Ice Cream, Chocolate, Coffee, and Beer
Take ingredients and blend, for small-town synergy.
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Articles & News
Why Do Tech Companies End Up Where They Are?
"You get some clusters, and some stand-alone firms far from anyone else. But rarely anything in-between."
Luck? Planning? Karma? The Elements of a Small Town’s High-Tech Success
A software company grows in an unlikely setting. "Why here?" we ask the founders.
An American Dream: A YMCA with a Circus
For those of you who have always dreamed of running off to join the circus, here is a close second: move to Redlands, California, and join the YMCA. Not only…
On the Character of a Community: What Local Narratives Emphasize, and Leave Out
The role of universities, and our un-loved public efforts.
A City’s Turning Points
The steps toward success, or failure, and why our understanding of them matters.
A School With a Sense of Place
We arrived at The Grove School in Redlands, California, just before their winter break, at about noon and right in time for lunch. The Grove School is a public charter…
From the Tree to the Table: The Journey of a Brave Little Orange
The surprising complexity behind even the simplest-seeming aspects of modern life.
On the Limits, but Also the Power, of Local Narratives
The stories cities tell about themselves, and the difference that makes.
A 4th-Generation Orange Farmer, on Why He Sticks With It
"I was born in the grove. I was raised in the grove. I developed an intense dislike of farming in the grove." Yet after 20 years around the world he has come back.
Inside the Packing House
Viewing an ordinary fruit with new respect.
Reports From the Road: Hangar 24 and a Student-Run Farm
The variety of America, chapter 12,825
When Rails Make the Difference, From Down East to the Southwest
The loss of rail service into a small Maine town has been crippling
American Futures Heads West
Back on the road and in the air.
‘Springbok, Cleared for Landing’: More on the Language of the Skies
[See update* below.] On our recent flight home in our small plane from Eastport ME, to Washington DC, we were listening, as we often do, to the air traffic controllers (ATC). They…
Building a Museum: Report From Down East
A Maine couple defies the odds -- and helps to build community in the process.