‘Catch Them Doing Something Good.’
In communities large and small across the country, citizens are finding new ways to work together to meet the challenges of this time.
Town: District of Columbia
21 posts
Reading Banned Books Out Loud
When books themselves come under assault, public read-outs give new voice to the choir of believers. A note from the nation’s capital during Banned Books Week.
Discussing the ‘Our Towns’ Journey on The News Project
Deb and Jim Fallows explore the ongoing story of Our Towns with Andrew McKeever on Greater Northshire Access Television's ‘The News Project: In Studio’.
Carbon offset pact will put solar on dozens of Habitat for Humanity homes
The District of Columbia-based American Institute of Architects is offsetting greenhouse gas emissions from a major renovation with a $500,000 donation that will cover the cost of solar panels on an estimated 72 homes.
What’s the Quickest Way to Make a Big Difference, Through a Little Step? It’s Right There in the Backyard.
Change comes slowly, then all at once.
Another Look Into the ‘Heart’ of America
First, a geographic perspective. Then, the country's struggle to recognize ways in which it is changing—and might be improving.
‘When Gown Embraces Town’: Two Stories from Indiana
What is happening in the 'Middletown' of Muncie, and why it matters.
‘Mapping Common Ground’: What I learned this summer in San Diego
New reason to “think globally, and act locally.”
Why Story Maps Matter
People understand the world through stories. People absorb their stories in ever-expanding ways. Here is a preview of a powerful, emerging form of digital story-telling, which we’ll be using frequently in this space.
Cooperation, Calm, and Competence: This Is How It Sounds
In the skies over Dulles airport last week, pilots and controllers gave an example of grace under pressure.
Bringing a City Together: How Leaf Blowers Did It
This is the story of how citizens worked together toward a common goal in Washington, D.C. The story involves a change on the local level with significant, positive implications for other parts of the country and beyond.
Examining Change at Global, Local Levels
How do global changes affect us on the local level, and vice versa?
‘Renewal’ at All Levels — The Personal to the Global. An Urgent Conversation with Two Leaders of the Movement
What can a conversation about 'Renewal' teach us about climate change?
Brimming with a Sense of Possibility and Positivity with the Wind Finally at Our Backs Again
“Our Towns” Reader Response Roundup features film screening feedback, a unique effort to support libraries nationwide, and national perceptions being addressed at the local level.
‘Our Towns’ Viewer Response Roundup
Viewers respond to 'Our Towns' HBO documentary.
Local Efforts in a Time of Extreme Global Stress
The theme in this “Our Towns” space has been, and remains, the sources of vitality, practicality, generosity, and renewal in local-level America, despite bitter polarization in national-level politics. The series began almost…