Section Articles: INTRODUCTION Communities showing the way to a better future 1. Ithaca, NY A gritty upstate city where the grassroots are green Ithaca, Shmithaca A second opinion from a candid local 2. Portland, OR Sprawlbusters 3.Durham, NC Bullish on the future 4. Burlington, VT The people's republic of Vermont 5. Madison, WI The heartland's progressive hotbed 6. Arcata, CA Green town in the redwoods 7. Portland, ME Beyond the waterfront 8.Iowa City, IA American eclectic 9. Providence, RI Bright lights, bright city 10.Chattanooga, TN The sustainable blue-collar town *** The Big USA List The most enlightened town for every American state The Big Canada List The most enlightened town for every province 1. Toronto A big city that works Minneapolis What about Utne Reader's home town? The Enlightened Town Toolkit Books, periodicals and organizations

If the fight against sprawl is the new war of the West, as The New York Times recently observed, then Portland is the Lone Ranger. In the 1970s this innovative city took a stand against the blight of unchecked suburban growth and did what supposedly couldn't be done: restricted development to a compact central area and left forests, farmland, and orchards untouched. First the city drew an urban growth boundaryóin essence, a thin green line beyond which development would not spread. Then, working with other municipalities, it created a regional government body known as Metro that required each city and county to file a comprehensive land-use plan to keep open space intact. The plan evoked howls of protest from developers, who tried unsuccessfully three times to get voters to repeal the act.