TABLE of CONTENTS February 2013
Singapore's 50-meters-tall “supertrees” aren’t merely aesthetic. They also serve several practical purposes, including rain collection and temperature moderation. (Photo: AP/Wong Maye-E)
Singapore Strives to Become 'The Smartest City'
BY David Hatch
Singapore is using data to redefine what it means to be a 21st-century metropolis.
FEATURES
Affordable and Luxurious Housing Come Hand in Hand in Vienna
Vienna has figured out how to offer high-quality apartments with low-cost rent and renters' rights that would be unheard of in the United States. Advocates say it's a model worth examining.
What China's Unique Urbanization Can Teach America
Nineteen of the 20 fastest-growing cities in the world last year were in China. For more from Governing's first-ever International Issue, click here.
Performance-Based College Funding is Coming Stateside
For years, states have dallied over pay-for-performance in higher education. In Britain, they've been doing it for decades.
Why Isn't the U.S. Better at Public-Private Partnerships?
Few states have offices dedicated to examining increasingly popular P3 deals. Experts say it's time to copy Canada and change that.
The $20 Eye Surgery That Could Save the World
At India's innovative Aravind hospitals, each doctor performs as many as 2,000 cataract surgeries annually.
POLITICS + POLICY
Lawmaking
Iceland Writes the World's 1st Crowdsourced Constitution
Some U.S. cities have dabbled in crowdsourcing -- asking citizens to help solve problems via the Internet -- but replicating Iceland’s approach on such a large scale may be hard.
Infrastructure & Environment
Mexico City's Recycling Incentive: More Food
Mexico City has a massive trash problem that's partially caused by citizens' resistance to recycle. To encourage them to do so, the city gives residents food vouchers in exchange for their recyclable waste.
Economic Development
Post-Disaster New Zealand Finds Use for Vacant Spaces
A town destroyed by two earthquakes shows U.S. states and cities what they can do with areas decimated by natural disasters.
Health & Human Services
Vancouver Offers Drug Users a Safe Place to Shoot Up
In an effort to reduce HIV rates that were approaching development-world levels, a government-run facility in the Canadian city welcomes people to use illegal substances under the supervision of medical professionals.
Dispatch
What Privacy Means to Americans vs. Europeans
Experts are worried that disparate privacy rules between the two could pose a threat to future growth.
Potomac Chronicle
Local Pot Laws Conflict with National Policies Worldwide
The United States isn't the only place where local marijuana policies clash with national laws. Even Amsterdam and the Dutch government have struggled with this tension. Read the rest of Governing's first-ever International Issue here.
FedWatch
A Powerful Central Government Loosens the Reins
The United Kingdom is giving unprecedented authority to its cities under a program that the United States could learn a thing or two from.
Health & Human Services
Can Iran's Health-House Model Help Mississippi Reduce Disparities?
Health-care stakeholders are watching Mississippi's experience with a system created in Iran in the 1980s closely to see if it's worth promoting nationwide.
Energy & Environment
Africa Shows the Power of Growing Trees from Seed
Storms, disease and the rigors of urban life have caused high mortality rates among trees in the United States. African countries found trees that sprout naturally are more resilient.
Urban Notebook
U.S. Cities Consider Capping Parking Spots
Cars are being kept out of popular pedestrian areas worldwide and the movement is coming stateside.
Economic Engines
Can Greater Government Involvement Solve America's Internet Access Problem?
Many foreign countries provide faster, cheaper and more widespread Internet access than the United States. In most of them, governments are much more involved with telecom policies and funding.
PROBLEM SOLVER
By the Numbers
How Do U.S. Health Costs Compare to Other Countries?
View an interactive map with health costs for each country, and read our first-ever International Issue online Feb. 1.
Smart Management
Cities Strengthening Bonds with Their International Sisters
There's a new push to get these 2,000 international partnerships working together on concrete development programs.
Better Government
The Emerging Power of China's Auditors
Cracking down on corruption is critical to China's growth.
Tech Talk
Government Technology Ideas Worth Importing
These best e-government practices aren't from this side of the pond.
Public Money
Muni Bonds' Future May Lie in Foreign Investors' Hands
Foreign investors matter to the municipal bond market for two reasons.
