Smart Towns

Imagine a neighborhood where you can walk to the market, bike to the movie theater, and stroll just a few blocks to the light-rail station, where you catch the train to work in the morning. Redesigning our neighborhoods to reduce the amount of energy used for transportation, as well as the energy used in buildings themselves, is a key step in curbing global warming. NRDC has been working with the Congress for the New Urbanism and the U.S. Green Building Council to establish guidelines for building and certifying new neighborhoods according to "smart growth" principles, such as creating leafy public spaces and tree-lined streets, providing access to public transportation, and situating all the necessities of life within a short walk, bike ride, or train trip -- all this instead of land-gobbling, car-reliant urban sprawl. The program, called Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design for Neighborhood Development (LEED-ND), is now in its pilot phase, and it has already received 370 applications for certification from developers -- more than three times what the program founders anticipated. Click here to find out more about certification options and criteria.