National Civic Review articles from September 2007

National Civic Review archives from September 2007

Note from the editor.(Editorial)
September 22, 2007... We did something new at the annual All-America City Awards in 2007. We held a series of "innovation forums" for delegates from the finalist communities. These were small sessions with two or three presenters on a variety of subjects. In a...

Large-scale citizen engagement and the rebuilding of New Orleans: a case study.(Case study)
September 22, 2007... Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, leaving hundreds of thousands without homes and dispersing residents across the country. The storm also exposed historic tensions of race and class, and it produced deep mistrust of public officials and...

Rebuilding community.
September 22, 2007... Given my experience of living and working in the South Bronx during its devastation and revitalization, I have often been asked if I see lessons that can be applied to today's devastation in New Orleans. Comparisons are tempting. In New...

Snapping back: what makes regions resilient?
September 22, 2007... In the summer of 1967, more than sixty U.S. urban areas experienced civil disorder and race-based riots marked by physical destruction, criminality, and financial loss. In eight cases--Milwaukee, Rochester (New York), Detroit, Pontiac...

Rationalizations and repercussions: evaluating a hybrid at-large and ward electoral system.
September 22, 2007... Covington, Kentucky, a community of about forty-three thousand residents in the Cincinnati metro area, recently changed from an at-large system of representation to a ward-based system. Unlike most cities with ward systems, however, Covington...

Leave no voter behind: seeking 100 percent voter registration and effective civic education.
September 22, 2007... In a well-functioning democracy, voting should be protected as a fundamental citizenship right and responsibility. Accurately registering every eligible voter to vote is a necessary step toward protecting this right, yet nearly three in ten...

The accountability trap.
September 22, 2007... If the "new public management" theory is right, organizations that measure their performance and report their results should be more accountable to their customers. In the case of government, the citizen is the customer. The closer the citizen...

Oakland's neighborly lawyers.(LOCAL GOVERNMENT)(Interview)
September 22, 2007... Imagine a cross between the Peace Corps and a legal aid society; that's about what you get with the Neighborhood Law Corps in Oakland, California. A private foundation operating out of the city attorney's office fields a team of dedicated...

Make space at the table.(CIVIC ENGAGEMENT)
September 22, 2007... Several new studies point to a growing commitment to social responsibility on the part of young adults, with youth volunteering on the rise and an increasing number of students going to the polls. Civic organizations should seize this moment to...