by admin | May 13, 2020 | Books, Chicago, Coronavirus, Healthcare, Public health
It started last Thursday evening after dinner. By 8 p.m., suffering shivers and chills and fatigue, I retreated to bed, unsure what was affecting me but hoping a solid night of sleep might provide some respite. I was near the end of two busy weeks. The previous week,...
by admin | Apr 11, 2020 | Activism, Aging, Chicago, Coronavirus, Disability, Disaster, Economics, Environment, Government, Healthcare, Medical, New Orleans, Public health, Public policy, Resilience, Science, Transportation, Urban Planning
On April 29, I will be moderating “Demanding Equity: Planning for Post-Disaster Recovery,” a 45-minute session in a special three-day virtual conference of the American Planning Association, NPC20 @HOME. The online conference is an attempt to replace the experience of...
by admin | Mar 30, 2020 | Aging, Careers, Chicago, Child Welfare, Coronavirus, Disaster, Education, Emergency Management, Healthcare, Medical, Parks, Personal health, Public health, Resilience, Travel, Urban Planning, Volunteerism, Weather, Writing
I miss my gym already, closed just two weeks ago. There was a profusion of equipment to keep anyone in shape, whether you were working on legs, biceps, core, cardio, some combination, whatever. Here at home, I have small barbells, some ankle weights, and perhaps most...
by admin | Mar 25, 2020 | Aging, Chicago, Coronavirus, Disaster, Government, Healthcare, Homeless, Medical, Public health, Public safety, Resilience, Urban Planning
Resilience has become almost a buzzword with regard to how communities handle adversity and disasters, albeit a very useful buzzword. It focuses our attention on how we can better prepare for and cope with such events. The question of the moment is how the concept of...
by admin | Mar 20, 2020 | Aging, Business, Chicago, Coronavirus, Disaster, Emergency Management, Healthcare, Medical, Parks, Public health, Public policy, Public safety, Restaurants, Sports, Urban Planning
If the doctor’s office had not called, I would not even have been here writing. I would perhaps have been on the CTA Blue Line on the way to my appointment, or more likely walking from the train station to his office. But they called less than an hour before the...
by admin | Oct 29, 2019 | Activism, Books, Chicago, Christianity, Civil rights, Crime, History, Identity, Immigration, Personal history, Public safety, Racism, Religion, Terrorism, Volunteerism
Last week was for me an eventful time, including a four-hour trip to Dubuque, Iowa, on Thursday for the Growing Sustainable Communities conference, an event the city sponsors every year. I spoke in a session that afternoon, October 24, on community planning for...