A few things to know this week: October 25, 2019
Happy Friday, friends!
Every week, we round up some of the things we read, listened to, or watched that really caught our attention — plus anything that we wrote or recorded ourselves. Here are just a few things we think you should know this week:
This week's things to know:
Check out the latest episode of our Go Cultivate! podcast:
Parcel data, Detroit, and you — with Jerry Paffendorf
Jerry Paffendorf of Loveland Technologies joined Jordan Clark and Felix Landry to talk about parcel data (and how it can be used for good), Detroit's history and present, the legacy of the U.S. Public Land Survey, and much more.
And here’s a small selection of this week’s reads and listens on our end.
Building a Solidarity Economy in Jackson, Mississippi
Here’s a good article on the inspiring work that the folks at Cooperation Jackson are doing. Their goal is to create a "network of cooperatives and worker-owned, democratically self-managed enterprises” — the ultimate goal of which is to foster “a whole different type of solidarity and exchange economy, which enables people who are money-poor, but skilled and time-rich, to get their needs met.” Working outside the bounds of City Hall, Cooperation Jackson is fleshing out a model for working class populations around the country to build power and community wealth—and a self-reliant economy that is rooted in the needs of the community. A key part of their toolbox is the community land trust (CLT) model, which is based on the collective, nonprofit ownership of land and which is designed to prevent individual profit from property price increases. In addition to its goal of situating an eco-village on its growing footprint of CLT land, the group is also working to grow a strong network of worker-owned cooperatives, a cooperative incubator, and a cooperative financial institution. It’s been great to see Cooperation Jackson getting a bit of press over the last couple years, and I’d love to see their model celebrated in more outlets, so their incredibly empowering work can be replicated. Knowledge is power; cooperation puts it in practice. – Jordan
Talking About Revitalization When All Anyone Wants to Talk About Is Gentrification
This is a particularly astute piece from Miriam Axel-Lute at Shelterforce on addressing fears of gentrification in the midst of revitalization discussions. These can be tricky and frustrating waters to navigate. Lots of people understandably associate the term “gentrification” with revitalization or generally addressing long-overlooked needs in disinvested neighborhoods. The reality is of course much more layered and context-dependent. So how do you talk through these concerns in a productive way, while also not leaving residents of disinvested neighborhoods without needed resources? Highly recommend reading through this article for some great suggestions, and I’d also encourage clicking through many of the embedded links. It’s a fraught topic for a reason, but it’s not an impossible one—just one to be especially humble about. – Jordan
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This article hits the nail on the head, teasing out a bit of the history that led us to near total auto-dependency, and correctly describing the current model of bike infrastructure advocacy as “begging for twigs.” “When roads, highways, and bridges are designed and built, they aren’t done one neighborhood at a time, one city-council approval at a time.” But, the author points out, that’s exactly how we “plan” bike infrastructure. There are many opportunities to go back to our transportation roots in our walkable and growing communities; will your community be the next to be known for its embrace of true human mobility? – Ryan
Planet Money Podcast: The Liberty City
This episode of the Planet Money podcast has been getting some discussion in our Community Cultivators Network this week. What happens when you start your own city with the explicit goal of eliminating taxes and regulations (or at least, as many as possible)? Maybe you have a few assumptions for how this plays out, and maybe you’re quite right. But I’ll let you listen to see how it all goes in this tiny town outside San Antonio, Texas. – Jordan
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Hey, friends in local government:
Have thoughts on any of the links above? Think we missed something essential? We’re discussing these topics and more over on our brand-new online community, exclusively for local government employees.* Sign up for the Community Cultivators Network and join the discussion!
* The network is currently only for those wonderful folks out there who work in local government. If you’re not currently working for a city, town, or county, we still love you (and are sure many of you would add value to the community), but we want to keep our commitment to making this a community focused specifically on our friends working in local government. Thanks for understanding!
