Labor & Economy
Privatizing Climate Change
We already know that reckless outsourcing has negative impacts on the local community. But did you know it can also contribute to climate change? In a new op-ed I just published in Next City, Roosevelt University Professor Stephanie Farmer and I explore how poorly structured public-private partnership (P3) deals threaten long-term environmental sustainability.
To do it, we return to an old standby: Chicago’s parking meter debacle. Plans to build rapid bus lines and bike lanes have been put on hold in the Windy City because these projects would “compete” with the Morgan Stanley-backed corporate consortium that now runs the city’s 36,000 parking meters. And like so many other long-term outsourcing contracts, competition is a big no-no.
Chicago taxpayers would have to reimburse the consortium for lost revenue if they build projects that reduce traffic and carbon emissions – like bike lanes and bus rapid transit lines. In other words, tomorrow’s environmental sustainability has taken a backseat to today’s corporate profits.
Read more about the details of the parking meter contract and its effects on the environment here, and please be sure to share.
All the Facets of an Artist’s Life in ‘All the Beauty and the Bloodshed’
‘We Did It!’ Street Vendors Across L.A. County Celebrate a Hard-Fought Victory
New NASA Camera Spots Methane ‘Super Emitter’ in New Mexico
California Climate Plan Scraps New Gas Plants, Expands Carbon Capture for Fossil Fuels
‘She Said’ Recounts the Dogged Reporting Behind the Weinstein Story
Kari Lake’s Defeat in Arizona Came Despite Backing From Corporate America
Despite Progress Under Newsom, Full Health Care Access Remains Elusive for Californians
Why Walmart Workers Are Still Broke
How Do You Cover a Present Nothing Like the Past?
17 Million California Renters Have No Pull in Sacramento. A New Caucus Aims to Fix That
17 Million California Renters Have No Pull in Sacramento. A New Caucus Aims to Fix That
Where Pennsylvania Candidates Fetterman and Oz, Shapiro and Mastriano Stand on Climate Issues
In High Poverty L.A. Neighborhoods, the Poor Pay More for Internet Service That Delivers Less
Dorian Warren on Why Armchair Pundits Got It Wrong in Predicting a Red Wave
In Fracking’s ‘Ground Zero,’ Pennsylvania Residents Feel Left Behind
L.A.’s Incoming Controller Kenneth Mejia Vows to Take on Cronyism at City Hall. Will It Let Him?
Playing Both Sides Now at Upcoming Global Climate Talks
How Voter Suppression and Gerrymandering by the Texas GOP Derails Environmental Justice
South Los Angeles Parents Say Charter Schools Usurp Campus Resources
Business Groups Falsely Claim L.A. Affordable Housing Measure Will Raise Property Taxes
Kaiser Therapists: Strike Is About Complying With the Law
‘What They Need Is Someone at Their Side’
Kaiser Therapists Say Patient Neglect Compels Them to Strike
Excavating the Future: Roberto Flores on Community Self-Determination
Excavating the Future: Odilia Romero on How Indigenous Communities Confronted COVID
Excavating the Future: Author Erin Aubry Kaplan on Gentrification in Black Los Angeles
Excavating the Future: Black Lives Matter’s Melina Abdullah on Redefining Public Safety
Excavating the Future: ‘We Belong on Both Sides of the Border’ Says MacArthur Fellow
The Aftermath of The Huntington Beach Oil Spill
Thousands March to Protect Voting Rights
-
Politics & GovernmentNovember 14, 202217 Million California Renters Have No Pull in Sacramento. A New Caucus Aims to Fix That
-
The SlickOctober 28, 2022Where Pennsylvania Candidates Fetterman and Oz, Shapiro and Mastriano Stand on Climate Issues
-
Cyber WallsOctober 28, 2022In High Poverty L.A. Neighborhoods, the Poor Pay More for Internet Service That Delivers Less
-
A Thousand Cuts: Democracy Under AttackNovember 9, 2022Dorian Warren on Why Armchair Pundits Got It Wrong in Predicting a Red Wave
-
The SlickNovember 7, 2022In Fracking’s ‘Ground Zero,’ Pennsylvania Residents Feel Left Behind
-
Politics & GovernmentNovember 10, 2022L.A.’s Incoming Controller Kenneth Mejia Vows to Take on Cronyism at City Hall. Will It Let Him?
-
Steal This (Climate) StoryNovember 1, 2022Playing Both Sides Now at Upcoming Global Climate Talks
-
The SlickNovember 2, 2022How Voter Suppression and Gerrymandering by the Texas GOP Derails Environmental Justice