Wednesday, September 27, 2017

Distressed Communities in US

Distressed Communities Index map and data show a fragmented economy with nearly 52.3 Americans living in economically distressed communities.  Read the report-click here. View the map-click here.

Note: the link I'm pointing to is to an updated 2021 map. 

In articles on this blog and the Tutor/Mentor blog I show how people can zoom into maps like this to focus on specific areas. 

Below is an example. I've zoomed into the Springfield, Illinois area.


If you run your mouse over the map data tables pop up showing a "distress score". For instance, the rust colored area of Springfield has a 91.5 distress score with a 26% poverty rate and 25% adults not working rate. 

People from throughout the Springfield area should be creating stories using map-views like this with a "what are we going to do about it?" set of questions.  Only when enough people are concerned will anything happen.

Tuesday, September 19, 2017

Mapping Indiana After School Programs

There's a lot to like about the map/directory on the Indiana Afterschool Network web site. They not only are collecting location information, but through surveys and data analysis are providing an overview of that information.  Take some time to browse the site.

The 2018 Indiana Summit on Out-of-School-Learning will be held in Indianapolis on Monday, April 9, 2018. Out-of-state programs might find this useful.


Monday, September 18, 2017

Mapping Terrorist Attacks Around World

This is another ESRI story map, showing terrorist attacks around the world in 2018.

Teams of students, volunteers and researchers in US cities could create similar maps to show neighborhood violence and the availability (or lack) of  youth jobs, tutoring and mentoring support services.

Mapping Segregation in Washington, DC

This image is from an ESRI story-map, showing the growth of racial segregation in Washington, DC.

Take a look at this, and other articles on this blog, where I've shared maps focusing on race, poverty and segregation.

Monday, September 11, 2017

Pain and suffering throughout the world - how do we respond?

I have been watching the daily news briefs following hurricanes in Texas, Florida and Mexico, along with daily shootings that take lives of young people in Chicago and other cities.  Yesterday I did a search to see if anyone had been mapping locations of natural disasters throughout the world.  I found the map below, showing events in 2014, on this United Nations Disaster Prevention resource page.

This map only shows natural disasters. If wars, terrorism and other man-made disasters were plotted on the map, or added as an overlay, we'd see a lot more pain in some parts of the world, but not much more than what's on the map now, in other parts of the world. If poverty overlays were added, we'd see that much of the man-made and natural disasters hit people hardest in high poverty area. These are areas where people have the fewest resources to rebuild their own lives and communities.

With so many bad things happening, how can anyone find a meaningful way to respond?  I encourage you to visit this article, which I posted over the weekend on the Tutor/Mentor blog. It includes the graphic shown below.



Look at the slanted white line in the middle of this figure-8 graphic.  This represents information, such as the UN Disaster Prevention site, or the Tutor/Mentor web library, which people can use to learn more about any of these problems, learn what some people are doing in different places to solve the problem, and find places where they might get involved with time, talent and dollars.  It also represents the role of intermediaries, who help people connect with this information and  help them  understand how to apply it.

I first used this ENOUGH list in 2007 after seeing a newspaper headline following a shooting in Chicago, where a talking head said "Enough is Enough".  This is a list of steps anyone can follow to become involved.

A couple of months ago I updated it in a video that you can find here.  The first step is educate yourself, and the second is educate your network. Use the information made available by myself an others to know more about some of these problems and to find ways to use your time, talent and dollars to become part of the solution.

Related article: "I'm up to my neck in alligators. How do I drain the swamp"  click here

I've never claimed to have the solution to any of these problems. I only offer a learning path that might lead to solutions if more people begin to use it.  Want to connect with me? Visit this page to see social media pages where you can find me.

Update 7-4- 2018 - network analysis showing migration patterns around the world. click here

Update 2-20-2019 - Migration Policy Institute site is an in-depth resource for information about this crisis. Click here

Update 3-4-2018 - "The 10 shocking humanitarian crises you probably haven't heard of" - plenty of pain throughout the world. click here

Update 3-13/2019 - Visit this #investinhumanity page on Twitter and be reminded of the many places in the world where there is daily pain and suffering.

Update 12-11/2021 - Global Conflicts in 2021 - click here