Coursera

Sustainable Regional Principles, Planning and Transportation (Coursera)

Offered by Johns Hopkins University,

This course will provide students with an introduction to sustainable regional principles, regional planning concepts and evaluate regional transportation system issues. This will be achieved through dynamic video lectures, practical case studies and the evaluation of practices for success. These will include discussions of the importance of the regional plan, how to engage community involvement, the importance of understanding a development transect and others.

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see Coursera's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

Strategies for growth priorities, along with consideration of available housing and food security will also be addressed. The concepts of providing a rural preserve and a rural reserve will be evaluated and mapping of key aspects of the region, such as neighborhoods and districts will be explained. Evaluation of regional transportation systems will be addressed including multi-mobile balance and building choices into the transportation system modes. The considerations for including a regional railway system along with accommodating user mobility and accessibility will be explored.
By the end of this course, you will be able to:

Formulate the relationship between regional principles, smart growth, and sustainability.
Evaluate growth priorities, community involvement and scale of governance to achieve sustainable smart growth.
Evaluate and explain regional mapping of rural preserves, rural reserves, neighborhoods, and districts as important tools in regional smart growth planning.
Describe the implications of mapping corridors and regional centers to the overall smart growth planning at the regional level.

This course is for :

Government Officials involved planning, designing, monitoring, enforcement, and assessment of sustainable project developments at the local, state, and federal level.
Private sector companies in the transportation and municipal design and construction business.
Architects interested in advancing sustainable concepts for cities and communities.
Foundations, associations, and other NGOs that support smart growth strategies.
Academic faculty and students studying and researching community sustainability and resilience.
Private citizens interested in improving their communities and living conditions.

The following list identifies background knowledge that will help you succeed in this course.

helpful to have a general understanding of how public/private projects are planned and implemented
have a strong interest or experience in planning and developing regional sustainable development plans
familiar with how government organizations function in the areas of transportation planning and project development
served as a volunteer committee member or leader on regional transportation projects and/or regional policy development initiatives
have a background and interest in environmental protection plans and projects
a general knowledge of regional transportation project planning and implementation
general knowledge or experience in public participation in governmental policy development
a strong interest and/or experience in improving the urban environment for the benefit of its citizens
have a general knowledge of legal and policy issues involved in sustainable development
have experience or general knowledge of social equity issues

Course 1 of 4 in the Sustainable Cities Specialization

Syllabus

WEEK 1
Sustainable Regional Fundamentals
This module will evaluate important regional issues that provide part of the foundation for a sustainable city. Regional principles will be evaluated in the context of developing a regional plan for sustainability.

WEEK 2
Regional Planning Including Developmental Priorities
This module will address issues related to neighborhood strategies for protecting the natural context of the neighborhood as well as the importance of the different, opponents necessary to have a welcoming and functional neighborhood. Structures will also be evaluated as an important part of the character of the neighborhood.

WEEK 3
Regional Transportation System and the Land – Use Connection
This module will evaluate sustainable options for the important physical, components for the transportation infrastructure within the region.

WEEK 4
Case Study of the Fairfax County, Virginia Comprehensive Transportation Plan
This module will evaluate sustainable options for the important physical, components for the transportation infrastructure within the Fairfax County Virginia Comprehensive Transportation Plan.

Go to Class

MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

Coursera

Commonwealth Education Trust

Foundations of Teaching for Learning: Introduction (Coursera)

Education Social Sciences

The Foundations of Teaching for Learning programme is for anyone who is teaching, or who would like to teach, in any subject and any context - be it at school, at home or in the workplace. With dynamic lessons taught by established and respected professionals from across the Commonwealth, this eight course programme will see you develop and strengthen your skills in teaching, professionalism, assessment, and more. As you carry on through the programme, you will find yourself strengthening not only your skills, but your connection with colleagues across the globe. A professional development opportunity not to be missed.

Nov 16th 2026

4 Weeks

Planning Education Learning

Coursera

Rice University

Natural Attenuation of Groundwater Contaminants: New Paradigms, Technologies, and Applications (Coursera)

Sci: Physical & Earth Sciences Sci: Environment

Cleaning up the large number of groundwater contamination sites is a significant and complex environmental challenge. The environmental industry is continuously looking for remediation methods that are both effective and cost-efficient. Over the past 10 years there have been amazing, important developments in our understanding of key attenuation processes and technologies for evaluating natural attenuation processes, and a changing institutional perspective on when and where Monitored Natural Attenuation (MNA) may be applied.

Nov 23rd 2026

5-12 Weeks

Sustainability Environment Technologies

Coursera

University at Buffalo,The State University of New York

The Roles and Responsibilities of Nonprofit Boards of Directors within the Governance Process (Coursera)

Management & Leadership Business

This course provides a more in-depth look at the roles and responsibilities of boards of directors in the governance of nonprofit organizations. While the course has been developed with North American culture in mind, we do appreciate that in other parts of the world, the nature of the roles and responsibilities of boards of directors may not be the same. Nevertheless,it is our hope that much of the course content will still be of value to those in other parts of the world.

Nov 18th 2026

5-12 Weeks

Planning Leadership Nonprofit Organizations

Coursera

University of Alberta

Introduction to the Arctic: Climate (Coursera)

Sci: Physical & Earth Sciences Sci: Environment

The University of Alberta, the University of Tromso and the University of the Arctic invite you to explore this four week course that examines the environment and climate of the circumpolar North. This course is the result of an international collaboration and provides you with an insight into our planet's North. Following an overview of regional geography, we will focus on the cryosphere (ice), as well as the atmosphere and ocean of the region.

Nov 16th 2026

4 Weeks

Sustainability Environment Climate Change

Coursera

Michigan State University

Planning: Principled, Proposing, Proofing, and Practicing to a Success Plan (Coursera)

Management & Leadership Business

According to Steven Blank a business startup, or any new venture startup is essentially a proto-type. Thus the startup process essentially becomes a learning process to refine that business proto-type into a scalable, replicable finished 'product'. At the end of this course learners will be able to: complete a business model summarizing assumptions about what value they will offer to whom, and how they will make money; systematically test and validate these assumptions within the constraints of their available resources, and; use these validated assumptions to generate financial projections that are based on actual resources and efforts expended.

Nov 23rd 2026

5-12 Weeks

Planning Business Startup

Coursera

University of California, Irvine

Iniciando e planejando projetos (Coursera)

Management & Leadership Business

Os cursos de Introdução aos Princípios de Gerenciamento de Projetos e Especialização em Práticas são um precursor recomendado para o Certificado de Gerenciamento de Projetos Aplicado da UCI. Os projetos bem-sucedidos requerem um planejamento inicial cuidadoso. Neste curso, você aprenderá as principais funções e responsabilidades do gerente de projeto e da equipe do projeto.

Nov 23rd 2026

5-12 Weeks

Planning Management Project Management

Coursera

University of Copenhagen

Sustainable Tourism – promoting environmental public health (Coursera)

Health & Society Science

The MOOC introduces learners to key environmental health and natural resources management challenges associated with the rapid growth in international tourist arrivals into low-income countries. Since infrastructural and regulatory capacities in such countries are often limited they are more exposed to the negative implications of such development. The MOOC will present experiences and potential avenues to develop a more sustainable form of tourism.

Nov 23rd 2026

3 Weeks

Sustainability Wastewater Public Health

Coursera

Leiden University

A Circular Economy of Metals: Towards a Sustainable Societal Metabolism (Coursera)

Sci: Environment

Metals are present everywhere around us and are one of the major materials upon which our economies are built. Economic development is deeply coupled with the use of metals. During the 20th century the variety of metal applications in society grew rapidly. In addition to mass applications such as steel in buildings and aluminium in planes, more and more different metals are in use for innovative technologies such as the use of the specialty metal indium in LCD screens. A lot of metals will be needed in the future. It will not be easy to provide them. In particular in emerging economies, but also in industrialized countries, the demand for metals is increasing rapidly. Mining and production activities expand, and with that also the environmental consequences of metal production. In this course, we will explore those consequences and we will also explore options to move towards a more sustainable system of metals production and use.

Nov 30th 2026

5-12 Weeks

Sustainability Metabolism Metals

Coursera

Technische Universität München - TUM,EIT Urban Mobility

Street Experiments for Sustainable and Resilient cities (Coursera)

Health & Society

Our streetscape, despite its feeling of permanence in our environment, is an ideal venue for experimentation. We have come to accept traffic movement as the default function for the street. Therefore, we need to rethink its design and space distribution, go back to its original and basic function and see them as public spaces - Transform them into places for social activities, where conversations can take place and places where kids can play.

Nov 23rd 2026

4 Weeks

Urbanism Resilient Cities Sustainable Cities

Coursera

Georgia Institute of Technology

Supply Chain Principles (Coursera)

Management & Leadership

This course will provide a solid understanding of what a supply chain is all about. The course: provides an introduction to Supply Chain; leverages graphics to promote the Integrated Supply Chain model; emphasizes understanding the Extended Supply Chain; presents a holistic approach – Incorporating People, Process, and Technology; calls-out industry-specific supply chain; leverages discussions, videos, quizzes, and questions for consideration; provides awareness of career path opportunities; presents emerging and futuristic trends in supply chain and given that at GT we are focused on developing what’s next in the world, we include Discussion of emerging and futuristic trends in supply chain. There is very little math involved in this course – so don’t worry at all about your math skills.

Nov 23rd 2026

5-12 Weeks

Planning Business Transportation

Coursera

Universidad de los Andes

ODS y sostenibilidad: una mirada desde los colegios (Coursera)

Education

En este curso veremos cómo podemos generar cambios y transformaciones (a nivel individual, organizacional y social) para la sostenibilidad desde la educación formal y no-formal. Partiremos del concepto de los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible (ODS) como un marco potente para generar reflexiones críticas, que nos lleven a generar acciones colectivas desde la escuela en pro de la sostenibilidad.

Nov 23rd 2026

4 Weeks

Sustainability Education Critical Thinking

Coursera

University of London,SOAS University of London

Understanding Research Methods (Coursera)

Engineering Sci: Physical & Earth Sciences

This MOOC is about demystifying research and research methods. It will outline the fundamentals of doing research, aimed primarily, but not exclusively, at the postgraduate level. It places the student experience at the centre of our endeavours by engaging learners in a range of robust and challenging discussions and exercises befitting SOAS, University of London's status as a research-intensive university and its rich research heritage.

Nov 16th 2026

4 Weeks

Planning Research Methods Research