Municipal Equation Podcast

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EP 46: Doggonomics Mar 20, 2018

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How do dogs figure into economic development? It's no joke. Ask the analysts who take economic vitals from man's best friend. Ask the industries that profit majorly from pet ownership. Or ask the Town of Benson, which em-barked on a dog-focused project to fetch economic bone-efits. Quartz piece connecting dogs and economic development - https://qz.com/26579/the-dog-index-what-mans-best-friend-tells-us-about-global-economic-development/ Dog elected mayor - https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/dog-mayor-minnesota-cormorant-duke-lassie-a7205801.html Another dog elected mayor - https://www.aol.com/article/news/2017/06/26/dog-elected-mayor-of-kentucky-town-for-a-fourth-term/23002533/ Benson profile, Southern City magazine - https://www.nclm.org/resourcelibrary/Shared%20Documents/Southern%20City/JanFeb2017.pdf

Let's Hear Your Feedback and Ideas (New Episode Next Week) Mar 14, 2018

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We'll be back with a new episode next week, but I'm also working on a a lot of other episodes and new ideas. I want to hear from you on what should be different about this podcast, as we've been doing it for a couple years now and it's time to solicit comment. Feel free to keep sharing ideas for episodes while you're at it. bbrown@nclm.org Thanks. -Ben

EP 45: Crime as a Public Health Issue Mar 06, 2018

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When the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) looks into the ailments of a particular community, it's safe to assume the concern is infection or some similar local threat to human bodily health. So when the CDC started investigating the youth violence plaguing Wilmington, Del. -- a first-of-its-kind study -- it was different. But not inconsistent. Increasingly, communities and their governments are reframing their approaches to crime, by considering it a treatable public health issue before one of criminal justice. On this episode we delve in with several voices from the conversation. A portion of it comes from a session of the National League of Cities' annual conference held late last year in Charlotte. CDC report on Wilmington, Del., firearm violence and prevention - http://www.dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/cdcfinalreport.pdf Southern City magazine, "Crime as a public health issue" - https://www.nclm.org/resourcelibrary/Shared%20Documents/Southern%20City/JanFeb2018.pdf CitiesSpeak, "Leaving mass incarceration behind: How cities are turning to a public health approach to violence" - https://citiesspeak.org/2016/09/26/leaving-mass-incarceration-behind-how-cities-are-turning-to-a-public-health-approach-to-violence/ Daniel Latorre - http://www.thewisecity.org/

Preview of Episode 45 Feb 28, 2018

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A preview of Episode 45

EP 44: Chief Storyteller Feb 20, 2018

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There's a lot of exploration on part of local government for better community engagement. With such a diversity of communication and preference out there, it seems pretty complex. But what if it isn't? What if the simplest idea -- even one that hasn't been tried before -- is the key? On this episode we check out Detroit, Mich., and its novel creation of a "chief storyteller" who has editorial autonomy to tell otherwise overlooked stories from within the city and its neighborhoods, on behalf of its government. And then we check in with the City of Salisbury, N.C., to learn about its award-winning answer to feedback from residents who said the city's government staff was disconnected from the people. This episode has ideas. Aaron Foley - https://aaronkfoley.com/about/ The Neighborhoods - http://www.theneighborhoods.org Aaron Foley on GovLove - http://elgl.org/2018/01/12/podcast-detroits-chief-storyteller-aaron-foley/ Southern City magazine issue with the Salisbury initiative - https://www.nclm.org/resourcelibrary/Shared%20Documents/Southern%20City/NovDec2017.pdf

Preview of Episode 44 Feb 14, 2018

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A preview of Episode 44, out on Feb. 20.

EP 43: Wise Cities (And Smart City Ethics) Feb 06, 2018

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It's an age of big dreams and cool feats in the space of smart cities -- tech-forward, super-efficient places of living and business, with advanced data-gathering, analytics and automation that save time and money and make life and government good. But the rise of smart-cities too is giving rise to conversations about ethics, inclusion, consent, and how "smart" these solutions really are in their effects on everyday people. On this episode we hang out with Daniel Latorre, who wants to shift the focus from smart cities to "wise cities" -- a different approach to civic innovation and problem solving that decentralizes technology in favor of human beings. He identifies the shortcomings he sees in tech-centric planning, and then gives us a takeaway checkbox of questions to ask when embarking on such projects and planning to ensure that the affected people are kept at the center of focus. Daniel Latorre - https://twitter.com/danlatorre The Wise City - https://www.thewisecity.org Laura Bliss, CityLab, "When a Tech Giant Plays Waterfront Developer" - https://www.citylab.com/design/2018/01/when-a-tech-giant-plays-waterfront-developer/549590/ Bianca Wylie, Medium, "Report from Executive Committee on Sidewalk Toronto. Plus a Word About Consent, Consultation, and Innovation." - https://medium.com/@biancawylie/report-from-executive-committee-on-sidewalk-toronto-93bbd2bb557f Sidewalk Toronto - https://sidewalktoronto.ca Episode 38, "Being Careful About Smart Cities and Civic Tech" - https://soundcloud.com/municipalequation/ep-38-being-careful-about-smart-cities-and-civic-tech-and-the-best-fictional-mayors Episode 18, "The Smart Cities Primer" - https://soundcloud.com/municipalequation/ep-18

Preview of Episode 43 Jan 30, 2018

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A preview of the Feb. 6, 2018 episode.

EP 42: Banning the 'M' Word Jan 23, 2018

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Is government wrong in the way it attempts to reach out to young people? Does it work against its own interest when it tries to "have a talk" or come to terms with millennials? Is "millennials" maybe a bad or condescending word? Increasingly, people are saying yes to all three, and that it's high time we overhaul the conversation. On this episode we talk with observers including a generations expert, a national-level local government group and a "millennial mayor" to explore what we can do differently than generically label 20- to 30-year-olds as a disengaged enigma more interested in wasting money on ukeleles than saving up for homes and retirement. Matt Thornhill - https://www.sirhq.com/matt-thornhill/ ELGL - http://elgl.org Mayor Ian Baltutis - http://www.burlingtonnc.gov/139/Ian-Baltutis-Mayor "Wall Street Journal admits to 'millennials misstep'" - http://mashable.com/2017/12/05/wall-street-journal-bans-millennials-snotty-term-disdain/#5KZUDB0sTiqf "I Have to Ask You: Is Local Government Inviting to Young Professionals?" - http://elgl.org/2017/12/05/i-have-to-ask-you/ "Millennials are more than 4 times more likely to do this at their desk than baby boomers" - http://komonews.com/station/question-answer/millennials-are-more-than-4-times-more-likely-to-do-this-at-their-desk-than-baby-boomers To Measure the 'Uber Effect,' Cities Get Creative - https://www.citylab.com/transportation/2018/01/to-measure-the-uber-effect-cities-get-creative/550295/?utm_source=citylab-daily&silverid=MzEwMTkyMjY2NjU2S0 Politico, "Mayors to Young America: Can We Talk?" - https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2017/10/30/mayors-poll-millennials-cities-urban-policy-215765

Preview of Episode 42 Jan 16, 2018

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A preview of the Jan. 23 episode.

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