That mobility is the predominant work style in most sectors isn’t news. Nor is it a surprise to learn that the mobile workforce favors sustainable settings at each point in the daily round. Even two years ago, these were trends, but now they’re almost facts of life.

Take any aspect of community, and you’ll find that the agencies and institutions involved are ramping up their game and as a a result affecting work settings, schools, airports, and where and how cities are increasing density. That design plays a potent role in this transformation should be no surprise. It’s the medium of real change.

The contexts of leisure may vary across the planet, but the desire for it is universal. Access to new forms of communication is sparking a demand for innovation in emerging markets, not just established ones. If the first wave of leisure development replicated what was seen abroad, the second is taking cues from local culture—another game changer, but one that’s rooted in calling your own shots.

Issue 15 addresses a perennial question: How important is workplace quality? The short answer is that it correlates strongly with business success. That’s the gist of Gensler’s latest US Workplace Survey: top-ranked companies across the economy place value in their work settings, and the resulting workplace quality pays off for them in higher workforce satisfaction and effectiveness.

Issue 14 considers the range of urban conditions posed by the world's cities, and the strategies of development and redevelopment that are appropriate to their challenges. Interviews with Sir Peter Hall and the Brooking Institution's Christopher Leinberger and Alan Berube discuss the prognosis for the modern metropolis in the coming decades.

Issue 13 looks at how the global distribution of work impacts workforce performance, including the crucial need to innovate, and how workplace strategy and design can support both in an era when geography impedes mentoring and teaming. An interview with John Seely Brown discusses the new competitive climate of international business.