systems planning should relate to the comprehensive plan and daily work of the planner. Find out how the public sector is working with the private sector to address problems and support sustainable practices.

APA’s Food Interest Group (FIG) wants to encourage those that are involved in food system planning initiatives and projects to submit a session proposal. Topics related to specific sectors of the food system, including case studies that illustrate how challenges of creating a healthy, local food system can be overcome are welcome. Sessions will ideally include planners and non-planners and illustrate how food system planning is being integrated into mainstream planning. Specific questions that could be addressed in a session proposal include:
· How do cities address local food distribution (e.g. creating food hubs, or local distribution centers, and direct marketing services and venues)? What can planners do?
· How can cities plan for regional and local agriculture when regional and city governance is uncommon?
· Can pricing ecosystem services and offsets play a role in creating sustainable food systems?
· Provide examples of how the federal Healthy Food Financing Initiative, or other incentive programs like it, has helped establish grocery stores in communities of need.
· How can we plan for the use or diversion of food waste from landfills, such as composting?
· Are there limits to the interventions that planners can employ to ensure that local food is more viable and economic than non-local foods?
· Are there private sector examples and/or private-public partnerships that support sustainable food system practices?

Of particular interest is a discussion of the roles that public institutions can play in developing sustainable regional food systems – as well as the role of planners.

Please note that all conference speakers are required to register for the conference. Most will be paid registrants, although some may qualify for a discounted rate, and others will qualify for a guest registration. Be sure to review the registration policies carefully prior to submitting this proposal, and be sure to share this policy with any invited speakers. It is important to be aware that each session is required to have at least one APA member participating, either as a speaker or as a moderator.

FIG encourages you to visit APA’s conference web site to find out more about the 2012 conference and to complete a session proposal (http://www.planning.org/conference/ index.htm). The deadline for submitting a proposal is August 23, 2011.

Job Oppty: Regional Coastal Planner

REGIONAL COASTAL PLANNER”: Excellent opportunity to live and work in a rural/suburban area on the Chesapeake Bay. Responsibilities include professional and technical work in Coastal Zone Management, Economic and Community Development. Work areas include coastal economic development and job creation; coastal land conversion, harbor-commercial seafood infrastructure planning, water use conflict management, public land management, public access planning, land use impacts of failing septic systems and transportation planning.  Requirements include a degree in planning or other appropriate field, computer literacy including GIS, and excellent written and oral communication skills. Advanced degree a plus. Salary Range $30,000-$37,000 and 125 Cafeteria Plan. Excellent benefits package (Virginia Retirement System). Send letter of interest with resume to: LLawrence@mppdc.com or mail to: Middle Peninsula Planning District Commission, POB 286, Saluda, VA 23149. Position open until filled. The MPPDC is an equal opportunity employer.

Job Oppty: Policy Analyst, Housing Commission

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

Policy Analyst, Housing Commission

The Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) is a non-profit organization that was established in 2007 by former Senate Majority Leaders Howard Baker, Tom Daschle, Bob Dole and George Mitchell to develop and promote solutions that can attract public support and political momentum in order to achieve real progress. 

The BPC is currently seeking a Policy Analyst to assist with the organization’s new Housing Commission.  Housing was at the very heart of the fiscal and financial crisis that erupted in 2007.  That crisis and its aftermath have left the housing markets, and much of our housing policy apparatus, in wreckage.  The effect on American families has been devastating and the crisis continues to unfold with no end in sight.  In 2011, almost four years after the beginning of the crisis, and after 2.3 million families have lost their homes to foreclosure, housing prices have begun to drop again. The nation’s housing markets and policies need to be remade.      

Decisions made today and over the coming decade will determine the nature of our housing finance system; the relative role of the private market and the government in that system; the nature and form of policies that produce decent housing options for all, either through rental or ownership; the regulatory barriers impacting access to decent housing; the need for national mortgage servicing and foreclosure standards; and countless other fundamental issues. The bipartisan Housing Commission will help define and shape the debate.

 General Duties and Responsibilities:

The position of Policy Analyst is a versatile one, involving a variety of tasks, always simultaneously. Responsibilities include research, analysis, writing, and editing; strategic policy and tactical thinking; organizational management of meetings, events, communications, and contacts; and proactive engagement on numerous other issues ranging from grant fundraising to blogging. The Policy Analyst position is one in which you will be expected to learn quickly on the job, and you will have the opportunity to directly interact and engage with top leaders in the field. As part of a growing think-tank, you will also be challenged to think creatively about non-policy issues such as project direction, strategy, and bipartisanship.

Qualifications:

• Ability to multi-task on numerous projects, large and small, in both collaborative and independent situations
• Strong research, writing and organizational skills
• Ability to communicate clearly and effectively 
• Knowledge of housing and/or housing finance policies
• Preference for 1 -2 years public policy or Capitol Hill experience
• Applicant must have completed a B.A.

The BPC offers a highly competitive salary and provides generous benefits.  Individuals interested in this position should send cover letter and resume to jobs@bipartisanpolicy.org by Friday, August 26, 2011.

The BPC is an Equal Opportunity Employer.