Category Archives: Intentional Communities

Republican Congressman Paul Gosar (AZ) ignited national fury this week after tweeting a video portraying himself as an anime character killing other prominent lawmakers. But while Democrats are now calling for his expulsion from Congress and his accounts to be banned, the incident has drawn new attention to Gosars long association with far-right meme culture.

Gosar first posted the problematic video parodying the opening credits of the popular anime series Attack on Titan on Sunday. The video captioned Any anime fans out there? depicts Gosar as one of the shows main characters killing Democratic politicians like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and President Joe Biden by superimposing their faces onto those belonging to other characters.

Responding to the video on Monday, Ocasio-Cortez tweeted that a creepy member I work with who fundraises for Neo-Nazi groups shared a fantasy video of him killing me, likely referring to a summer fundraiser linked to far-right influencer Nicholas Fuentes. She continued, Hell face no consequences, because House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) cheers him on with no excuses.

The video was posted onto Gosars official congressional Twitter account and was viewed over 3 million times before it was removed. Its unclear if Twitter or Gosars office removed the video as of publication. On Monday, Twitter placed a public interest notice over the tweet, saying that it violated the companys policies against hateful conduct. Instagram also placed a sensitive content warning on the video, which was also posted to Gosars official account on that platform.

Democratic lawmakers are already demanding that Gosar face additional consequences for the video. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) called on McCarthy to join in condemning this horrific video and call on the Ethics Committee and law enforcement to investigate in a Tuesday tweet.

White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said at a press conference Tuesday, This should not be happening, and we should be condemning it.

As of Wednesday afternoon, McCarthy has yet to respond to Pelosis statements or those from the White House. His office did not immediately respond to requests for comment from The Verge regarding the video and Gosars future standing in the Republican caucus.

But Gosars video is just the latest example of a long-standing interest in the meme culture thats popular in far-right internet communities and image boards.

In October, Gosar tweeted a now-deleted meme video depicting the Doomer guy, a sad-looking cartoon image of a man, in front of a series of articles with some headlines related to transgender people. At the end of the video, the America First logo is displayed over Gosars head, a reference to a popular white nationalist movement.

In August, he tweeted an image of himself in front of cacti, all with green lines edited in a reference to a red-pill pro-masculinity meme. In 2019, Gosars account tweeted out a thread that spelled out Epstein didnt kill himself with the first two letters in a series of 22 tweets.

This kind of content espouses a kind of rhetoric more often found in image boards than the halls of Congress, experts say. This is incredibly intentional work, said Jamie Cohen, assistant professor in media studies at Queens College. This is by design, and it is internet fluency that is not your typical internet fluency from a member of Congress. This is a far-right influence being broadcast over a public speaker because hes a public figure.

Gosars office did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding who created the videos published on his Twitter feed. But in a now-deleted quote-tweet from his personal account, Gosar thanked his team for their creativity in editing the video.

Gosars digital director, Jessica Lycos, responded to the backlash in a statement on Monday, saying, We made an anime video. Lycos continued, Everyone needs to relax. The left dont get meme culture. They have no joy. They are not the future. Its a cartoon.

As pressure continued to mount on Gosar in response to the video, his office put out a lengthy statement Tuesday night calling the backlash a gross mischaracterization of a symbolized battled for the soul of America when Congress takes up Mr. Bidens $4 trillion spending bill that includes amnesty for millions of illegal aliens. Gosar continued, I do not espouse violence or harm towards any member of Congress or Mr. Biden.

But experts argue that Gosars flirtation with right-wing meme culture is still harmful, normalizing extreme content even as it stays within the bounds of whats acceptable. When we normalize this type of media, we extend to the outward edges of what can be presented online, Cohen said. If hes not held accountable, the next thing will be edgier and become acceptable.

Hes getting very good at expanding the borderlands, Cohen said.

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Rep. Gosar anime video highlights ties to the online right - The Verge

On November 11th the discussion on the future of three Erie Catholic parishes takes the next step.

This includes staff and parishioners from Saint Andrew, Saint Paul and Sacred Heart.

We went to Blessed Sacrament Church where the meeting is taking place.

Msgr. Edward Lohse who is the Vicar General at St. Mark Catholic Center said that this is part of an ongoing process to try and find the best way forward.

Blessed Sacrament Church was chosen for the meeting as a neutral site.

Msgr. Lohse said that the meeting focuses on how those parishes envision continuing their mission into the future.

The process actually began in 2019, but COVID forced them to hold off until now.

There has been a central group sort of studying the question, and I think they will have some intentional recommendations because if you are going to have a productive conversation, you have to start the conversation somewhere, said Msgr. Edward Lohse, Vicar General at Saint Mark Catholic Church.

Msgr. Lohse emphasized that no final decision will be made now, just the first chance for parishioners to get together and talk about how to proceed.

What I expect is to just kind of take a poll of the communities where they are at, what they understand of the situations, and the challenges facing them, and getting a better picture for the what am I going to call the steering committee, the Central Team, said Msgr. Lohse.

Msgr. Lohse said that he cant promise any future results as to which places will stay open or not.

We are allowing individual parishes and groups to do their own planning. So the visions arises from them not us, said Msgr. Lohse.

Msgr. Lohse said they insist there should be a widespread involvement and consultation and that anyone who wants to be heard will be.

He said that there will be another meeting in the next couple of weeks with all three parishes.

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Discussion on the future of three Erie Catholic parishes takes the next step - YourErie

When The Boston Globes columnist Jene Osterheldt returned from George Floyds funeral in 2020, she was exhausted from witnessing time and again how marginalized communities have rallied around each other in suffering and pain. That was when Osterheldt decided that instead, she would tell stories of Black triumph, Black joy and celebration of everyday living.

For the last year, the projectA Beautiful Resistancethe space Osterheldt has carved out to tell stories of Black lives and joy now lives on The Globes digital website, in its print newspaper and on Instagram. Readers can enjoy these stories in many forms, through videos, long-form written stories, Q&As, Instagram posts and a playlist. Her team, now including three new videographers of color, has launched a second season of the project just last week.

The Scope spoke with Jene Osterheldt about creatingA Beautiful Resistance,her careful intention in showing joy and making space for all communities of colors and her advice for young journalists of color.

Ive been a journalist for about 21 years professionally, and its not new for me to cover Black culture or to cover people of color. Im Black everywhere I go. I always bring myself and other people of color with me. But with A Beautiful Resistance, theres a difference because Im not breaking the mold here. Other Black journalists, other Latino journalists, other Asian journalists, queer journalists, journalists from marginalized communities have always found ways even if there are little to hold space for other folks of color; so I dont want to act like its never been done before.

I think whats different with A Beautiful Resistance is when I got back from George Floyds funeral which I went to in Minneapolis I was so depleted emotionally that I just couldnt stop thinking of the number of stories in my career that I had written on dead Black people, There have just been so many of them. I was tired and very fatigued and exhausted of looking at how we rally around each other not just Black people, but other marginalized people too when we are brutalized, when we are suffering, when we are in pain.

And yes, we should rally around each other. We should lift each other up. We should love each other. We should all be fighting for equity and justice period, but if we are only measuring ourselves by our suffering, if we are only telling our stories through either our extreme pain or extreme success because its always like, Look at these athletes, look at these entertainersyou arent telling the multitudes, the truth, the nuance, the whole story of people.

You miss out on the joy and the celebration of everyday living. We talk a lot about Black death, but do we talk about what it means to be alive? Same thing when we look at how we cover trans folks. It was all about their death, but do we talk about what it means to live?

I wanted not just to do a story or even to do many stories throughout the years the way I have in the past. I wanted an actual home, actual real estate at an institution like The Boston Globe. We have a landing page, we have index pages, we have print real estate, we have videos, we have written stories, we have Q&A. [I asked questions like:] What does it mean to be intentional about space? And then What does it mean as Im centering Black lives and Black dreams and Black joy to also to make space for other folks of color? How do I infuse them to [the project], and how do I make sure they see themselves in physical space that is on the digital site and in the actual, literal space of print?

Its not perfect. Im not perfect, but Ive been very intentional every step of the way. It is a lot of work. The Philadelphia Inquirer just created a very similar framework to A Beautiful Resistance that they just launched a month or two ago called Wildest Dreams. Theyve got a team of 10 or 15 people doing what Im doing kind of alone Im just happy to see more work like it, and I hope that more work like it exists. I hope next year when Im doing interviews like this, I could say and now three media organizations are going into this community and hiring videographers and photographers of color from the community to tell their stories.A year has been hard. Its been beautiful. Its been enraging. Its been gorgeous. Its been joyous. Its been kind of all of the things because the truth is, there is a duality. You dont even understand joy if you havent gone through pain.

The second season of A Beautiful Resistance just launched yesterday [Oct. 31], and what I did differently is that the first season was just me and a videographer, and thats it. I picked every subject. I did all the questions. I set up the shoot times. [The videographer] would turn in beautiful drafts, and then we would go through and edit together, like, Heres how I want the cold open to look.

The Globe doesnt have many Black employees on the visual staff, so I was working with a non-Black person, a non person of color period, and [she is] incredibly talented, incredibly aligned with the mission, definitely an ally. But going into the second season, I told them, Hey, it is very imperative that we have people of color behind the camera working with me, and I want them to be people here in New England.

Initially, I was given the budget to hire one person to do exactly what I did last season. I interviewed a couple of people and decided I wanted all three. So, I took that budget and just split it three ways, and they each got a couple of episodes. Theyre still paid more than their rate; theyre still taken care of and Ive made sure theyve gotten other opportunities.

But that to me is so important because it matters that there are Black people and people of color behind the camera. It matters that theyre from here in New England and that they have agency and storytelling, that they have exposure, that they are part of this team, that they each bring their unique visual beauty to the story. I love that, and I think thats just part of our mission to continue not trying to be the voice for the voiceless because I dont believe in voicelessness.

I am so proud of our videography team, our three Beautiful Resistance fellows. I love watching them work. It feels different to have them behind the camera. Theres a different level of language that were speaking without even speaking that Ive never had before in my entire career. Like not just this past year, but in 21 years, Ive never been able to say everyone on my team is a person of color or everyone on my team is Black.

Ive never even had a Black person sit directly next to me in any office that Ive worked in all these years; so it just means a lot, not just to the work and to our audience but to me. I feel like its given me something that was maybe a little lost before and in being able to do little things throughout the year we did the Black History Month project with Reebok and I did the AAPI [Asian American and Pacific Islander] History.

I couldnt do Hispanic Heritage Month because it was during the editing process of A Beautiful Resistance, and I just have so many hands. I did some Instagram posts to make sure that we were covered there, but today is Da de Los Muertos [Nov. 1], so I made sure that we had a showing for Da de Los Muertos today and tomorrow because I dont want anyone to feel I have forgotten them.

The idea for A Beautiful Resistance was very spiritual, and it was kind of instantaneous. To be honest, I wish I had some story to tell about how it took this really long time. But I went to George Floyds funeral, and I was in such pain I wrote three stories in 72 hours that I had to file from Minneapolis.

I came back, and I just told my editor, I need a space. I need a space where I can wrap my arms around Black people and hug them. I need a space where people of color can be celebrated. I need to celebrate us in our life and not in our death. I was like, Its gonna be called A Beautiful Resistance.And that was inspired by a song my mommy listened to by Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock when I was little called Joy and Pain. Theres beauty and a struggle, the beautiful struggle and all those things, and I thought, you know, A Beautiful Resistance. Thats what this is. Thats what were gonna call it.

And I told [my editor], I dont want this just to be a series of stories. I want a landing page. I went to one of my friends who is no longer at The Globe, and shes very good at strategies. And I said, Heres what I want to do. We started brainstorming. I went to my ally, Caitlin [Healy], who was the videographer for season one, and I said, Hey, is this something you would want to do with me? Because I knew that I wasnt going to get the budget at that time to get someone outside of the company.

Shes such a great ally, and she was like, Yeah, Im on board. So we just made it happen. I reached out to Paula Champagne, the Black artist that did all the gorgeous illustrations, and we just started from the gate being very intentional about what it was going to be and the possibilities of what it could grow into.

I have used Twitter for many years, and Im still on Twitter, but I have slowed down my Twitter use particularly right around before COVID hit. Its because, as much as I love Twitter as [the platform] has given us many things and a lot of them are good, but as a Black woman columnist, I have dealt with a lot of hate, death threats all kinds of things. Im in a place now particularly because of the isolation we endured in the first wave of the pandemic that if I can control my negative interactions, I try to.

Instagram has always been the one place where I actually rarely deal with trolls, for the most part. Rarely do people troll me on Instagram. So, when I was thinking about A Beautiful Resistance, I was like, Where can we amplify Black people, amplify AAPI people and Hispanic people, every marginalized identity? Where can we do that and have the least amount of negativity involved? Where can we do that and be very strong?

I thought about Frederick Douglass and how Frederick Douglass was so intentional about using pictures to push progress. I mean, theres a reason why hes the most photographed man. Its because he understood the value of agency and seeing yourself how you want to be seen.

Its why whenever I ask someone for their Beautiful Resistance [story], I always say, Send me the picture of your choosing and just shout out to the photographer because I like to give photographers credit. It means something for people to see themselves how they want to be seen and set to define themselves how they want to define themselves, and Instagram is such a beautiful way [to do so].

Everyone is like, Oh, Instagram is gonna go away how Facebook went away, And Im like, I hope it doesnt, because Instagram is one of the few platforms where I feel like we really have the capability and capacity to tell our stories visually and through text. Its engaging and quick, but its also very rarely a space where theres lots of hate and just the general fuckery. All the other social media platforms have way more fuckery than Instagram.

Its not just social media. I got hate mail in 2001 when the only thing that existed was really Facebook. I got emails and handwritten letters. People get so mad. They actually write handwritten [letters] to troll. Older people will literally write. The first piece of hate mail I got was a handwritten letter to the Kansas City Star, and it was super racist, so thats always existed. Its just that Twitter has made it so much worse. Its just so instant. There are people who create bots thatll just attack certain phrases, a certain language and sometimes, in certain cases, certain people. So yeah, its really about protecting our collective peace.

I dont want to miss out on this point. It was about access. You know, you can post videos on Twitter, but they can only be x amount of minutes unless its a YouTube link. But with Instagram, there was IGTV at the time, so I could upload a whole 15-minute episode. If you dont have a Globe subscription, you can watch the film on Instagram. And of course I want people to read the long-form story. I want them to engage with the Q&A and with the other content thats on the website, but if they cant, I want them to at least feel engaged in part of the community.

During Black History Month, we actually took down the paywall on A Beautiful Resistance landing site so that anyone could access it for the whole month, and I intend to do that again this Black History Month. We also ran the [promotion campaign] $1 for six months [digital subscription to the Globe] every time a story ran with A Beautiful Resistance so that people could at least sign on to get the whole project.

Im a columnist, so its a little different for me. As a columnist even though Im a Black woman as a columnist, I recognize that I have a certain level of privilege. I opine. I am not forced into any type of neutral position in the face of adversity. So, because of that, it puts me in a unique position of being in control of my real estate as a columnist.

Every week, I decide what Im going to write. My editor and I do brainstorm and sometimes something will happen, and hell be like, I would love to get your voice on this. I think all columnists and editorials just have a level of power and privilege that I think we all should acknowledge and do our best to help the journalists in the room do the stories that they want to do when we can.

The first season had six episodes and six written stories. Each episode is a mixtape. So with each episode, you get the video, a long-form written story that is on a broader topic outside of the video, a Q&A, the Instagram post and then a playlist.

For season two, I just made one playlist thats for the whole season instead of every episode, and everyone including the subjects and the directors contributed songs that inspired them during their episodes.

The Q&A and Instagram are typically where I try to infuse other voices of color and make sure that they have space. This season we have eight episodes, so we grew a little bit. I really would like to continue doing new things. Were going to do a special event for the Transgender Day of Remembrance. Were going to probably do a virtual screening.

Were going to try to do some events, some photo pop-ups where people could come and have their picture taken or share on video with their Beautiful Resistances, so those are ways in which were growing.

Theres a chance we might evolve into a podcast and have that be for when were not in season.

Im not done dreaming. Thats the beautiful thing about giving yourself permission to do things you havent seen done. Because when you think that you can only fly so high, you dont even imagine flying further because youre like, I just want to fly as high as that. Because thats what youve only ever seen.

So now that Ive been able to create this space, and I know that it can do well and it actually creates impact for the people I want to reach and people feel seen. Now, Im like, What other ways can we stretch and give to the community? How else can we be in community with the community? Everyones so obsessed with covering the community. Maybe if we were in community with all of these communities, the coverage would be so much more honest and impactful.

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Jene Osterheldt on telling stories of Black triumph, Black joy and celebration of everyday living - The Scope

TAMPA, Fla. (Nov. 8, 2021) - Tampa Electric Co. (TECO) will turn to expertise from the University of South Florida (USF) to help the company achieve its short- and long-term goals for reducing carbon emissions.

As TECO unveiled its vision for a cleaner energy future on Monday, the company announced a partnership with USF to further research innovative technologies and new ideas to help reach net-zero carbon emissions from its power plants by 2050. TECO will place an intentional focus on investing in emerging solutions that generate more clean energy.

As one of the nations leading research institutions, the University of South Florida has a talented pool of faculty and students who are developing innovative solutions for the complex challenges facing our communities. With our leading expertise in business, engineering, sustainability and other disciplines, USF is well positioned to partner with Tampa Electric in support of a vision to create acleaner energy future, USF President Rhea Law said. Law also emphasized USF shares a commitment to keeping sustainability a key strategic focus.

TECO highlighted innovations in biofuels, hydrogen, solar, wind turbines and battery storage as possible components of its future energy portfolio. The company sees an opportunity to enhance collaboration with USFs researchers to remain on the cutting edge of any new advancements between now and 2050.

TECO is establishing a partnership with the University of South Florida to invest in a multi-year, multi-disciplinary genius grant to help us achieve our bold climate goals through innovation, research and workforce development, said Archie Collins, president and chief executive officer of Tampa Electric.By combining Tampa Electrics culture of inclusive innovation with USFs diverse student and faculty talent and celebrated research infrastructure, both organizations will maximize their collective impact on our broader community.

Tampa Mayor Jane Castor recognized the importance of organizations such as USF and TECO working together to find ways to protect the environment.

There is no more important partner than TECO in the City of Tampascommitmentto a greener, more sustainablecommunity. Today, the City ofTampa,TECO,and the University of South Florida are taking a big stepon the path tocleaner energy, Castor said.We plan to continue finding unique partnership opportunities and invest city resources to advance in clean energy technology and climate-ready infrastructure.

At the same event on Monday, the City of Tampa and TECO announceda partnership to deploy a major rooftop solar array at the Tampa Convention Center.The renewable energy investment in Tampas downtown urban core is expected to be the largest rooftop solar project inHillsborough County.

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Tampa Electric looks to partnership with USF to achieve a clean energy vision - University of South Florida

Electrifying transportation wont be about making a grand and mighty "jump." Many communities dont have the resources to pull that off.

The widespread implementation of electric vehicle (EV) chargers and other low-emission infrastructure promises to be ongoing and iterative. Whats more, it demands collaboration across sectors. A one-time fix is impossible for two reasons: First, there isnt a single technology that can make a unilateral impact in both urban and rural settings. Second, communities are bound to get left behind if zero-emissions transportation advocates adopt a cookie-cutter approach.

"To make EVs really work, there has to be a broader integrated ecosystem," said Bob Holycross, vice president of sustainability, environment and safety engineering at Ford, during the recent VERGE 21 event. "The real key is to make sure everyone is brought along, not just in terms of access to vehicles and mobility but even thinking broadly about labor skills and communities."

The transportation landscape from state to state and city to city looks very different, although the aim of electrification unites them. The reality is, however, that many rural U.S. communities today are lagging behind with electrified transportation options even as EVs gain more popularity than ever in urban and suburban regions.

The Biden administration has been vocal in pushing Americans to go electric as a way to reduce net emissions. The president has set a target for 50 percent of all vehicles sold in the U.S. to be electric by 2030 but, at present, the reality is EVs cost significantly more than gas-powered vehicles.

Telling people to buy a Tesla isnt so equitable when you consider that the cheapest available Tesla will put you back about $45,000. While the EV giant continues to rake in record profits and trounce other automakers, few Tesla models are seen in rural areas. Tesla owners typically have an average annual household income of over $143,000. (That nearly doubles the average household income in the U.S.)

The good news is Tesla by far the most popular EV maker announced it will open up its fast-charging network to other EV brands. This is a step in the right direction for electrification, as owners of cheaper EVs will be able to tap into the most extensive fast-charging network in the world. Ford, among other automakers, is eager to throw its hat into the ring.

"Were trying to break the myths about what you can do with an electric vehicle," Holycross said. "We called our first global mass-market EV a Mustang. Were transitioning our full-size truck and F-150 to electric."

Costs for EV auto parts have continued to decrease, according to Holycross, and the technology has become more efficient. Reducing your carbon footprint as a driver shouldnt need to make you feel like youre compromising for something, he added.

"Ford is pushing for zero-emission vehicles," Holycross added. "But we aim to do it in a way that provides affordability and availability to a variety of consumers and communities, especially ones often underserved."

While EVs are far more common in urban cities where people are generally more affluent and college-educated these are also the places with some of the worst smog and air pollution.

Los Angeles, for example, has the most EVs on the road among U.S. cities, and has plenty of EV charging stations to boot. Its electric grid and access is more robust than a small town in the middle of the country.

But, according to the Lung.org database, Los Angeles is also ranked near or at the top for multiple pollution measures.

Its progressive in EV development, but its impact gets lost in the smog.

"Los Angeles has more [EV] chargers than any other city in the country," Sutley said. "But we recognize theres a big gap between what we have and what we need to accommodate the level of electrification were anticipating."

For some communities, EVs are cool technologies, and for others it can be a life-and-death matter. Electrification can really save lives.

Well-being is one part of electrification that is too often overlooked, said Nancy Sutley, senior assistant general manager and chief sustainability officer of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. "As the case for electrification as a public health matter gets stronger, weve been supporting electrification in Los Angeles by providing financial incentives to install chargers, and bringing outreach and education," Sutley said.

"Thinking about electrification from a public health lens is important," said Shelley Francis, co-founder and principal at EVNoire. "For some communities, EVs are cool technologies, and for others it can be a life-and-death matter. Electrification can really save lives."

The onus of electrified mobility wont fall entirely upon the shoulders of Elon Musk. Nor will it be entirely up to technologists and industrialists community outreach initiatives are set to play a key role, especially in rural areas.

"We have to be intentional about engaging communities in a culturally relevant and appropriate way," Francis said. "This can be challenging, but it can be an opportunity to move away from a one-size-fits-all approach."

Big cities such as Los Angeles in particular, noted Sutley, have the distinction that electricity is accessible and pervasive, but the challenge is to match up the available electricity with the needs of specific communities. To only focus electrification efforts within metropolitan areas undermines country-wide efforts and threatens to leave certain communities out of the calculus.

A lot of electrification is really education and outreach as a way to make technology more visible.

"Focusing on building infrastructure in rural communities is spot on right now," said Katherine Stainken, senior director of EV Policy at the Electrification Coalition. Stainken leads the policy team, which is focused on transitioning the U.S. transportation sector to run on electricity. In her eyes, a big-city approach to electrification cannot be lumped together with that of a rural environment.

Less access and availability of technology in rural areas, for example, means EVs are not as top-of-mind as they may be in more developed cities. Theres an urgency for electrification, explained Stainken, and it must happen "whether its electric school buses in Phoenix or transit buses in Columbus or snow removal [vehicles] in New York."

Francis argued that community engagement, education and awareness must take precedence, even before technology and incentives are introduced within a rural community. The former is what furnishes more of a lasting impact and can accelerate electrification. "When we look at the rate of adoption in diverse communities, the outcomes are really dismal, even though those are the communities that stand to benefit most from accelerating electrification," Francis said.

While incentives can help, Holycross cautioned the need to pair them with accountability. "We could put a bunch of charging stations in but if theyre broken all the time or not maintained because someone just put them in to get some short-term money, this isnt going to help. There has to be a way government support, like incentives, can be maintained."

Sutley agreed, adding that having the technology does not necessarily mean it will be adopted, as adoption requires a more cohesive community-level strategy. "A lot of electrification is really education and outreach as a way to make technology more visible," she said.

"There has to be infrastructure that can accommodate both someone dropping their kids off at school and a high-mileage passenger vehicle," Sutley said. The variety of infrastructure required to make this happen is where federal involvement such as incentives or legislation comes into play.

Even a brand as global as Ford knows it cannot push for electrification in a vacuum. Focusing exclusively on cities can slow a nation-wide movement toward electrification.

"Were excited to be on this journey of electrification, but we know we cant do it alone," Holycross said. "We are looking to truly integrate with the whole ecosystem and make this work for all of us."

[Want more great analysis of electric and sustainable transport? Sign up for Mobility Weekly, our free email newsletter.]

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Electrification shouldn't just happen in the big city | Greenbiz - GreenBiz

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Featured Image for Imaginable Futures

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Nov. 09, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Imaginable Futures announced a strategy refresh that expands its collaboration with partners working to remove systemic barriers so that all learners have the opportunity to thrive.

While maintaining its hybrid funding structure that is part philanthropic foundation and part impact investor, Imaginable Futures is broadening its focus from social entrepreneurship and innovation as primary levers, to a systems approach informed by both global and local insights which seeks to address inequities and foster holistic learning for learners, families and communities. As part of this evolved strategy, Imaginable Futures will now be more focused in three specific geographies: Brazil, Sub-Saharan Africa (primarily in Kenya and South Africa) and the U.S. It will also maintain a limited portfolio of partners that support global learning outside these geographies.

Launched in early 2020 as an independent organization under The Omidyar Group, Imaginable Futures has invested more than $240 million and collaborated with more than 175 partners around the world as part of Omidyar Network and now as an independent entity. The strategy update evolved after more than a year of listening to and learning from local partners, communities, learners, teachers, policymakers and more in its key regions, and going deeper to understand how current systems too often reproduce inequities and create barriers to learning and thriving.

"We know the status quo of education and learning isn't working for too many learners. And, in the pandemic, this has become nothing short of a crisis. While our previous work remains critical to us, we've realized that we need to be even more intentional about addressing the complex patterns of inequity," said Amy Klement, Managing Partner of Imaginable Futures. "Understanding our privileged position as funders, we are committed to working with and supporting partners to co-create solutions alongside learners and communitiessolutions that foster well-being and strive to dismantle systemic barriers to learning. We're working together to create a world where every person has the opportunity to build a brighter future for themselves and their families."

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Imaginable Futures' work across the organization's three geographic focus areas will evolve in the following ways:

In Africa, Imaginable Futures is broadening its work from increasing access to quality education through solutions like affordable private schools, to supporting holistic education models that provide youth with access to, and support in pursuing, diverse learning opportunities inside and outside the classroom. By 2035, Africa will have more youth than the rest of the world combined. In order to support a generation of youth facing high unemployment and uncertainty, Imaginable Futures works with partner organizations to nurture initiatives that offer young people flexible learning pathways, democratize access to networks that enable youth to build their social capital and increase access and affordability to quality child care for mothers. Much of this work will have a focus within Kenya and South Africa.

"Enabling multiple pathways for holistic development and breaking down barriers that perpetuate inequitable access to learning for youth, especially girls and young women, is critical to Africa's future, as is access to strong community support and role models," said Shikha Goyal, Venture Partner at Imaginable Futures. "At Imaginable Futures, we are committed to collaborating with young people, teachers, parents, local leaders and policymakers to support learning models that provide young people with the skills, agency and support they need to thrive."

In Brazil, Imaginable Futures works with partners to bridge social divides, elevate the voices of those marginalized and shift underlying systemic patterns that perpetuate intergenerational inequities. Brazil is one of the most unequal countries in the world, and the impact of COVID-19 has only exacerbated disparities. By expanding its original investments in edtech solutions to investments that focus on equity-centered, holistic models of learning, Imaginable Futures seeks to increase learning outcomes and opportunities for all.

"Structural racism in Brazil's education system currently limits access to equitable learning opportunities for the vast majority of youth. Therefore, we are putting racial equity and social justice in the center of our work," said Fabio Tran, Venture Partner at Imaginable Futures. "We are collaborating with our close partners and communities, promoting the holistic development of learners and expanding the representation and development of diverse leaders. All this, while remaining committed to supporting equitable edtech."

In the United States, Imaginable Futures' strategy is driven by the knowledge that impactful innovation must be married with a strong and intentional anchoring in racial, gender and economic equity and connected to equitable research, policy and public infrastructure. The organization will continue to take a two-generation approach in the U.S., investing in early childhood to ensure that learning and care are accessible to all families and supporting student parentsan often invisible and forgotten population of nearly 20 million postsecondary learners with children of their ownto create additional pathways for economic prosperity and advance racial and economic equity in postsecondary education.

"The U.S. education system was designed to, and continues to, reproduce generational inequity," said Vinice Davis, Venture Partner at Imaginable Futures. "Breaking the cycle starts with supporting families more holistically through a lens of racial equity. While equity has always been a focus, we are now being even more intentional around how we can directly address the racism embedded in our systems."

About Imaginable Futures

Imaginable Futures is a global philanthropic investment firm driven by impact and the belief that learning is key to well-being and equitable, healthy systems. Imaginable Futures is committed to shifting inequitable systems and moving barriers standing in the way of learners, families and communities from thriving and reaching their fullest potential. To do so, Imaginable Futures collaborates with changemakers and those most impacted to solve complex education challenges and co-design solutions that work for communities. With partners across public, private and social sectors in Brazil, Sub-Saharan Africa and the United States, Imaginable Futures is co-creating transformational solutions in local, national and global contexts for learners of all ages. Imaginable Futures is a venture of The Omidyar Group. Learn more at http://www.imaginablefutures.com.

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LAWRENCE Researchers at the University of Kansas have received a $3.7 million grant to help transition from a child welfare system that reacts to problematic home situations to one that provides resources and meets needs to prevent children from being removed from their families.

Researchers in KUs School of Social Welfare and Center for Public Partnerships & Research received a five-year grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families to implement the Universal Prevention for Strong and Thriving Families, or Family Strong project. They will work with the Kansas Department for Children and Families and three community partner agencies to bolster universal community-based programs in southeast Kansas.

The goal of the project is to demonstrate a model of a community support system that addresses and alleviates family stressors before they become crises that result in contact with the child welfare system. The grant is one of six to establish Family Support through Primary Prevention sites across the country.

Key partners of Family Strong include Kansas Legal Services, Kansas Childrens Service League and the Family Resource Center (The Center) in Pittsburg. The project will initially work with community partners to determine strengths and gaps in existing systems, build enhanced partnerships, refine plans to ensure alignment with the goals of the community, and introduce new services and supports to assist families in need.

The project is designed to be responsive to the needs of southeast Kansas and to build on the many strengths of the region to ensure the system of community-based support for children and families is comprehensive, connected, equitable and accessible to families, said Kaela Byers, associate research professor of social welfare and principal investigator.

Children are often removed from families when adequate supports, resources and training could help address issues that initiate family contacts with agencies like Child Protective Services, according to researchers. Partners will begin by expanding and introducing new services at the Family Resource Center. The Center will serve as a hub for these services, also reaching into other surrounding counties in the region. For example, the team plans to expand the existing Family Response Advocate program to five additional counties, providing universal case management services to resolve needs before they escalate. Through the program, families will receive community-based support and service navigation from response advocates, including help resolving crises, avoiding evictions, paying bills and meeting other basic needs. The Center will also introduce a new preventative legal services program, providing access to free, quality legal consultation services to navigate issues such as Medicaid eligibility, housing insecurity and other legal needs affecting children and families.

Family Strong will also work with families and communities to reduce stigma around help seeking and accessing support. The team will promote the use of the 1-800-CHILDREN warm line, connecting families to support services and directing calls for basic needs to community agencies rather than Child Protective Services. This will be paired with a grassroots outreach and public health campaign promoting support for children and families as a community value and supporting the statewide efforts to become a mandated supporter state.

As a family experiences crisis, there is a potential for ripple effects downstream, and those ripples can often be assessed as neglect, said Meghan Cizek, assistant director of KUs Center for Public Partnerships & Research and co-investigator.

Additionally, the project will boost the Integrated Referral and Intake System, known as IRIS, in southeast Kansas, a closed-loop referral system that connects family-serving agencies to streamline the referral and service coordination experience for families and ensure referrals result in service connections. Researchers described the process as a warm handoff between providers, ensuring families are connected with someone who can address their needs, instead of simply providing a phone number.

Were looking to change the philosophy of how we respond to family needs to reacting with support and sharing resources, Byers said.

Cizek added We want to change that, and our partners will help spread the message in a grassroots way. No one should be punished for being a family struggling to make ends meet. We want to keep families together.

As a requirement of the federal demonstration, Family Strong includes an evaluation of the projects initiatives to determine their effectiveness and expand the knowledge base about proactive approaches as the norm in family services. Jared Barton, assistant research professor at KU and lead evaluator of Family Strong, said, The Family Strong initiative presents an exciting opportunity to understand the effectiveness of and build evidence for universal prevention programs supporting the well-being of children and families in a comprehensive way. Not only are we are examining outcomes for individual families, weve also designed the evaluation to examine its impact at changing systems, organizations and community norms.

The team will also identify community members to serve on a steering committee, including people who have successfully accessed resources to address family crises. These key partners will be integral to every aspect of the Family Strong project, from planning to disseminating the results.

Meaningful involvement of our partnering communities, including families with lived experience, is crucial to achieving our overarching project goal of transforming the Kansas child welfare system. Not only will we be illuminating families experiences within the system, but we will also produce high-quality and truly relevant research said Whitney Grube, KU associate researcher and co-investigator.

The project will partner with Allen, Bourbon, Cherokee, Crawford, Labette, Montgomery, Neosho and Wilson counties. Kansas Department for Children and Families data has shown that southeast Kansas has disproportionate levels of out-of-home foster care placement for children compared to the state population. Rates have also increased nationwide in recent years.

The Family Strong project will allow us to be more intentional in developing systems and community structures that prioritize prevention over placement, keeping children and families together, said Becci Akin, associate professor and co-investigator.

Every child deserves the opportunity to be part of a permanent and loving family, said U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran. Im pleased to see KU leading the nation in creating innovative approaches to produce better futures for children in the foster care system.

Image: Twente Hall, home of the KU School of Social Welfare. Credit: KU Marketing Communications.

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KU lands grant to help transform foster system, keep children in the home | The University of Kansas - KU Today

We will all read and see coverage over the next few weeks about the vitally important conversations and hopefully, decisions that emerge from the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow. For those who may not be familiar, the UK is currently hosting the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) from Oct. 31 Nov. 12.

Id like to add a few comments at the edges.

He noted upon arriving: To state the obvious, we meet with the eyes of history upon us and with profound questions before us. Will we act? Will we do what is necessary? Will we seize the enormous opportunity before us, or will we condemn future generations to suffer? This is the decade that will determine the answer.

Following on his promise to act, the Biden administration announced Tuesday that for the first time, the Environmental Protection Agency intends to limit the methane coming from roughly 1 million existing oil and gas rigs across the United States. This announcement shows the U.S. is serious about mitigating climate change.

Conference attendees have heard and will continue to hear from the United States a commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions in half in the next decade. The infrastructure and Build Back Better bills would deploy $555 billion to accelerate this countrys investment in green infrastructure, renewable energy sources, and electric vehicles, among others. Once the legislation has passed, this signifies a commitment from this countrys private sector to provide technical and financial assistance to the adaptation challenges being felt by vulnerable communities.

The question is likely to be called on whether developed nations are capable and prepared to actualize their commitment to mobilize $100 billion per year to help developing countries reduce emissions and adapt to new climate realities. As hard as it is, and will be, to agree on the dramatic reduction in emissions necessary to avoid the dreaded 2-degree Celsius increase (to say nothing of the 1.5-degree ceiling articulated in the Paris Climate Accord), it may be equally difficult to agree on investments on that scale. Throw the wrenches of Chinas and Russias absence into the mix, and you have the makings of an unseemly and exasperating policy cul-de-sac.

Our Environment Program has developed a deeply intentional and highly strategic approach to infusing community-based equity into the decision and resource-allocation processes shapingthe nations climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts. Over a decade, the team has built a portfolio of investments unique among national philanthropy in its elevation of the imperative of equipping low-wealth communities of color to participate meaningfully in the climate-related decisions that affect their lives.

Weve had many compelling and essential but complex and nuanced conversations about how Kresge as a whole beyond the work of our Environment Program can best contribute in multiple dimensions to addressing the climate change crisis. This is a conversation and path of action that will work collaboratively to evolve over time rather than crystalize in an instant, as it requires all our departments and program teams to think outside the well-definededges of comfortable practice. Yet ultimately, this work will contribute to what we stand for as an organization.

To accelerate our efforts, we are asking ourselves these questions internally, and we encourage other funders to do the same:

Its hard to think that any one of us, or any Foundation, or even any presidential administration can have meaningful impact on an existential challenge of such scale and complexity. But we have to think that. As our Environment team frequently reminds, every action that bends the curve, even slightly, is an action in the right direction. We all need to pay attention to what the assembled nations agree to do and then pay even closer attention to whether they do it.

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Rapson: COP26 reminds us that every foundation, administration can have meaningful impact on climate change - The Kresge Foundation

When I was writing my dissertation, I joined the Coffee Club: five Ph.D. students who gathered on Wednesday afternoons in the library to write together. We met at a dissertation boot camp and decided to keep up the momentum of that experience, which involved writing in silence and taking 10-minute breaks every hour. The Coffee Club members hailed from STEM, social science and humanities backgrounds, so we reasoned we could focus more on our writing without the distraction of talking about our dissertation topics to peers in our fields.

Our method worked: we were motivated by the dedicated time to write and the accountability of acquaintances facing similar challenges. Along the way, we learned more about each others research projects and lives outside graduate school during the breaks, and we branched out from the library to coffee shops near the University of Pittsburgh. We celebrated members defenses with cupcakes and thanked the Coffee Club on the dedication pages of our dissertations. As a graduate student in the rather solitary field of English, I was thankful for the Coffee Clubs companionship and structure, which helped me finish my dissertation and shaped my interest in working with advanced writers across disciplines.

Flash forward to 2021. I am an administrator at North Carolina State University developing writing support programs for graduate students at a time when the accountability, motivation and (virtual) community of writing groups are more important than ever. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, I have drawn on my experiences as a graduate writer in the Coffee Club to design virtual writing retreats, Zoom Pomodoro sessions for dissertation writers and a Slack workspace for trainees to host writing groups.

These programs have allowed graduate and postdoc writers across disciplines to make progress on writing projects through a shared focus on effective writing habits and supportive virtual communities. My efforts took place alongside the increasing popularity of similar online writing experiences, including initiatives by major organizations like the National Center for Faculty Development and Diversitys 14-Day Writing Challenges, university sponsored programs such as the University of North Carolina Charlottes Weekend Writes, and informal writing meet-ups on Zoom initiated by graduate and postdoc trainees.

Scholars of writing have known the value of participating in writing groups for productivity, accountability and motivation since the 1980s, when Anne Ruggles Gere published her study Writing Groups: History, Theory, and Implications. More recently, in the Carpe Careers column, Jovana Milosavljevic Ardeljan discussed the benefits of virtual writing support from a professional development standpoint with an emphasis on the transferable skills that graduate or postdoc writers gain from interacting with peers across disciplines around shared writing experiences and challenges. Participating in activities like writing groups and dissertation retreats has a value beyond simply finishing a chapter or an article manuscript. To paraphrase another recent Carpe Careers essay, such writing support activities constitute a form of peer networking that allows us to connect with colleagues outside our disciplines and even helps us to articulate the impact of our research to diverse stakeholders.

The benefits of dedicating time for writing support as a graduate student or postdoc are well-known, but it is sometimes hard in practice to commit to these activities. Online writing groups can be particularly difficult, as distractions loom at home and elsewhere, and often a lack of expectations for the group decreases motivation to attend. So how can you get the most out of online writing groups and achieve your writing goals?

In this article, I draw on my experiences as a student writing group member and an organizer of online writing support to describe how you can maximize the benefits of a virtual writing group. Whether you meet for Pomodoro sessions on Zoom or to get feedback on dissertation chapters, here are some ways to be productive, accountable and motivated while interacting with fellow graduate or postdoc writers online.

While these tips might seem obvious, they are effective ways to stay engaged, focused and accountable to an online community whose ultimate goal is making progress on writing. Moreover, when you become intentional about interacting online, you are practicing skills beyond mastering the genre norms of writing in your field or finishing the next chapter draft. Practices like communicating asynchronously with team members, determining the shared goals of a remote working group or designing a structure for online meetings are especially important transferable skills in todays remote and hybrid workplaces. In fact, the graduate student organizers of the online writing groups on North Carolina States Slack space noted that they learned as much about leading groups online as they did about productive writing habits, while still dedicating time to achieve their own writing goals.

The next time you gather online to write, whether with one writing buddy or a large group, ask yourself, What transferable skills or habits of mind am I learning from being part of this online writing group? Take a few minutes after the session to jot down your reflections on the group structure or writing process. You might be surprised by the answers. Happy writing!

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How to maximize the benefits of virtual writing groups (opinion) - Inside Higher Ed

USF students, faculty and staff are celebrating the opening of the Institute of Black Life & Student Success Student Lounge, a dedicated space on the third floor of the Marshall Student Center on the Tampa campus that was announced in March. The space is the result of a request and input by student members of the Black Student Union (BSU) as to the value of an affinity space to support the Black community at USF, especially for healing following the racial incidents of recent years.

On behalf of the BSU at USF, we are pleased that the university heard us, took action and provided students of African descent not only with a physical space, but a community-building space that will support all efforts to strengthen students sense of belonging, said BSU president Kameryn Philpot.

The universitys Institute on Black Life (IBL) and the Office of Multicultural Affairs, a department of Student Success, collaborated with numerous partners to realize the students request. The new lounge is designed to be an inviting social and academic center where students, faculty and staff from all cultural groups can learn more about contemporary Black experiences and scholarship. It will host workshops, talks and experiential learning activities to facilitate connections between students and campus stakeholders, and provide opportunities for the development of social, intercultural, personal and professional skills to contribute to students academic and career goals.

"The grand opening of the lounge is a proud milestone for the university because it reflects an intentional collaboration to meet the needs and expectations of the students served at USF, said Fenda Akiwumi, director of the IBL. Most importantly, this grand opening is reflective of the power of students' voices and their desire to be affirmed in their identity, their experience at USF and their desire to feel connected and valued by the university community.

Akiwumi personally assisted with decorating the space, loaning artwork and sewing toss pillows with Kente fabric to provide a more welcoming environment. The space includes comfortable seating; cultural artifacts; a library of books highlighting Black history, Black authors and African diaspora communities; cultural artwork donated by USF Department of Education Professor Gary Lemons; and a rotating art exhibit. Oil paintings featured at the grand opening were created by master of fine arts student Marlon Tobias Wilson.

This lounge, open daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., is the latest initiative demonstrating the university's commitment to inclusive excellence in serving the diversity of students, faculty and staff. Upcoming planned events in the space include:

- Black Student Leaders Open Forum with the Office of Multicultural Affairs, Nov. 15 at 6 p.m.

- Black/African/Caribbean Multicultural Community Study Night, Dec. 6 at 6 p.m.

For more information or to inquire about programming in the lounge, contact the USF Office of Multicultural Affairs at 813-974-5111 or sa-oma@usf.edu.

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USF enhances commitment to inclusive excellence with new space dedicated to celebrating diversity - University of South Florida