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Offering Childcare at City Meetings May Be Key to Diversifying Civic Engagement

Rebecca Ritzel

May 08, 2019 |

Next City |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Ithaca, New York

Research shows that city council meetings are dominated by older, male and longtime residents. One Mayor is trying to change that. Under the leadership of mayor of Svante Myrick, in Ithaca New York, the city council began to offer childcare during city council meetings. “We don’t think anyone else has done it.’ People are using it, and some are even hailing it for it’s inclusionary nature. “Now we’re starting to see new people at meetings. People are using the childcare service.”

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This group wants to unite hikers and hunters on literal common ground: public lands

Nicole Blanchard

May 05, 2019 |

Idaho Statesman |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Boise, Idaho

A group called Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, now 36,000 strong, is bringing together people from different political and ideological backgrounds over a common interest in the preservation and conservation of public lands and waters. Bucking stereotypes, the group spans the political spectrum, with 33% Independent, 23% Republican, 20% Democrat and 16% unaffiliated in a recent survey. The BHA's recent promotion of the Land and Water Conservation Fund shows that bipartisanship is possible.

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'It changes the way you see everything': the shocking film about gerrymandering

Adrian Horton

May 01, 2019 |

The Guardian |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Michigan

In a time of extreme division in American politics, one documentary is highlighting an issue both sides agree is an issue--gerrymandering. As contorted districts have made elections pointless in many Michigan elections, the grassroots group Voters Not Politicians, featured in a recent documentary Slay the Dragon, worked to establish an independent, public citizen's commission for redistricting.

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'Hate is always local': the Swedish city that said no to neo-Nazis

David Crouch

May 01, 2019 |

The Guardian |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: Sweden, Kungälv

The city of Kungälv, Sweden, with only 20,000 residents, developed a successful initiative to prevent the spread of neo-Nazis after the murder of a fourteen year-old anti-racist activist in 1995. Armed with the theory that "hate is always local," a local teacher created the Tolerance Project, held workshops with local teenagers and took them on trips to Holocaust sites. Now the "Kungälv model" is being practiced and adapted to local contexts around Sweden.

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An Unusual Way to Bridge the Town-Gown Divide

James Fallows

May 01, 2019 |

The Atlantic |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Muncie, Indiana

Ball State University and Muncie, Indiana, are forging an inventive town-gown partnership. In 2018, the school became the first public university to assume responsibility for the city's public schools. The transition has involved intentional community engagement and sparked community enthusiasm that had waned in recent decades and resulted in a dramatically declining school population.

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Extinction Rebellion succeeded where most climate protests fail

Akshat Rathi

May 01, 2019 |

Quartz |

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Under 800 Words

Response Location: United Kingdom, London

Extinction Rebellion, a United Kingdom-based environmental group, has been using civil disobedience – blocking traffic, painting graffiti, or gluing themselves to trains – to increase discussion and action against the global climate crisis. Such disobedience has led to the leader of the UK’s Labour Party proposing one of their demands as legislation and a sharp spike in climate media coverage.

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Youth Voter Turnout Is Already Ridiculously High In Colorado. State House Democrats Want It Even Higher

Sam Brasch

April 24, 2019 |

Colorado Public Radio |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Colorado

In 2013, Colorado lawmakers passed a comprehensive voting reform bill which put a mail-in ballot in every voter's mailbox and allowed for same-day voter registration. Many credit the bill for boosting youth voting 13 percent in the past year, putting Colorado second behind Minnesota for highest youth voting turnout.

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S.F. immigrants seek to expand civic footprint

Nuria Marquez Martinez

April 22, 2019 |

Bay City News Foundation |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, San Francisco, California

Elevating the voices of noncitizen community members takes building trust through outreach and education. After the passage of Proposition N, allowing local non-citizens in San Francisco to participate in school board elections, a number of immigrant advocacy groups have mobilized to educate residents about their right to civic participation. Groups like the Central American Resource Center (CARECEN) and the Immigrant Parent Voting Collaborative (IPVC) are working to organize numerous grassroots efforts promoting the civic engagement of non-citizens.

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A Nazi flag led this Western Mayberry to confront hate once again. Now Fruita aims to send a different message.

Nancy Lofholm

April 18, 2019 |

The Colorado Sun |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Fruita, Colorado

A small city in Colorado turned an act of bigotry — someone publicly flying a Nazi flag — into an opportunity for growth for the city. Fruita considers itself a welcoming, inclusive community, so they seized upon this opportunity to pass an Inclusivity Proclamation. The proclamation affirms their commitment to defeating prejudice and also added inclusivity as a part of their next city planning strategy.

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“What Does the World Beyond Jails and Prisons Look Like?”

Zenobia Jeffries

April 18, 2019 |

Yes! Magazine |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Detroit, Michigan

The Detroit Justice Center is providing a comprehensive approach to breaking the cycle of poverty in the county. The nonprofit law firm provides immediate support, like paying back child support and posting the cash bail payments that keep those experiencing poverty trapped in a cycle of debt and imprisonment. The group also aims high in their larger efforts to disrupt the criminal justice system, like suing the county to prevent the building of a new jail complex, and provides their clients and the community the chance to reimagine what the city could look like with transformative and economic justice.

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