Commentary and Analysis

Will COVID-19 change how cities are designed? Michele Acuto of the Connected Cities Lab talks about density, urbanization and pandemic preparation.

States like Michigan are feeling the lack of international students and refugees as immigration restrictions cut off the Midwest's economic lifeline.

Seriously addressing the region’s plastic apocalypse will require moving beyond blunt moves such as plastic bag bans.

In October, I visited Seoul with a delegation of Chicago Council Emerging Leaders on a Korea Foundation-funded trip led by Karl Friedhoff, the Council’s Korea specialist.

Brookings' Anthony F. Pipa and UL's Catherine P. Sheehy join  Deep Dish  to discuss the way forward for cities, the private sector, and SDGs.

There are two Midwests now. While the nation was focused on this old Midwest, the new Midwest has taken shape. It’s a Midwest that lives on brains, not brawn. It produces ideas and services, not ingots and autos.

The Midwest possesses huge political and economic power in the United States. Richard C. Longworth explains the five things to know about the Midwest in 2020.

Following the drone attack that killed Qassim Suleimani, cities across the US intensified local security measures—representing the new era of global affairs.

Today the Midwest is neither an economic monolith nor, despite lingering popular misconceptions, a “Rust Belt.” As the region's capital, Chicago can and should be at the center of a great reimagining of the heartland's economy.

With so much activity around cities in today's world, there is a lot to track. Here are ten trends in 2020 to watch where cities will be particularly influential on the global stage.