Red states and blue states. Cities and farms. Flyover states. Bible Belt. Rust Belt. Borscht Belt. North. South. East. West.

How we talk about geography and topography reveals deep-seated assumptions that go well beyond land and how we use it. Our shorthand phrases underscore (and sometimes perpetuate) the deep cultural, economic, political, social, and religious fissures that define the United States today. They offer orientation, literally and figuratively, as we try to make sense of it all. But binary approaches to the places we call home can also elide the essential complexities of our cities, towns, wildernesses, and the places in between.

This year, we will examine the complexities of the urban-rural continuum in the United States and beyond. From redlining and racism to urban farms and sustainability, from city-based models of social organization to their many historical and modern alternatives, from national parks to the wilderness next door—we’ll get beyond the usual categories and encourage fresh ways of thinking about the spaces we share.