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May 2019
MT Community Development Update
Planning continues for the next set of National Public Issues Education Consortium webinar series' on the topics of community leadership, social investing and participatory budgeting. If you are interested in more information about the group or webinars, please email me.
I'm pleased to announce that some 25 MSU Extension colleagues have joined a Diversity and Inclusion planning group that was newly-formed to discuss diversity and inclusion topics both for our own professional development and for community educational outreach. Our first event is a Safe Zone Training to be held May 13 on the MSU campus. If you would like more information about this event or if you would like to be added to our new list serve, please email me.
-Paul Lachapelle MSU Community Development Specialist
Reports & Resources
Many Across the Globe Are Dissatisfied With How Democracy Is Working
Pew Global | READ STORY
Anger at political elites, economic dissatisfaction and anxiety about rapid social changes have fueled political upheaval in regions around the world in recent years. Anti-establishment leaders, parties and movements have emerged on both the right and left of the political spectrum, in some cases challenging fundamental norms and institutions of liberal democracy. Organizations from Freedom House to the Economist Intelligence Unit to V-Dem have documented global declines in the health of democracy.
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100 years of tax brackets, in one chart
Vox | READ STORY
The US currently has seven tax brackets -- and some Republicans, including Donald Trump and former House Speaker Paul Ryan -- have said that they believe that's too many. It's been a common talking point for Republicans in presidential elections. Along with Trump, Jeb Bush, Chris Christie. Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Ben Carson, and Rand Paul all expressed a desire to reduce the number of brackets. And they said it was because it would simplify the tax code.
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Since 2008, Only High-Income People Have Seen Their Housing Costs Drop
City Lab | READ STORY
The 1 percent may be hoarding America's wealth, but the 25 percent are hoarding its housing opportunity. That's according to an Apartment List analysis of changing incomes and housing rates in the U.S. It found that the current state of the housing market both exacerbates and mirrors the economic inequality widening at the national and local level. Incomes are growing fastest for the country's wealthiest, but at least for the top quarter of earners, their housing costs are also falling fastest. Meanwhile, it's Americans in the bottom 10 percent of incomes whose rents and mortgages are getting more expensive.
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High County GDP No Guarantee of Growth
Headwaters Economics | READ STORY
High worker productivity occurs across diverse counties and sectors but is not always connected with population growth and opportunity. The Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) recently released data on gross domestic product (GDP) by U.S. county. Looking at counties with high GDP per worker (defined as greater than $100,000 for the purposes of this analysis), we found several interesting patterns.
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Explore local news habits in your city with our new interactive
Pew Research | READ STORY
Local news is an integral part of American communities, providing information on everything from local politics and government to local sports and schools. A new Pew Research Center survey conducted Oct. 15-Nov. 8, 2018, among 34,897 U.S. adults examines how Americans get local news and their attitudes toward their local news media. In addition to results at the national level, the scope of the survey makes it possible to search for, examine and download findings about the local news environments of 99 distinct areas across the United States through an online, interactive feature.
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6 Pressing Questions About Beef and Climate Change, Answered
World Resources Institute - READ STORY
Beef and climate change are in the news these days, from cows' alleged high-methane farts (fact check: they're actually mostly high-methane burps) to comparisons with cars and airplanes (fact check: the world needs to reduce emissions from fossil fuels and agriculture to sufficiently rein in global warming). And as with so many things in the public sphere lately, it's easy for the conversation to get polarized. Animal-based foods are nutritious and especially important to livelihoods and diets in developing countries, but they are also inefficient resource users. Beef production is becoming more efficient, but forests are still being cut down for new pasture. People say they want to eat more plants, but meat consumption is still rising.
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Upcoming Events
Federal Reserve System Community Development Research Conference
May 9-10, 2019
Washington, D.C.
Sponsor: Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis
2019 Habitat X Summer National Conference
June 12-14
Bozeman, MT
Sponsors: CLICK HERE for more information
CDS 2019 Annual International Conference
July
14-17, 2019
Columbia, Missouri
Sponsor: Community Development Society
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Grants, Awards, Jobs
Community Policing Development Grant
Deadline: May 28, 2019
Funder: U.S. Department of Justice
Humanities Initiatives at Tribal Colleges and Universities
Deadline: July 12, 2019
Funder: National Endowment for the Humanities
Monarch Butterfly and Pollinators Conservation Fund
Deadline: July 18, 2019
Funder: National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
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National / International News
The cost of generating renewable energy has fallen - a lot
May 6, 2019
World Economic Forum
1 Million Animal And Plant Species Are At Risk Of Extinction, U.N. Report Says
May 6, 2019
NPR
Amazon says small business owners earn $90,000 a year from selling in its stores
May 7, 2019
USA Today
Montana News
Montana DPHHS reminds public to take precautions against hantavirus
May 5, 2019
KPAX
Blackfeet Nation wants to create its own national park in Montana
May 6, 2019
Oregon Live
NorthWestern, Billings reach agreement on largest solar project in Montana
May 6, 2019
Billings Gazette