Land-use impacts health. Control is local. In California, a planning document, called a “general plan” sets forth zoning and policy goals for each city and county. Communities collaboratively create such plans with years of public meetings. This plan determines where and how much development will occur as well as what type of development (eg. single family homes, mixed-use commercial).  The CRC's data and research into local planning aims to help communities make informed decisions about how they plan for the future. You can help shape your local plan! 

Use our landmark searchable database of general plans – enabling citizen scientists to comprehensively assess plan contents. Our landmark database covers 471 (of 485) California city-level and all 58 county general plans. We designed it with input from with California state agencies (the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research, Housing and Community Development and Air Resources Board) and non-profits (California Environmental Justice Alliance and Communities for a Better Environment).

Project: Best Practices and Capacity Building for Local Government Implementation of Climate Action Policies

The goal of the CARB Climate Readiness Project is to partner with nonprofits and local governments across the state for workshops that highlight supportive state policies, cutting-edge research, and open data sources for three priority areas: reducing Vehicle Miles Traveled, Promoting Electric Vehicle adoption, and Decarbonizing the Built Environment. This effort includes a review of current federal, state and local codes as well as a plan evaluation to understand where and how communities across California are deploying climate ready policies with attention to equity and environmental justice. We are partnering in this work with Dr. Mike Boswell of California Polytechnical Institute.