Why Low-Income Housing Can’t Afford the Recession | The New York Observer

Why Low-Income Housing Can’t Afford the Recession | The New York Observer

Poor Face Obstacles to Renew Public Health Insurance, Study Shows - NYTimes.com

Poor Face Obstacles to Renew Public Health Insurance, Study Shows - NYTimes.com:

"More than a third of New York State’s recipients of Medicaid and other public health insurance programs fail to re-enroll on time, losing coverage even though they remain eligible, because of daunting paperwork and other obstacles, according to a new study."

OpenStreetMap

OpenStreetMap:

"OpenStreetMap is a free editable map of the whole world. It is made by people like you.

OpenStreetMap allows you to view, edit and use geographical data in a collaborative way from anywhere on Earth."

The Demon-Haunted World

a slide presentation on the rising urbanisation of the planet and the rapid digitalisation of that urban fabric, by Matt Jones

The Demon-Haunted World

Broken Glass: Photographs of the South Bronx

Exhibition at the Museum of the City of New York

Made between 1982 and 1984, the photographs in Broken Glass: Photographs of the South Bronx by Ray Mortenson focus on the burned out, abandoned, and razed structures of entire city blocks in the South Bronx, documenting the aftermath of a widespread urban economic crisis that plagued the United States in the 1970s. Putting the political, economic and social causes for this collapse aside, Mortenson's photographs consider the land and loss in human terms. They project a haunting silence, reminding us that these neighborhood streets were cradles of the community, lined with the homes of individuals and families. Hints of a once prosperous district are revealed in Mortenson's work through a stark black-and-white portrayal of what remained.

Pippa Norris on globalization and communication

…My heart’s in Accra Pippa Norris on globalization and communication:

"Professor Pippa Norris of Harvard’s Kennedy School, is focused on “Cosmoolitan Communications” for her forthcoming book, titled “Cultural Convergence”. Working with Ronald Inglehart of the World Values Survey, she’s studying the ways that communications impact the strength of national identity and the trust in outsiders. Her findings - which surprise some of her colleagues - suggest that increased cosmopolitan communications leads to more trust in others and reduced nationalism."

Economics Discussions: Bikes, Electricity, and Global Inequality

...I think this is relevant to the course. A note about this: they aren't kidding when they say dialogue. When you go to these you have to RSVP and then when you go you are expected to talk.

The Editorial Board of Consilience: The Journal of Sustainable Development would like to invite you to join us for our ConsilienceDialogue Series for the month of March, co-sponsored by the Economics Forum.

The Consilience Dialogue Series is designed to promote intimate, meaningful discussion of the major issues of sustainable development with an interdisciplinary approach.
We hope that students will come to the table ready to share their considered opinions,thoughts, and questions.

“Bamboo Bikes: A Sustainable Development Initiative in Kisumu, Kenya”
With Katherine Athanasiades and Young Rhee
Wednesday, March 4 from 7:30 – 8:30 pm
Hamilton 316, Morningside Campus

“Is National Grid Extension the Best Way to Extend Electricity Access in Sub-Saharan Africa?”
With Lily Parshall
Wednesday, March 11 from 7:30 – 8:30 pm
Hamilton 316, Morningside Campus

“Beyond the Global Divide: From Basic Needs to Knowledge Revolution”
With Graciela Chichilnisky
Wednesday, March 25 from 7:30 – 8:30 pm
Hamilton 316, Morningside Campus

To RSVP to an event, contact Lucy at lhc2104@columbia.edu with your name, year, and field of study.

For more info on Consilience, see here.

Josef

Sustainable Development at Columbia University: Engineering and Sustainable Development

Date:
Monday, March 2, 2009 from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm

Location:
Columbia University, Morningside Campus, Schapiro CEPSR Building, David Auditorium

Contact:
Earth Institute Events, events@ei.columbia.edu

Event Description:
Speaker: Jeffrey D. Sachs, Director, The Earth Institute at Columbia University

The Columbia University Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science presents "Sustainable Development at Columbia University: Engineering and Sustainable Development", with Jeffrey D. Sachs, Director, The Earth Institute at Columbia University.

Daily Kos: Health Care Friday

The quoted Stiglitz interview is especially interesting:

Daily Kos: Health Care Friday

Black Panthers Protest ‘Drunken Negro Face’ Bakery

Black Panthers Protest ‘Drunken Negro Face’ Bakery -- Grub Street ...

Feb 26, 2009 ... Black Panthers Protest ‘Drunken Negro Face’ Bakery ... State Senator Thomas Duane is pressuring him to take a racial sensitivity course ...
nymag.com/daily/food/2009/02/black_panthers_protest_drunken.html

2/26/09 at 12:34 PM

Comment 2Comment 2Comments

Photo: Villager

Ever wonder what became of Ted Kefalinos, the “Drunken Negro Face” baker? He’s still in business, though Black Panthers have been picketing his store, and the Secret Service has paid him a visit, thanks to his alleged statement that Obama will “get what he deserves.” State Senator Thomas Duane is pressuring him to take a racial sensitivity course (presumably he’ll be classmates with the folks over at the Post), and Kefalinos has agreed, saying “maybe they’re right, I do need a little bit of sensitivity.” Best part of the Villager piece might be the customer who’s torn between going to Kefalinos’s shop and nearby Patisserie Claude, with its notoriously cranky former owner.

[Villager Panthers vow to shut down ‘Negro Head’ cookie baker [Villager]

By: Daniel Maurer Filed Under: Beef, patisserie claude, Ted Kefalinos

Note that New York State Senator Thomas Duane is the younger brother of my partner John Duane, who co-authored the Editor's Choice column with me in the March 2009 issue of the American Journal of Public Health. Senator Duane is openly gay and HIV infected, and is the new chairman of the of the New York State Senate health committee. In solidarity, Mary

PS My younger daughter Jessica saw Tom on the news and alerted me to this story. It's all in the family.

Cascade Farm 2009 Calendar of Events!

Cascade Farm 2009 Calendar of Events!:

"March 7th and 21st 8:30-11 a.m.

**Come and learn more about Cascade Farm Schools CSA program**"

Will a Car-Free Broadway Work? - TierneyLab Blog - NYTimes.com

TierneyLab | Putting Ideas in Science to the Test
Will a Car-Free Broadway Work?
By John Tierney

In 1997, one of my proposals was greeted with the usual thunderous silence. I proposed creating the Piazza Broadway by banishing cars from the the Great White Way near Times Square. It wasn’t a strictly original idea — a similar scheme had been proposed in the 1970s — although I do believe I was the first to suggest decorating the plaza with a statue of a three-card monte dealer and a pedestrian bridge modeled on the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, to be called the Ponte di Tre Monte."

Panel on Climate Change results

PANEL ON CLIMATE CHANGE PREDICTS NYC'S AVERAGE TEMPERATURE TO RISE 7.5 DEGREES - New York Post:

"The city's average temperature could rise by as much as 7.5 degrees this century, and once-in-a-century storms may occur as often as every 15 years, a climate-change panel said Tuesday.

The report by the city's Panel on Climate Change was requested by Mayor Bloomberg to better understand how global temperature levels could strain the city's infrastructure."

Harlem Parks Namesakes

Harlem Parks Namesakes � UPTOWNflavor

Mixed race-ethnicity....

I thought this article was interesting, given the week's readings about race and health, our multi-racial president, and being of mixed ethnicity myself.

How does an increasingly multi-racial society now intersect with health?

posted article change

I noticed the copy we posted of Nancy Krieger's Epidemiology and the Web of Causation is not very readable. I sent out a new one this morning, in case you have time to look at it before class.

DevEx

International Development - Home: "devex is a social enterprise bringing efficiency to international development through recruiting and business information services. Our members find jobs, projects, news - and professional connections - on devex.com."

White House Urban Affairs Chief Picked

Having surpassed the "honeymoon period" of this course, I am better understanding the need to address problems spawned by urbanization and to approach them through an interdisciplinary framework that is humbled by the complexity of the issues yet strengthened by the promise of its multi-disciplinary approach. As a "New Yorker", it doesn't take many blocks from where you are to see the disparities of clustered neighbordhoods and imagine the economic and social potential that all areas are capable of achieving.

President Obama, has acknowledged this through the creation of the White House Urban Affairs Office. Today, 80% of the United States population reside in urban areas, and are as a result, are aware of its many issues -- from poverty and hunger observed on the street as a result of policies from the past to the need for sustainable buildings and communities to ensure an energy-efficient future. This step, I am hopeful, will become the first of many in which we begin to address the critical issues of urban living and find the tools across the many disciplines in order to achieve a healthier and more habitable environment.

Click here to read the article.