Archive for the 'General News' Category
Tuesday, April 28th, 2009
CNT was recognized as one of only eight organizations from around the world to receive the prestigious John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Award for Creative and Effective Institutions. CNT has pioneered new approaches to urban problems that use resources more efficiently, reduce costs for households and communities, and improve the environment. The award recognizes organizations that are “highly creative and effective, have made an extraordinary impact in their fields and are helping to address some of the world’s most challenging problems.”
“The MacArthur Foundation has a long history of supporting organizations around the world like these that demonstrate the creativity, drive, and vision to make the world more just and peaceful,” said MacArthur President Jonathan Fanton. “These organizations may be small but their impact is tremendous. From protecting human rights to improving urban neighborhoods to conserving biodiversity, they are blazing new paths and finding fresh solutions to some of our most difficult challenges.”
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Friday, April 10th, 2009
Two of CNT’s leaders are being recognized this Spring for their work in changing the urban landscape in Chicago and around the world.
CNT’s President and Founder Scott Bernstein is being recognized as Chicago region’s public interest hero for making a significant positive change to the region over the last 30 years. On May 1, 2009, Scott will receive a “BPI’s 40 Who’ve Made a Difference Award.” Scott has been a true champion of cities. His vision that “place matters” has made change happen, from the formation of the city of Chicago’s energy code, to piloting Location Efficient Mortgages, to putting forth an urban agenda that stresses that housing and transportation affordability as the key to developing sustainable and livable cities. From his early days as an organizer on Chicago’s west side to testifying in front of Congressional committees, Scott has worked to improve the quality of life for all urban dwellers. For over 30 years, Scott has led the charge in demonstrating that cities and their people are assets in addressing economic and environmental challenges.
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Wednesday, April 8th, 2009
The Illinois Smart Grid Initiative (ISGI)’s new report, “Empowering Consumers through a Modern Electric Grid”, explores the potential benefits of a modernized electric grid and maps a policy path for achieving those benefits for consumers and the economy. At a time when both President Obama’s Administration and Congress have prioritized electric grid modernization and the jobs potential it holds, Illinois is well positioned to become the national leader in the adoption of a truly consumer-focused smart grid.
Illinois residents face $6-11 billion annually in costs related to power outages and power disruptions, with many communities experiencing outage levels far above the national average. The ISGI Report outlines how a smart grid can fundamentally improve reliability and efficiency, integrate renewable energy on the local level, and empower consumers to take charge of and reduce their electricity bills–while saving energy and reducing carbon emissions.
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Tuesday, March 31st, 2009
Their proposal to increase transit ridership and revenue in the Chicago region by implementing a transit pass program earned CNT interns, Olympia Moy and Will Glassberg, “runner-ups” in Chicagoland Chamber’s contest to generate ideas for how to achieve a billion transit rides a year in the Chicago region.
The Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce’s InnovateNow initiative, in partnership with InnoCentive, has chosen the winners of a global open-innovation challenge aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions released by automobiles by increasing local transit ridership to 1 billion rides a year. The challenge generated more than 125 proposals from locations as far away as Kenya, Australia and Japan.
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Wednesday, March 18th, 2009
Today and tomorrow, the House Appropriations Committee, Subcommittee on Transportation and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will listen to Secretary of Transportation and Secretary of HUD, Ray LaHood and Shaun Donovan, respectively, as well as a panel of experts, including Congress for the New Urbanism President, John Norquist, explain the importance of transit oriented development and green building practices in creating more affordable and livable communities.
Listen to the webcast, Livable Communities, Transit Oriented Development, and Incorporating Green Building Practices into Federal Housing and Transportation Policy at 1:00 PM CST today (Secretaries LaHood and Donovan) and tomorrow’s (panel of experts) at 9:00 AM CST.
More information:
Secretary Donovan’s testimony and HUD Press Release.
HUD and DOT Partnership: Sustainable Communities Press Release
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Friday, March 13th, 2009
On Wednesday evening, along with other three journalists who, like their predecessor Studs Terkel, “go the extra mile to report news”, Community Media Workshop Founder and Director, Thom Clark, was honored with a 2009 Studs Terkel Award. Thom founded the Community Media Workshop to provide communications coaching to grassroots groups, arts organizations, and other nonprofits to diversify the voices in the news, on the Web, and other public forums.
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Thursday, January 22nd, 2009
CNT was thrilled to see Barack Obama, a Chicago community organizer and former CNT Board member, take the Presidential Oath of Office on Tuesday. As the first President since Theodore Roosevelt grounded in urban living, we look forward to a new direction in Federal policy that moves our country in a sustainable direction that both improves the economy for everyone and protects the environment.
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Wednesday, December 17th, 2008
For 30 years, CNT has been working to develop sustainable and affordable urban communities. And we have achieved many successful results.Thanks to the support of many individuals like you, we have developed innovative solutions that build stronger and more sustainable local economies and curtail global warming. Over the next year, CNT will continue to demonstrate and promote innovative solutions - from car-sharing and energy efficient affordable rental housing, to increased accessibility of transit and the development of compact, efficient urban communities - to an increasingly receptive world.
But we can’t do it without you. During this season of giving, we ask you to remember CNT and the outstanding work we are doing and to make a donation to our 2008 Annual Fund. Click here to make a contribution.
Read about our 2008 highlights and take a look at some photos from the past year.
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Friday, December 12th, 2008
There is no doubt that Chicago and the region are part of a global community. The future of our government, economy, culture, built and natural environments will be determined by our connections to the rest of the globe. But our success in the world depends on the people who live here. So who’s leading the way? Who are the unsung visionaries in your community who are helping to create Chicago’s future and putting us on the global map?
Chicago Public Radio wants to know who you think fits the bill. Visit www.chicagopublicradio.org/chicagomatters by January 14th to nominate your pick. Over the next year, Chicago Matters: Growing Forward will introduce you to Chicago’s top 10 global visionaries. Your choice could be one of them! Read more about the Chicago Matters series.
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Wednesday, November 12th, 2008
CNT joins people all around the world to mourn the loss of Studs Terkel. CNT has fond memories of Studs, most especially at an event we hosted in honor of him back in 1991, “A Toast to Studs Terkel”. The event, held at the Bismarck Hotel (now the Cadillac Theatre) hosted an array of admirers; Pete Seeger, Richie Havens, and CNT Staff sat around checkerboard-adorned tables (in honor of Studs favorite shirt pattern) and listened to Studs talk about his life of making interesting stories out of everyday lives. Among the hundreds of attendees, a German exchange student that CNT was hosting was most thrilled to learn about and meet Studs, and left that night a fan. It was a lovely affair that many current CNT staff still remember fondly. We still hang the red checkered banner, from the event, proudly in our office.
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