Reading Pimblott’s "Faith in Black Power" alongside Chapell’s "Ye That Are Men That Now Serve Him" reminds me how Cairo, Illinois was more than any ordinary American town, it was a battlefield for America’s soul.

"The configuration of social capital is the key in shaping resilient city dynamics. Rather than simply increasing the number of civic organizations, what is most important is how social capital is deployed, called upon, and realized by the actors within a community." - Sean Safford

"We live in a fragmented society of individuals who have no conception of the common good, no way to come together to pursue a common good, no way to persuade one another what the common good might be, and indeed we believe that the common good does not exist." - Ted Clayton iep.utm.edu/p-macint/

I think a lot about what Carl Sagan said in one of his final interviews.

Had a great week in Omaha Nebraska for the IAP2 Conference to talk about how Engage #FortWayne is leading the way in community engagement. I had a chance to explore the Old Market Neighborhood and enjoy beautifully crafted social environments and shelter during a tornado warning!

What an honor it was to present at this year's International Association for Public Participation in #Omaha about the work we're doing in #FortWayne with ENGAGE Fort Wayne.

Watching The Dark Money Game about the corruption in Ohio's House of Representatives, and talk about an eye-opening documentary! It exposes the corruption of the Ohio Republican party. youtu.be/dykZuyO7RUU?...

Can't wait til May ☘️

As an alumnus of @arizonastateuni.bsky.social I would agree, the @democrats.org need to act more like Crow. It's about the outcomes. www.azcentral.com/story/opinio...

6th Street looking north on Commercial, probably sometime around 1930. hickscarworks.blogspot.com/2021/11/ #CairoIllinois #Cairo

"We making some strides, some positive changes ... we got some people here that are really fighting for this community ... for these kids." -Josh Baldwin, Cairo HS Basketball Coach pulitzercenter.org/stories/dont...

I am excited to get a copy of Grif Stockley's "Blood In Their Eyes" about the 1919 Elaine Massacre. Are you asking yourself, Elaine Arkansas? Yeah, I did, too, when I first heard about this on a drive to Cairo Illinois working on my Masters thesis.

This is important research about how public space has shifted. We know that when people spend less time in public spaces, social and unplanned connections (Granovetter's weak ties) decline. We have to invest in and focus on more thoughtful and meaningful public spaces. www.nber.org/papers/w33185

"Screw the argument, win the election." - James Carville

25 years in radio Spent a decade at the #1 spot in afternoon drive Was Program Director of the year twice Mike Posner, Chainsmokers and The Script are still my favorite artists

The Flooding Will Come “No Matter What” The complex, contradictory and heartbreaking process of American climate migration is underway. By @abrahm.bsky.social

Food deserts are not an inevitable consequence of poverty or low population density, and they didn’t materialize around the country for no reason. Something happened. That something was a specific federal policy change in the 1980s. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...

A stunning sunset over LaRez in Fort Wayne. #FortWayne

Thorny questions around intangible heritage, or whatever we choose to call it, come down to how we wish to define and enshrine our neighborhoods, our culture and ourselves. The discussion itself is a crucial part of the preservation process. www.nytimes.com/2024/11/30/a...

Your IKEA product name is your name backwards with an umlaut. I am LEINÄD, a reliable standing desk.

there are a lot of industrial towns in pennsylvania, but there’s no place like monessen

This is a must read: 'Slow and Sudden Violence' by Derek Hyra

"there is no economic solution to what is primarily a crisis of respect." www.nytimes.com/2024/11/06/o...

"They knew my focus and effort was on their daily needs and that our gains as a commonwealth would help every single one of our families." Great opinion piece by Kentucky Governor @andybeshear.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/2024/11/12/o...

Enhancing East Central residents' connections to Hanna Homestead Park and the Jennings Center while improving neighborhood safety is one of many projects outlined in the forthcoming East Central Forward Neighborhood Plan. eastcentralplan.com #FortWayne 📷 credit: @johnpfelts.bsky.social

Groot is being extra tonight

“Urban planning, from its inception, has been a desk-bound practice. It has been that professionals from outside the neighborhoods often do the work for neighborhoods they don’t even go to and don’t know." - Jonathan Pacheco Bell www.journalgazette.net/opinion/edit...

In May 2023, the City of Fort Wayne adopted the Packard 2030 Neighborhood Plan for 18 neighborhoods located south of Downtown Fort Wayne. The plan recommends over 100 projects and programs to enhance the quality of life for all Packard Area residents. Learn more at www.packardplan.org

More data showing historic declines in homicides. Aligns with other data sources. This, along with sharp declines in drug overdose deaths is something to be thankful for.

If you missed the Christmas On Broadway tree lighting and fireworks Friday night, here’s a little taste! Drone video by me from high above the festivities. Friday marked the 20th anniversary of this celebration of the Broadway corridor. #fortwayne #christmas #christmasonbroadway

Today, I had the honor to introduce my friend, colleague, and mentor, Jonathan Pacheco Bell, the keynote speaker at the 2024 OKI Planning Conference. He introduced the concept of #embeddedplanning to hundreds of urban planners across the Midwest. Simply put, "We cannot plan from our desks."

ALWAYS. SHOW. UP. That's how you rebuild trust...such good advice from Matthew Lister at Gehl presenting at #OKI2024 in #FortWayne.

How do we create the conditions for Public Life? ✅Make Invitations ✅Follow Desire ✅Care enough to see and remove the barriers of the public realm for people to achieve them. Matthew Lister of Gehl at #OKI2024 in #FortWayne

Excited to have Matthew Lister from Gehl speaking at #OKI2024 in #FortWayne. He is talking about the importance of developing social infrastructure in our communities.

"We knew we couldn’t make it illegal to be either against the war or black, but by getting the public to associate the hippies with marijuana and blacks with heroin and then criminalizing both heavily, we could disrupt those communities...

Car companies, and precision ag companies like John Deere is pushing against 'Right to Repair' laws in part because they are selling your data to other users and influence the market. Unfortunately things will not change in the next few years.

Perfect weekend to take on a new book for November, Stolen Pride by Sociologist Arlie Russell Hochschild. "It began to occur to me that just as Americans live in a material economy, we also live in an equally important pride economy." #sociology

Embedded Planning is the future of our cities. Simply put, we work in the community and not from a desk. Its about getting to know the people, their needs, and their culture. This week, my friend and mentor Jonathan Pacheco Bell will be in Fort Wayne to talk about this praxis. #EmbeddedPlanning