What will the cities of the future look like? And how must today’s cities transform themselves to meet the future’s demands? Answering those questions is the fascinating work of Urban and Regional Planners. They promote the best use of a community’s land and resources for residential, commercial, institutional and recreational purposes. They develop short term, and long term plans to provide for the growth and renewal of all kinds of areas, from rural to urban. Their expertise is used by government officials and citizens to make decisions about social, economic and environmental issues…from housing the homeless, to creating green space amid highways and buildings. Private businesses doing public work also hire planners to help them develop their ideas. This is a field that requires preparation with college studies, often a graduate degree, and a knowledge base in a particular aspect of planning such as architecture, or agriculture. Planners need to keep abreast of economic and legal issues involved in zoning codes and environmental regulations. They frequently attend evening and weekend meetings or public hearings with citizens’ groups. They use computers to record and analyze information and to prepare reports. Good oral and written communications skills are essential. It helps to be a good negotiator too, because one thing that’s certain about the future—is that people won’t agree about what it should look like!