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Edward T. McMahon
Senior Resident Fellow/Charles E. Fraser Chair for Sustainable Development and Environmental Policy

Phone: 202-624-7004
E-mail: emcmahon@uli.org

Read Urban Land articles by McMahon.








Ed McMahon is the ULI (Urban Land Institute)/Charles Fraser Senior Resident Fellow for Sustainable Development. ULI, based in Washington, D.C., is a nonprofit education and research institute supported by its members.

As the Senior Resident Fellow for Sustainable Development, McMahon’s responsibilities include leading ULI’s efforts to conduct research and educational activities related to green and sustainable development practices.

McMahon, a nationally renowned authority on sustainable development, land conservation and urban design, was formerly the vice president and director of land use programs at The Conservation Fund. He joins six other senior resident fellows who specialize in public policy, retail and urban entertainment, transportation, real estate finance, housing and urban development issues. The senior resident fellows program was established to enhance ULI’s role as the most influential voice in the real estate industry, and raise awareness of its mission to improve the quality of land use and development worldwide.

McMahon is an attorney, community planner, lecturer, author and expert on the topics of sustainable development, land conservation, urban design and historic preservation. At the Conservation Fund, he worked to improve both land conservation and land development practices through programs that balance economic and environmental goals.

He has organized successful efforts to acquire and protect urban parkland, wilderness areas and other conservation properties, and he has made numerous presentations on the topics of tourism, conservation, land use planning and historic preservation. McMahon is also the co-founder and former president of Scenic America, a national non-profit organization devoted to protecting America’s scenic landscapes.

McMahon has an M.A. in Urban Studies from the University of Alabama and a J.D. from Georgetown University Law School, where he taught law and public policy from 1976-1985.
Research & Publications
Conservation Communities: Creating Value with Nature, Open Space, and Agriculture—2010

Developing Sustainable Planned Communities—2007

Green Infrastructure: Linking Landscapes and Communities—2006

Land Conservation Financing—2003
Commentaries
The Place Making Dividend—2010

Infrastructure: Pay Now Or Pay A Lot More Later—2010

The Region Needs a Reality Check—2008
 
McMahon: Small-Town Look Disappearing—2006

Lessons in Community Development Learned from Traveling—2005

Planning Commissioners Journal—1995-2001
Media Coverage
Shorter Commutes Are Only Part of the Answer

"Most trips in a car are not back and forth to work," says Ed McMahon, ULI Senior Resident Fellow in a recent USA Today article. "Most trips — 80% to 85% — are lifestyle trips to the movies, the grocery store, taking the kids to school, and so on. What we found is if you live in a community where you can walk, ride a bike, take a short trip, those savings start to add up really quickly." The article was based on a recent study by Chicago-based CEOs for Cities that analyzed vehicle miles traveled for 51 U.S. cities with at least 1 million residents.