A Report From the Weather Front
Baltimore kids enjoy a day off from school
The nor’easters that have pummeled the eastern seaboard over the last month or so have provided many a fun day for kids unencumbered by the duties of school. Businesses and city budgets have been less enthusiastic as they have seen a notable falloff in customers or a striking pothole in their treasuries. The winter season still has 2-3 more weeks left, according to Puxatony Phil, so the snow shovels should not be put away just yet. Still another effect of the storms is to revivify the the media brouhaha about Global Warming.
Popularity: 1% | Category Climate Change, Community, Media Review, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Opinion, Politics, Reviews, Sustainability | | Comments Off
Written by: Christopher Gardner
#Opinion: Like Rome Before the Fall? Not Yet (According to the New York Times)
Article by Piers Brendon. Originally published in the New York Times.
Vice President Joe Biden complains that he is being driven crazy because so many people are betting on America’s demise. Reports of it are not just exaggerated; they are, he insists, ridiculous. Like President Obama, he will not accept “second place” for the United States. Despite the present crippling budget deficit and the crushing burden of projected debt, he denies that the country is destined to fulfill a “prophecy that we are going to be a great nation that has failed because we lost control of our economy and overextended.” (more…)
Popularity: 2% | Category Book Review, National/International, News and Current Affairs, Opinion, Politics, Reviews | | Comments Off
Written by: Marco Kathuria
Stark Figures on Housing in Major Markets
The crash of the housing market might be behind us (although ‘Objects in Mirror May Be Closer Than They Appear’), but the recessionary effects abound, as does the detritus of the houses themselves. So many built on the belief that mortgages could be offered indefinitely, and paid back indefinitely as well. The momentum of the buildup meant that has credit got crunched new homes got finished and now we have a glut. Recent news reports have concentrated on that glut, and we wanted to pass some of the grim statistics to our readers.
Popularity: 1% | Category Affordable Housing, Community, National/International, Politics, Revitalization | | Comments Off
Written by: Christopher Gardner
The Social Costs of the Housing Crash: Hispanic Communities in NYC
A foreclosed home in Jamaica Plains, NY
84% of all homes in area in similar danger
Last week we posted a couple of reports pointing to the relative stability in the housing market that Baltimore has ‘enjoyed’ and how the faltering economy seems to have spurred growth in the non-profit sector. Today we are reminded of how important the qualifier ‘relative’ is. Optimists and bank executives largely believe the economy has bottomed out, but the social ramifications (and, likely more of the economic ramifications in the commercial real estate sector) are still to be dealt with. Many of the social tensions that the economic crisis has wound up do their worst damage on those communities already strained by marginalization: recent immigrants and the working poor.
Popularity: 1% | Category Affordable Housing, Banking & Finance, Community, News and Current Affairs, Sustainability | | Comments Off
Written by: Christopher Gardner
Google’s portfolio now to include electricity distribution
Wow. Whether it was the boom & bust of Buzz! (and probable resurrection), the Request For Proposal to establish a gigabit fiberoptic network (NPR news story), or the latest move for Google to purchase and resell electricity, the search giant has been inspiring tweets and blogs of all stripes the last few weeks. Our blog has reported some of these developments, and the most recent Googlegrowth deserves mention as well. What might the distribution by Google mean for the non-profit and mission-based sector of the economy?
Popularity: 2% | Category Greening, News and Current Affairs, Nonprofit, Politics, Technology | | Comments Off
Written by: Christopher Gardner
Baltimore non-profits bring change for good in bad economy
The Johns Hopkins University Gazette had a recent article about Hopkins students working with local non-profits as they pursue their degrees, which seems a fine introduction to the good work area non-profit and community groups have accomplished over the last number of months. Though the economy overall remains sluggish, non-profits have been able not only to continue their work but also to draw in (even if temporarily) the underemployed who want to better their communities with their extra time. Let us see some of that in action.
Popularity: 1% | Category Community, Local/Maryland, Nonprofit, Politics | | Comments Off
Written by: Christopher Gardner
CEOs and social media – a strong combination?
A new technology is invariably difficult to put down for the fearless first adopters. Those who move more slowly toward that technology might feel intimidation from those who adopted early and have since honed their skills. Those who waited might also begin to ask if adoption is even necessary. Such a dynamic might be especially acute in the world of social media, almost invariably multi-million-dollar enterprises that began as projects for recent college grads. But as social media head toward a certain maturity and expectation, are such networks really useful for corporate entities and/or their boards?
Popularity: 1% | Category Community, Marketing, Media Review, Nonprofit | | Comments Off
Written by: Christopher Gardner
‘Top 10 Ways to Use Recovery Funds for Green Buildings’ – Nos.8 & 7
In our ongoing periodic series concerning the best ways to use ARRA funds from the Obama Administration’s recovery package to green existing buildings and to build the next generation of green infrastructure, we turn to numbers 8 and 7 on the list (please see our Archives for previous entries).
Popularity: 1% | Category Community, Grants and Funding, Greening, Revitalization | | Comments Off
Written by: Christopher Gardner
#Sustainability: Alex Steffen’s ‘Seattle Model’ for Wealthy, Green, Cities
Late last November Alex Steffen gave a two-night presentation at Seattle’s city hall concerning the climatic crises the planet faces, and how single towns and cities can change the direction we are heading. The videos have recently been posted at his group’s website, worldchanging.com, and we think they are well worth a watch.
The talks are about 90 minutes each, and your time is rewarded with an entertaining survey of existent green technologies and a shocking review of the environmental and economic problems we face. But what distinguishes Mr. Steffen’s ideas within the environmental movement is his enthusiasm for growth and prosperity.
Popularity: 4% | Category Climate Change, Community, Greening, Sustainability, Technology | | Comments Off
Written by: Christopher Gardner
#PublicPolicy: Baltimore’s Crisis – Is a Sustainable Resurgence Possible in 2010?
The community/public-service website LiveBaltimore.com recently announced a free workshop entitled “Is Now The Right Time to Buy a Home?” The website then had to announce that the tsnownamis of 2010 have forced postponement. Keep an eye on the site, as LiveBaltimore will soon post the rescheduled event. Which begs the question, IS now the right time?
Popularity: 10% | Category Affordable Housing, Banking & Finance, Community, Local/Maryland, News and Current Affairs | | Comments Off
Written by: Christopher Gardner
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