News

Prof. Gerrit Knaap will participate in the following webinar with ICLRD, NCSG’s Irish research partner organization.

When: Wednesday, September 22, 2021 – 15:30 to 16:45
Hosted by ICLRD together with  Maynooth University Social Sciences Institute (MUSSI)

With the COVID-19 induced interruption to work patterns, and the enforced switch to home / remote working, we have witnessed a significant reduction in the need to commute to work. While it is still not clear to what extent these disruptions are temporary, permanent or still evolving, a two-year research programme by ICLRD is interrogating the relationships between people and places and exploring the role of commuting in shaping those relationships.
Using a case-study approach, this webinar will explore emerging findings from the ICLRD’s InPLACE: Investigating Place Planning and Commuting study. Focusing on a number of towns across the island of Ireland, this webinar will consider the implications of commuting (pre-COVID) and telecommuting (during COVID) for individuals, their families and communities of place. The study’s findings will have relevance across a wide range of policy domains, many of which are within the remit of local authorities, and all of which directly influence local places, including in respect of health, housing, environment, community development, social policy, transportation and spatial planning.

Event Programme

Moderator: Prof. Gerrit Knaap, Professor of Urban Studies and Planning & Executive Director, National Center for Smart Growth Research, University of Maryland

Welcome from ICLRD Chair: Ms. Mary MacIntyre OBE

Speakers:
The Changing Spatial Relationship Between Home and Workplace – An Evolving Narrative: Prof. Des McCafferty, Senior Research Associate ICLRD & Project Lead, InPLACE: Investigating Place, Planning and Commuting
Creating Vibrant and Thriving Towns in Commuter Belts: What Role for planning? Learnings from Ennistymon-Lahinch, Co. Clare, Dr. Karen Keaveney, Head of Rural Development and Assistant Professor in the UCD School of Agriculture and Food Science & Dr. Brendan O’Keeffe, Director, O’Keeffe and Associates and Senior Research Associate, ICLRD.

Q&A

Click Here to Register

Professor Hiro Iseki collaborated with his students on a paper on Electric Vehicle Readiness for local governments in Maryland. Please read the full report here.

During the Spring 2021 semester, a team of four students of the Urban Studies and Planning Program (URSP) in the School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (MAPP) at the University of Maryland conducted a project to assess the readiness of Maryland municipalities and provide policy and planning recommendations to increase their EV readiness. This project examines EV readiness across several municipalities and identifies challenges and opportunities, using a three-pronged strategy described in the next section.

The overarching questions answered in this project are:

This document summarizes the project and its findings with a focus on highlighting the Best Practices from other jurisdictions across the country to provide practical policy and planning recommendations for municipalities in Maryland to consider. It includes a brief overview of the research methodology, followed by the major findings and recommendations.