General News
How can more people be inspired to civic involvement?
What motivates Charlotteans to vote? Volunteer? Hold political conversations or attend events? The UNC Charlotte Urban Institute and Johnson C. Smith University, with support from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and Google, have spent the past 11 months studying civic engagement in Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. The project, “Charting the Civic Landscape […]
From woods to city parks and yards, here’s one little animal that gets around
I’ve seen this cute little animal in some very different places – the chipmunk. I’ve seen them in the N.C. mountains as I hiked the Appalachian Trail, on the sidewalk in Chapel Hill at the UNC-CH campus, and in Colorado (a different species) while I climbed Mount Elbert. I’ve never seen one of these little […]
Housing proves a hot topic in Charlotte
With community discussion and research ongoing around the problem of a lack of economic mobility in Charlotte, a Sept. 27 public lecture by Matthew Desmond, Pulitzer-winning author of Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City, drew such demand that the free public tickets were snapped up in less than 24 hours. Desmond will speak […]
Cultivating a new generation of conservation leaders
On a Friday morning in late July, Jan Pender left her home in Raleigh and headed toward the Uwharrie National Forest. (I use the term “morning” loosely – it was 3:30 a.m.) Pender, director of the N.C. Youth Conservation Corps, had allowed plenty of time to stop at McDonald’s, wait for an order of 20 […]
UNCC researchers launch long-term study at Gaston preserve
As the Charlotte region urbanizes, what changes will take place over time in the Catawba River basin near the smaller creeks and watersheds? Two UNC Charlotte researchers hope questions like that can be answered with information they’ll start gathering, thanks to a Duke Energy Foundation grant. The $76,521 grant from the Duke Energy Water Resources […]
On-campus bike share arrives at UNC Charlotte
[highlightrule]To sign up for the UNC Charlotte bike-share program visit gotchabike.com/charlottewheels [/highlightrule] Bike sharing has arrived at UNC Charlotte. The program launched July 31 with 100 bikes and 10 hubs for the bikes. The UNC Charlotte bike share program, Charlotte Wheels, is run by Gotcha Bike. The Gotcha Bike app lets users reserve and return […]
Nature’s exfoliation – for trees
A while back a friend sent me a picture of the beautiful river birch on her property near Troy. Another friend is proud of the sycamore tree in her front yard, which sold her on the house where she lives. This got me thinking about the trees in our eastern U.S. forests that possess exfoliating […]
To build a better city, start with building a better block
[highlightrule]“Typically, people look at abstract ideas and overwhelming macro-issues like poverty and homelessness. Often missed is the opportunity to tackle low-hanging fruit like sidewalks or improved lighting.” — Jason Roberts[/highlightrule] Sometimes, to build a better city – a city built for residents, not for cars or absentee landlords or development financiers – you start with […]
Houston finds $220 million to build greenways
In addition to studying how to accommodate growing ethnic diversity – needed in many cities, not just Houston and Charlotte – there’s another lesson Houston might hold for Charlotte: Finding the money to build out an ambitious greenway plan. They call them bayous. We call them creeks. But both Houston and Charlotte have a number […]
Can Sun Belt sibling cities learn from each other?
HOUSTON — One city was built on oil and shipping in a hot, humid swampy spot laced with small waterways. Its former biracial dynamics have changed, as immigration boosted Latino and Asian populations. It’s growing rapidly – and that includes rapid growth in income inequality. Another city was built on textiles and banking in a […]