Chicago Mayor Richard Daley launched a new Green Taxi Program Friday that will encourage the taxi industry to purchase cost-effective hybrid and alternative fuel vehicles. More green cabs will help the city move closer to reaching carbon emission goals set out in its Chicago Climate Action Plan, while also improving air quality.
Tech job openings rose 82% in Detroit, with companies like Google and Ford hiring engineers in droves. And, college grads in Detroit say they are set on an immediate career path upon graduation.
More suburban downtowns are burdened with empty storefronts, but a growing number of Chicago area communities are encouraging artists to dress up the vacant buildings' windows with art under glass.
Newsweek rated American cities on their job creation, sustainability, livability and transportation-infrastructure, to cull a list of the nation's top performing metropolises. And, the 10 cities topping the list represent diverse areas of the country.
Created one year ago by a 61-year-old librarian who became homeless, a large red tricycle that carries a small library through the city of São Paulo, Brazil encourages reading among people who live on the streets and cannot otherwise access libraries typically requiring ID and proof of residency.
The Mayor's Challenge is a contest run by Bloomberg Philanthropies to find the best ideas bubbling out of our cities--from data mining to turning foreclosed houses into urban farms. New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg is funding the best ideas of local governments using the competition that will result in the winner taking home $5 million and four runners-up getting $1 million each.
You can still see more than 10,000 coin-operated phones around New York City today. What seems a relic of the past in this age of mobile technology, became a vital link in an emergency for those who had no power to charge their devices during Hurricane Sandy. Mayor Michael Bloomberg launched a design contest to reinvent the lowly payphone and bring it into the 21st Century.
Officials in Paris this week looking for a greener way to keep its lawns mowed, replaced the fleet of noisy gas-guzzling lawnmowers with a small flock of sheep that are grazing the city's open spaces. The scheme also cuts down on the need for chemical herbicides.
A University of Brighton student has developed a safety device that projects a bright green laser image of a bike onto the road ahead – alerting motorists to their presence.
A report by the American Lung Association finds that air pollution has fallen to its lowest levels since the group began collecting data in 2000. The nonprofit organization credits the Clean Air Act for the cleanup of major air pollution sources, such as coal-fired power plants and the fleet of older, dirtier trucks.
On the hottest day of the summer last year in New York City, a white roof was measured to be 42 degrees (F) cooler than the traditional black roof it was being compared to by NASA scientists studying the city's unprecedented effort to brighten rooftops and cool down the city.
Two graduate students are getting global attention after creating an "invisible bike helmet" - actually a mini airbag designed to protect bicyclists' heads from injuries.
A quarter of a century ago, Washington DC had a fearsome reputation for crack abuse and rampant gun violence - it was the "murder capital" of the US. But now, once-blighted neighborhoods close to the centre of the capital are thriving.
In the first week of Seattle's bike-share program, the 500 green bikes were rented around 4,000 times with 1,450 cyclists signing up as member, according to Pronto Cycle Share's executive director.
With almost a thousand newly trained government troops, augmented by thousands of African peacekeepers, Mogadishu, the war torn capital of Somalia, and former jewel of the Indian Ocean, has a newfound sense of liberation these days, since al Qaeda-linked rebels were forced out last year. The economy has recovered somewhat from the civil unrest, and the white-sand beaches, among the most beautiful in the world, are now seeing the return of swarms of swimmers to the turquoise waters.
The top four healthiest cities for 2007 according to the US Centers for Disease Control are: Lincoln, Nebraska, Fargo, North Dakota, Boulder, Colorado, and Burlington, Vermont.
Head west and south toward affluent towns with lively culture if you want to find the healthiest and happiest cities in America.
After Lisa Fitzpatrick found her street blocked by police tape when someone her daughter knew had been killed, she knew she had to do something. She quit her job, downsized her life and created the APEX Youth Center (Always Pursuing Excellence). Since 2010, more than 460 children and youth have come for the free pizza and fun, and in the process learned conflict resolution skills.
Before she died last September, Lelia Boroughs, 84, told her attorney she had no family to whom to leave her estate. So she crafted her will to leave her $400,000 condo to the city to turn into a homeless shelter.
In one of Chicago's most dangerous neighborhoods, one grandmother has opened her door and invited gang members to come inside. She hoped that by providing them with support and a place to go, she would ensure that her own daughter and other kids would be safe and able to focus on their future instead of gangs.
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