Authenticity seems impossible today, with places and buildings that look like they could be anywhere, lacking harmony with nature and local culture. But designers can achieve authenticity through effective principles, and a dozen of them are listed here.

Of the four types of recovery facing America cities and towns—disaster, sprawl, disinvestment, and the recovery of community for those fleeing climate change—the recovery of places from serious disinvestment arguably gets the least amount of press...

In the wake of Hurricane Dorian, which destroyed much that was good in The Bahamas, it is worth reviewing the lessons from recent natural disasters on how to build to last and recover local culture and economies.