Congress for the New Urbanism

What Congress for the New Urbanism does

Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) is a Washington, DC-based nonprofit membership organization founded in 1993 that serves as the primary professional body advancing the New Urbanism movement. Its work centers on promoting walkable, human-scale, mixed-use urban design through the doctrinal framework of the 1996 Charter of the New Urbanism, the Transect model, form-based codes, and Traditional Neighborhood Development principles. The organization serves urban designers, planners, architects, policymakers, academics, community advocates, and the 100+ design and development firms that hold group memberships, with chapters across the United States and award recognition extending internationally to the UK, Belgium, France, and Portugal.

CNU's product portfolio is programmatic rather than technological. Core offerings include the annual Congress (now in its 35th iteration, with CNU 35 Twin Cities scheduled for June 2027), the 26-year-old Charter Awards program, the Athena Medals and newly introduced Sisyphus Implementation Medal, the Public Square editorial journal, the On The Park Bench webinar series, the CNU-Accredited professional certification, the Build Great Places project showcase and Project Database, Legacy Projects providing hands-on urban design assistance to selected communities, and The Art of the New Urbanism book series (Volumes 1 and 2). The platform architecture is a self-serve website (cnu.org) supporting membership enrollment, event registration, donations, content access, and e-commerce through the CNU Store, supplemented by social media and email distribution.

The business model is a diversified nonprofit revenue mix combining individual and group membership dues (annual and lifetime tiers), Congress registration fees, corporate and government sponsorships (with 50+ sponsor logos displayed across architecture, engineering, real estate, banking, and municipal segments), CNU-Accredited certification course and exam fees, donations and planned giving, and CNU Store merchandise sales. There is no venture capital or private equity backing; the organization operates as an independent member-supported entity with no parent company or subsidiaries disclosed.

Name

Congress for the New Urbanism

Legal name

Congress for the New Urbanism

Website

https://cnu.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Congress for the New Urbanism is a Washington, DC-based nonprofit founded in 1993 that serves as the primary professional membership organization for the New Urbanism movement, providing education, credentialing, awards, and publications to urban designers, planners, architects, policymakers, and design firms.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Urban Planning & Design Professional Services

NAICS

Administration of Housing Programs, Urban Planning, and Community Development (925), Administration of Urban Planning and Community and Rural Development (925120)

akta.pro primary industry

Nonprofit, Social Services & Community Development Congresses (THAHAJAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Education, Research & Academic Congresses (THAHAJAD), Environment, Climate & Sustainability Congresses (THAHAJAH)

Keywords

• Urban design movement
• Walkable city planning
• Form-based codes
• Mixed-use development
• Traditional neighborhood development

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership subscriptions in individual, group, and lifetime tiers providing access to CNU resources, events, and professional network.
2. Annual Congress Events: Registration fees for the annual Congress gatherings (CNU 35 Twin Cities 2027, CNU 34 Northwest Arkansas) featuring sessions, tours, and networking.
3. CNU Store: Sale of New Urbanist books, publications, and branded merchandise.
4. Donations and Planned Giving: Tax-deductible charitable contributions and planned giving programs to support the organization's mission.
5. Corporate Sponsorships: Sponsorship revenue from design, architecture, engineering, and development firms displayed on CNU website and at events.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) is a nonprofit professional organization that advances walkable, human-scale urban design through a portfolio of programs: the annual CNU Congress event, the Charter Awards recognition program (now in its 26th year), CNU-Accredited professional certification, the Public Square editorial journal, Legacy Projects delivering hands-on design assistance to communities, and New Urbanist publications. Its offerings are organized around membership tiers (individual, group, lifetime), education and credentialing, events, and content/publications serving urban designers, planners, architects, policymakers, and advocates.

Product overview

Congress for the New Urbanism is a nonprofit membership organization that serves as a platform for the New Urbanism movement, offering a portfolio of programs, publications, events, and resources focused on walkable, human-scale urban design. The core offerings include the annual CNU Congress (with Charter Awards), the Public Square journal, the On The Park Bench webinar series, CNU-Accredited education, and membership programs. The Build Great Places showcase and Project Database provide access to exemplary projects. The organization does not offer a technology product but rather professional development, networking, and knowledge-sharing services for urban planners, designers, developers, and policymakers committed to New Urbanism principles.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Public Square: A CNU Journal: CNU's journal featuring articles on urbanism, planning, design, and policy
• On The Park Bench
• Charter Awards
• CNU 35 Twin Cities

Quantifiable outcome

• The 1907 Block in Rogers, Arkansas catalyzed over $120 million in additional investment and 180+ new businesses
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Brookwood Design GroupminorOthersSponsor of CNU with logo displayed on the CNU website homepage sponsor section.
• First Security BankminorOthersSponsor of CNU with logo displayed on the CNU website homepage sponsor section.
• GenslerminorOthersMajor global architecture firm sponsor with logo displayed on CNU website.
• Kimley-HornminorOthersEngineering and design consultancy sponsor with logo displayed on CNU website.
• ColliersminorOthersCommercial real estate services firm sponsor with logo displayed on CNU website.
• City of RogersminorOthersMunicipal government sponsor with logo displayed on CNU website.
• High Street Real Estate & DevelopmentminorOthersReal estate development firm and Charter Award winner sponsor with logo displayed on CNU website.
• WalmartminorOthersMentioned in CNU coverage of Northwest Arkansas events and projects, with Walmart Home Office featuring New Urbanist design principles.
• CNU ChapterscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLocal chapters across the US providing regional delivery of CNU programs, events, and networking. Chapters are officially affiliated organizations operating under CNU's umbrella.
• Affiliate OrganizationscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganizations officially affiliated with CNU that share the mission of advancing New Urbanism. Listed as a core structural element of CNU's organizational structure.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• American Society of Landscape Architects: The professional association for landscape architects, with annual conference (LANDSCAPE), publications, and chapter network. ASLA shares CNU's award-program and community-of-practice model, intersecting in urban design practice.
• National League of Cities: An advocacy and membership organization for municipal officials. NLC is a broader incumbent serving the same government-official and policymaker segment that CNU targets for Legacy Projects and policy advocacy.
• American Institute of Architects: The principal U.S. professional association for architects. AIA shares CNU's membership tiers, annual convention, education programs, and chapter structure but operates at vastly larger scale and across all architectural domains, not only New Urbanism.

Direct peers

• American Planning Association: The largest professional association for urban and city planners in the U.S., offering annual conferences (NPC), publications, certification (AICP), and chapters — directly mirroring CNU's membership, credentialing, and event model.
• Urban Land Institute: A global nonprofit research and education organization focused on land use and real estate development. ULI is the closest professional-association peer to CNU, both serving planners, developers, and policymakers with annual conferences, awards programs, and educational content.

Emerging players

• Form-Based Codes Institute: A specialized organization promoting form-based coding as an alternative to conventional zoning — a core tool in CNU's toolkit. FBCI is a smaller, more narrowly scoped peer that overlaps on education, advocacy, and technical assistance.
• Strong Towns: A nonprofit media and advocacy organization advancing bottom-up urbanism and incremental development. Strong Towns overlaps directly with CNU's mission of walkable, human-scale neighborhoods and competes for the same grassroots professional audience.

Others

• Congressional Cities Conference (hosted by NLC): A direct competitor conference for city officials and policy content. Comparable to CNU's annual Congress in format and audience, though focused on the full breadth of municipal policy rather than New Urbanism.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/NewUrbanism
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/Congress4NewUrbanism
• Facebookfacebook.com/newurbanism
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/newurbanism
• Instagraminstagram.com/cnu_newurbanism

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Congress for the New Urbanism