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Can Flexible Pricing be Fair?

Nate Berg

August 24, 2019 |

Reasons to be Cheerful |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, San Francisco, California

San Francisco is using technology to calculate the cost of parking throughout the city, depending on the demand in specific neighborhoods at any given time. While critics were wary of the effect flexible pricing would have on lower-income residents, the pilot program resulted in lower parking costs on average and demonstrated that flexible pricing could promote equity. In other cities around the world, flexible pricing systems implemented through the use of technology have been effective in raising revenue from higher-income people and neighborhoods to reduce prices and reinvest in equitable solutions.

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The complicated legacy of ‘broken windows' policing

Michael Jonas

August 11, 2019 |

CommonWealth |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States

"Broken windows policing" evolved into destructive, heavy-handed tactics because its original notions of solving minor problems before they contribute to an atmosphere conducive to serious crimes became misused and distorted. Instead of a focus on high numbers of arrests and "zero tolerance" for any and all perceived misbehavior, this theory of policing was meant to be paired with community-building and problem-solving strategies. When that connection wasn't made, it became synonymous with the kinds of racially disparate enforcement alienating neighborhoods from police.

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Can Employee Ownership Preserve Legacy Businesses in Communities of Color?

Sandra Larson

July 15, 2019 |

Next City |

Multi-Media |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

As gentrification has flourished and Baby Boomers age out of the workforce, “legacy businesses” struggle to find a way to maintain a presence in communities of color. In response, a multi-city fellowship called Shared Equity in Economic Development (SEED) was developed to educate business owners on transferring ownership to the employees to ensure its future. Four cities—Philadelphia, Atlanta, Durham, and Miami— paired three city employees with one community member to work together over a two year period to leave the city with “clear plans, clear roles and good foundations for future business conversions."

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What Gun Violence Prevention Looks Like When It Focuses on the Communities Hurt the Most

Elizabeth Van Brocklin

July 10, 2019 |

The Trace |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Oakland, California

Across the United States, gun violence prevention initiatives are finally turning their attention to the urban communities hit hardest and supporting community-driven approaches. In the past, financial support has gone to linear, legislative approaches to gun control that often favor white communities, but the tides are turning. Funding has shifted to focus on initiatives that provide trauma recovery centers, hospital-based centers, and programs that provide communities hit the hardest with mentorship, job training, and therapy – all initiatives that have proven to help break the cycle of gun violence.

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My Quixotic Quest for Quiet in New York City

John Surico

June 21, 2019 |

Bloomberg CityLab |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

Though cities around the world range in size, demographics, and countless other factories, they share a common trait: cities are loud. The app Hush City offers an easy way to find a quiet space amid the noise. The app uses crowdsourced data to report on quiet, and not so quiet, areas in densely populated areas around the world.

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‘People aren't disabled, their city is': inside Europe's most accessible city

Emily Yates

May 28, 2019 |

The Guardian |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: Netherlands, Breda, North Brabant

The Dutch city of Breda is making great strides in making their city accessible for all with more than 800 shops and bars physically accessible and more than 26 city resident and tourist-focused websites now accessible to those with sensory and learning impairments. Breda attributes these successes and many more to a commitment to improving accessibility and creating partnerships that work together to achieve this mission of inclusivity and social confidence.

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How New Yorkers Stood Up to Amazon and Won

Yasmeen Wafai

May 22, 2019 |

Yes! Magazine |

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Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Long Island City, New York

When Amazon came close to establishing its second headquarters in Long Island City, the Queens borough of New York, community organizing successfully halted the development. Community leaders credit their success to a diverse group of organizations teaming up (like Queens Neighborhoods United and New York Communities for Change), politicians teaming up with the communities they represent, and quick mobilization.

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How Cities Can Serve Citizens Best Amid a Glut of New Transport Technology

David A. King

May 22, 2019 |

Pacific Standard |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Los Angeles, California

In the uncertain, ever-shifting landscape of new technology startups trying to change urban mobility, city officials need to prioritize two criteria: mobility policy must promote equity and ensure that options are available to the most number of people and policies must be flexible enough for street and curb space to adapt to the technology. E-scooters and dockless bikes fit these criteria, and city officials must plan around them.

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An urban ‘butterfly experience' in Sri Lanka

Dilrukshi Handunnetti

May 15, 2019 |

Mongabay |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: Sri Lanka, Moratuwa, Colombo

What was once the garbage dump of a clothing company in Sri Lanka is now the site of an urban butterfly garden. Dilmah Conservation and naturalist Rajika Gamage created the open air garden in 2011 to conserve endangered butterflies without actually keeping any species in captivity. Over 90 native plants were planted, and the garden now receives visits from over 50 different butterfly species. The sanctuary also serves as an educational resource to help stress the importance of the diversity of these insects as an indicator of the health of the habitat.

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City with a female face: how modern Vienna was shaped by women

Elle Hunt

May 14, 2019 |

The Guardian |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: Austria, Vienna

Vienna, Austria uses a tactic called "gender mainstreaming" to ensure that urban planning equally takes into account lives of women and men around the city. While architecture and urban planning have traditionally been male-dominated industries, Vienna actively incorporates alternative opinions and lifestyles into their city infrastructure. The Austrian capital has been pioneering ‘gender mainstreaming’ for nearly 30 years. How did the city come to be so far ahead – and could its gains be lost?

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