The Better Communities Podcast

While the final decision remains in the hands of Major League Baseball, there is notable political momentum building signaling Portland is serious about securing a baseball team.  

If baseball retur…

The Pacific Northwest is in the middle of a renewable energy boom.

State legislatures, policy leaders, and voters have aggressively set carbon reduction targets over the last decade – paving the wa…

America’s downtowns are at a crossroads.

Many urban economic centers are struggling to get back to pre-pandemic norms. In addition to an increasingly hybrid workforce, many downtowns are confronting …

It often feels like the Portland-Vancouver metro region has become bogged down in a culture of political stagnation. We have big ideas. We seek to solve big problems like climate change and social ju…

Change is hard.

In 1973, Oregon Governor Tom McCall created a pioneering land use policy focused on preserving farmland, reducing pollution and preventing urban sprawl. At the time, it was a visionar…

Advocacy and political activism have become part of the social media ecosystem. Pew Research data shows roughly 76% of Americans say that social media makes people think they are making a difference …

2020 was a tough year. And a global pandemic, a shuttered economy, and the social justice movement made it a uniquely tough election year for opinion pollsters.

Election night seemed like a repeat of…

We are often told society today is more divided than ever. But what is driving this division?

A number of factors are fueling this narrative of “us versus them” in our communities. Ideology, race, …

What role does social media play in our understanding of truth? How can journalists utilize the digital age to build civic engagement? And what role does the consumer play in sustaining a trustworthy…