Chicago Aerial Panorama

Chicago, Illinois, USA • 360° Aerial Panorama

This panorama can be opened in several different resolutions. High resolution panorama with the best quality is about 7 Mb large and it is suitable for fast internet connections and modern computers. For slower internet and old weak computers we created the smaller low resolution panorama. Some small details have been  sacrificed but the size of low resolution panorama is nomore than 2 Mb.
high resolution	low resolution
This Virtual Tour is also available in the following formats:    -  ULTRA HIGH    -  iPhone    -  iPad

"Chicago is a city with its soul and personality. Here anyone can admire simultaneously three epochs of world architecture. This is a very unusual fact for such a young country like the USA. We can be "grateful" for this to the fire of 1871, which almost completely wiped Chicago off the face of the earth."   

Click to Read more

360 Degree Panorama

Victoria Falls, Zambia and Zimbabwe border • 360° Aerial Panorama

This panorama can be opened in several different resolutions. High resolution panorama with the best quality is about 7 Mb large and it is suitable for fast internet connections and modern computers. For slower internet and old weak computers we created the smaller low resolution panorama. Some small details have been  sacrificed but the size of low resolution panorama is nomore than 2 Mb.
high resolution	low resolution
This Virtual Tour is also available in the following formats:    -  iPhone    -  iPad

"Victoria" - is one of the most spectacular attractions of Africa and one of the most unusual waterfalls in the world. It is created by the Zambezi River that suddenly plummets into a narrow, 100-meters deep chasm. At the same time, Victoria - is the only waterfall in the world that is over one kilometer wide and over one hundred meters deep. 

Click to Read More About Victoria Falls 

Click to see more 360 Degree Panorama Locations

Downtown Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Sioux Falls,  South Dakota has done a terrific job with their downtown. They have combined streetscape and public art to create a great urban space.  Each year the mount new sculptures downtown.  Artists are glad to provide their art at no cost.  People vote on their favorite sculptures. The city buys the most popular sculpture and permanently mount it. Then they do it over again the next year.

http://sculpturewalksiouxfalls.com/

Turning Urban Sprawl Into Sustainable Cities

Atlanta (CNN) -- It may seem ironic that one of the most sustainable city infrastructure projects underway in the United States is taking shape in a metropolitan region known best for its traffic congestion and expansive urban sprawl.

Click to read the article

CEOs for Cities

TIGER Funds Smart Growth 

The U.S. Department of Transportation allotted nearly $500 million from the TIGER 2012 Discretionary Grants program to 47 transportation projects in 34 states and the District of Columbia. According to an analysis by Better! Cities and Towns, 15 of the projects, totaling $161 million, will support smart growth in the form of complete streets, transit-oriented development, urban bike-ped projects, street networks, and a streetcar system.  Rail, including both freight and passenger services, earned $297 million, or 59 percent, of the funding. This paradigmatic shift away from the majority of funding being allocated to highway and road projects represents the growing support for mixed-transit development and smart growth in the federal government.

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Valuing Degree Attainment

Lee Fisher, President and CEO of CEOs for Cities, and Noël Harmon, National Director of the Talent Dividend for CEOs for Cities, wrote a blog in Huffington Post this week that touts the benefits of higher education. The blog highlights the increase in earnings potential, employment, and standard of living for those that complete a college degree. Dropping out is not a viable option; "our focus must be on the hard work of and staunch commitment to ensuring postsecondary access and attainment for all" in order to foster success in a competitive global economy.

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Metrics and Technology Revolutionize Higher Ed

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation plays a prominent role in shaping higher education. In an interview with the Chronicle of Higher Education, Bill Gates discusses his vision for transforming higher education through technology. The Gates Foundation is targeting late graduators and college dropouts by revolutionizing the ways that teaching is delivered. Bill Gates mentions the importance of gathering information on "completion rates [and] the quality of the employees that get generated by the learning experience" rather than just entry SAT score. By understanding these metrics, we can alter teaching mechanisms, including online learning, to fit the needs of an ever-changing student body.

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GOOD Ideas for Cities: New Orleans

On July 12th, GOOD Ideas for Cities, a collaboration between GOOD and CEOs for Cities that asks creative problem solvers to tackle urban challenges and present their solutions to a live audience including city leaders, will be New Orleans. The New Orleans event will be the last event in a series of six brainstorming sessions, all funded by ArtPlace, to be held in mid-sized cities throughout the country. You can RSVP for the free event, which will be held at the New Orleans Museum of Art, here. The challenges include improving biking, increasing access to healthy food, beautification of street corners, and advancing food truck reform.

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Partner Interview: Kim Scheeler

Check out CEOs for Cities' partner interview of Kim Scheeler, President and CEO of the Greater Richmond Chamber, to read about what makes Richmond great. 

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CEOs for Cities

Harris School of Public Policy, University of Chicago, 155 East 60th Street, Chicago, IL 60637 -             312.553.4630      

http://www.ceosforcities.org/

The Hullinger Ranch - South Dakota

Photos by Lisle Hullinger

Photos by Lisle Hullinger on the Hullinger Ranch

Pronghorn Antelope

Sammy saves the day

Downtown Rapid City, South Dakota

Kudos to the leadership of Rapid City, South Dakota. They have added great streetscape, sculpture, and a new park in downtown. A great urban space.

The City has statues of all the Presidents of the United States in the downtown. President John Adams above.  A minor critique - the statutes are a little too spread out.  But don't move them - fill the intervening space with more sculpture and streetscape.

Very nice job.

Beautiful Photos

Dasht-e Kevir

  October 1, 2000

• Description: The Dasht-e Kevir, or Great Salt Desert, is the largest desert in Iran. It is a primarily uninhabited wasteland, composed of mud and salt marshes covered with crusts of salt that protect the meager moisture from completely evaporating.

The USGS/EROS Agency is responsible for aerial photography and mapping.  Many of their images are beautiful works of art in their own right.

Click to see more beautiful aerial photos

Click to see more beautiful aerial photos

Green Sculpture Park

Green Sculpture Park

A City could create a Green Sculpture Park that would be artistic and “green”, incorporating recycled materials, wind and solar energy, etc. into the design. 

A program modeled on the successful Sioux Falls, South Dakota program could be created. 

www.sculpturewalksiouxfalls.com

Each year new sculptures are displayed in downtown for one year, and become a tourist attraction. After one year the sculptures are replaced by new sculptures. The sculptures are for sale and people vote for their favorite.

Green Sculpture Park - Will it Play in Peoria?

http://greensculpturepark.blogspot.com

Downtown Tinley Park, Illinois

Tinley Park has done a great job improving their historic Village downtown at Oak Park Avenue and the Rock Island Train Station.   I worked on the plan when I was Assistant Village Manager in 1998. Beth Ruyle prepared the Tax Increment Financing District (TIF) which helps pay for the improvements. The Village has an aggressive plan for future redevelopment when the economy improves.