NEW RELEASES
Urban Land Magazine: "Think Global, Act Megaregional" 
Presentations
from Megaregions Symposium, January 2006
Learn More About PAMMEGAREGIONS
Between now and the year 2050, more than half of the nation’s population growth, and perhaps as much as two-thirds of its economic growth, will occur in several “Megaregions.” These Megaregions are extended networks of metropolitan centers and the surrounding areas. They often cross county and state lines and are linked by transportation and communication networks. The southeastern United States has been identified as an emerging Megaregion, where recent and projected settlement patterns and infrastructure systems are enhancing important social, economic, and environmental links between the many parts of the region.
Why Megaregions?
Population growth. Increasing urbanization. Traffic congestion. Growing
inequalities. A struggling
educational system. Water wars. Declining air quality. Ecosystem degradation.
An economy in
transition. Increasing global competition. These issues share several
traits:
• They are spatial.
• They are not confined by political boundaries.
• They affect future generations.
• They are related to each other.
These issues and their common characteristics call for a new framework
for planning and public
investment, one that is cross-disciplinary, regional, and farsighted.
It is for these reasons, as well as
lessons from abroad, that the Megaregions concept has emerged. While
it is relatively new to the
United States, other countries have successfully adopted a large-scale
regional planning framework to
build economic competitiveness and improve the quality of life of their
citizens.
