Welcome to the 2008 SustainLane US City Rankings! You'll find extensive coverage on the greening of the 50 most-populous cities in the nation on these pages, and the most complete report card on urban sustainability in America. This report benchmarks each city's performance in 16 areas of urban sustainability, including an essential new measurement this year: Water Supply. Forged in 2005 and now in its third edition, the peer-reviewed Rankings track the unfolding story of cities working to improve their residents' quality of life. In this story, some cities are becoming more self-reliant and better prepared for an uncertain future, while others have been slow to act on opportunities to green their municipalities.
We hope you enjoy reading through our work as much as we enjoyed creating it! Get started now with a closer look at our methodology, or a review of what makes a sustainable city. Or if you'd like, simply cut to the chase and check out the Rankings. We'll be continually updating these pages with stories from the field, so check back often. Thanks for visiting, and happy reading!
If you live in Portland, you might want to think twice before complaining about the 40-plus inches of rain dumped on your head every year. It might be the only thing keeping the entire country from moving to your city by the Prius-load. Portland retained its title as SustainLane's number one city to beat this year–not surprising given that it got a 30-year jump on the rest of the country.more »
For most of the 19th and 20th century, cities, despite the hardships and suffering experienced in ghettos, were seen as places where culture and intelligence concentrated and evolved. In the latter part of the 20th century, urban decay, environmental problems, and ethnic riots created a rush for the exits and rampant urban sprawl. Cities became more dangerous and inhuman. Post-war modernist planners and architects made matters worse by creating concrete monuments to themselves, hollowing out downtowns into commercial centers that felt like mausoleums at night...more »
Shhhhh. We’re going to let you in on a well-kept secret. Despite New York’s skyscrapers and congested streets, the city is one of the most sustainable in the country. NYC’s per capita emissions are a third of those in the rest of the country because of public transit...more »
Hotlanta? How about Greenlanta? The city leads the southeast in LEED-registered buildings—over 140 projects are currently seeking certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. It also has a “no net loss” policy for its trees. One challenge to Atlanta: urban sprawl...more »
Ok, Angelenos, imagine this: a picturesque, 30-mile-long expanse of green, complete with parks and paths and planted with native, drought-resistant vegetation all along the Los Angeles River. Imagine rollerblading and pushing jogging strollers and barbecuing right on the banks of the historic waterway...more »
In Tennessee’s sweltering summer heat, the refugee women who tend the Sylvan Street Garden plots are covered from head to toe in bright, vibrant fabrics. Some have infants cradled to their hips with lengths of the same colorful material. But these gardens are neither in the state’s rural regions, or even in the suburbs. Instead, they’re in Nashville, smack in the middle of the James A. Casey homes – the city’s largest public housing project.more »
Submitted by Betty Mayes
City has always been my life. I was born and raised in this city we call Baltimore.
A beautiful park known as Herring Run, with its rippling stream, was part of my life from early childhood. My own children, now grown and living in their own homes in this same city, also have the same affinity for this park.more »
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It is a great honor for the City of Boston to be ranked sixth by SustainLane.com, a company internationally recognized for its research methodology. SustainLane's study is proof that cities around the country are heading in the right direction and serves as an important motivating factor for city administrations to work hard at cleaning up the environment. —Mayor Thomas Menino, Boston
How does being near a coast affect how cities perform? Take a look at how coastal cities compare to inland ones.
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