Monday Mailing
Year 23 • Issue 09 14 November 2016 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.
This Atlas of Racial Equity Just Keeps Getting Better Poverty Crosses Party Lines Placemaking: The Next Phase of True District Management How To Keep Working Productively When You Are Under Stress Portland Mayor Denounces Destructive Protests, Encourages Next Steps Good Food Talk Webinar Series – Wednesday, Nov. 16, 11am Pacific. NEW: Real Food Standards 2.0! 10 Step Guide to Fundraising Rural Energy for America Program Renewable Energy Systems & Energy Efficiency Improvement Loans & Grants How to Start Thinking About What a Trump Presidency Means for Cities Webinar: Thinking Beyond the Town Line: Strengthening Rural Development through Cooperatives - Thursday, Nov. 17, 12-1pm Pacific
1. This Atlas of Racial Equity Just Keeps Getting Better How do race and inequality intersect with space? American mapmakers have been trying to answer this question since at least 1895, when a group of reform-minded Chicago women published the Hull-House Maps and Papers. At the height of the Gilded Age, inequality was skyrocketing. Housing and labor conditions among droves of new immigrants were dire.
Quote of the Week: “To give real service you must add something which cannot be bought or measured with money, and that is sincerity and integrity.” --Douglas Adams Oregon Fast Fact: In Oregon it is illegal to use canned corn as fish bait
Putting their faith in data as catalyst for progress, the Chicago reformers meticulously surveyed the ethnicities and wages of industrial workers living in a tenement neighborhood on the Near West Side, and then plotted their findings in vivid color on a set of blank property maps. The result was a groundbreaking visual demonstration of poverty as a product of a person’s spatial context, rather than some damning individual quality—a belief that was commonly held then (as it is
now). To access the full story, click here. 2. Poverty Crosses Party Lines This general election season, the major-party presidential candidates haven’t talked much about poverty. But while the issue may not have featured in the heated rhetoric on the campaign trail, both parties do have some serious ideas about how to combat poverty. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton has put forward a policy agenda that includes proposals such as increasing affordable housing options, addressing persistently poor places, and expanding tax credits for working families with children. While Donald Trump has yet to provide specifics on his antipoverty ideas, a proposed Republican playbook on poverty, opportunity, and upward mobility can be found in House Speaker Paul Ryan’s Better Way policy agenda, announced Page 1 of 5
earlier this summer. The two agendas represent distinct visions of an antipoverty/pro-opportunity federal policy agenda and highlight potential elements ripe for bipartisan debate and action. To access the full story, click here. 3. Placemaking: The Next Phase of True District Management Over the years, I have encountered many of the challenges surrounding the rising urbanization of some major US cities. This experience has provided me with the understanding that a few common factors are essential in the evolution of these increasingly dense city centers. In my view, the best strategy for success in these areas is based upon 1) identifying the place, 2) establishing an independent financial base, 3) using these funds to promote the place through an entrepreneurial channel – a district management corporation in the form of a public benefit non-profit organization (501(c)(3)). The recent rediscovery and re-invention of our towns and city centers is truly an extraordinary transformation of the physical landscape of the growth of American cities. While the trend and emphasis in the post-World War II era was on the decentralization of housing and office development away from our city centers, we have come to experience rapid and new market-rate residential density and what I refer to as the “Europeanization” of our center cities and commercialcore areas. To access the full story, click here. 4. How To Keep Working Productively When You Are Under Stress Say you’re a high performer who's risen through the ranks. Now you have even bigger responsibilities. Or you're working your way toward a promotion and need to show your skills and professionalism in the best light. Then the phone call comes. The results of your medical tests weren't good. Or you suddenly have to take care of a loved one in an emergency. Or there's an unexpected financial hit that could spell catastrophe. Whatever the situation, your life just got much more complicated. While intuitively you know that these things can happen to anyone, the anxiety of dealing with such troubling events, coupled with the pressure to continue to perform in your job, amps up the stress to DEFCON 1. To access the full story, click here. 5. Portland Mayor Denounces Destructive Protests, Encourages Next Steps Protestors have taken to the streets of Portland every night since Donald Trump was elected president. Some of those protests have gotten violent, causing property damage in excess of $1 million and leading to the arrests of more than 100 individuals. One protestor even suffered a nonfatal shot during demonstrations in the early morning hours Friday. Portland Mayor Charlie Hales has said protests aren’t a productive way to create change, and he stood by those remarks Monday on OPB’s Morning Edition. To access the full story, click here. 6. Good Food Talk Webinar Series – Wednesday, Nov. 16, 11am Pacific. NAFSN is pleased to announce the launching of the Good Food Talk Webinar Series. We aim to identify innovations in the field and highlight efforts that promote just and sustainable food systems.
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These webinars will give you the opportunity to learn and interact with food system practitioners and experts in diverse locations and regions. Topic: Collaborative Pathways to Change: Tools for Just and Sustainable Food Systems Networks Date: Wednesday, November 16, 2016 Time: 2:00 pm Eastern Standard Time (11:00 am Pacific Standard Time) Presenter: Curtis Ogden, Interaction Institute for Social Change To register for this webinar, click here. 7. NEW: Real Food Standards 2.0! The Real Food Standards were researched over the course of 18 months, with input of 100+ industry experts, farmers, ranchers, fishermen, food service operators, and students. 130 certification and label claims were vetted; 40 now qualify as 'real food' in the final version of the Real Food Guide. Check out our most comprehensive compilation of criteria and certifications to date! To access a free copy of this resource, click here. 8. 10 Step Guide to Fundraising Even though many dialogue to change efforts rely on volunteers and in-kind assistance to get started, it is essential to think about budgeting and fundraising from the beginning. Raising funds is related to every aspect of your program. Your ability to raise funds will increase as you expand your outreach, involve more people in the program and tell the story of the impact on your community. To access this 10 step guide, click here. 9. Rural Energy for America Program Renewable Energy Systems & Energy Efficiency Improvement Loans & Grants Application Deadline: Grants of $20,000 or less: October 31, 2016 and March 31, 2017; Unrestricted Grants (up to $500,000): March 31, 2017; Loan Guarantees are competed continuously throughout the year. What does this program do? Provides guaranteed loan financing and grant funding to agricultural producers and rural small businesses for renewable energy systems or to make energy efficiency improvements. Who may apply? Agricultural producers with at least 50% of gross income coming from agricultural operations, and Small businesses in eligible rural areas. NOTE: Agricultural producers and small businesses must have no outstanding delinquent federal taxes, debt, judgment or debarment. What is an eligible area? Businesses must be in an area other than a city or town with a population of greater than 50,000 inhabitants and the urbanized area of that city or town. Check eligible business addresses. Agricultural producers may be in rural or non-rural areas. Page 3 of 5
How may the funds be used? Funds may be used for renewable energy systems, such as: Biomass (for example: biodiesel and ethanol, anaerobic digesters, and solid fuels) Geothermal for electric generation or direct use Hydropower below 30 megawatts Hydrogen Small and large wind generation Small and large solar generation Ocean (tidal, current, thermal) generation Funds may also be used for the purchase, installation and construction of energy efficiency improvements, such as: High efficiency heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems (HVAC) Insulation Lighting Cooling or refrigeration units Doors and windows Electric, solar or gravity pumps for sprinkler pivots Switching from a diesel to electric irrigation motor Replacement of energy-inefficient equipment For more information about this funding opportunity, click here. 10. How to Start Thinking About What a Trump Presidency Means for Cities We know that many of the president-elect’s big policy moves are likely to have a ripple effect in America’s cities, including immigration, health care, global trade, criminal justice, and gun control. But let’s take a look at something more nuts and bolts: the day-to-day business of municipal fiscal health, as it relates to the provision of basic services, infrastructure, and housing. Few would guess that Donald Trump, despite being a New Yorker, is likely to be a champion of cities—for one thing, the rural vote that appears to have propelled him to office outmatched returns out of traditionally Democratic places such as Detroit or Philadelphia. Nor did Trump ever get down to policy specifics about cities; it’s not like he ever threw around terms such as Community Development Block Grants. To access the full story, click here. 11. Webinar: Thinking Beyond the Town Line: Strengthening Rural Development through Cooperatives - Thursday, Nov. 17, 12-1pm Pacific Pooling resources and cooperating across town boundaries is a great way for rural communities to gain efficiencies and improve quality of life. Join our free 60-minute webinar to hear how small towns are working together to support each other. Speakers on the webinar are: - Brett Schwartz, program manager, National Association of Development Organizations (NADO) Research Foundation. NADO offers a myriad of programs aimed at cross-border cooperation including training, research, and peer networking services in the areas of economic and disaster resilience, transportation, and sustainable community development.
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- Sarah Lucas, AICP, regional planning department manager, Networks Northwest. Sarah works closely with local governments, nonprofits, and other community stakeholders in northwest Michigan on a variety of community issues, including housing and economic development. She also coordinates and facilitates public outreach strategies and conducts in-depth community research and analysis. - Lori Meadows, executive director, Kentucky Arts Council. Lori has headed up the Kentucky Arts Council since 2005. Her work has included convening a 54-county Appalachian region to initiate economic growth and development through arts-related tools, resources and ideas. - Susan DuPlessis, program director, South Carolina Arts Commission. Susan has a wide range of experience in creative, place-based work including co-directing several significant partnerships including the four-state Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission, South Carolina's Rural Promise Zone and the Riley Institute at Furman University. Susan will share highlights from a pilot project, The Art of Community: Rural SC, which is part of the South Carolina Promise Zone initiative. This event is brought to you by Orton Family Foundation and the Citizens’ Institute on Rural Design™. To register for this webinar, click here.
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