Voices of the GOVERNING Institute
- Fixing the Political Disconnect Between Infrastructure Needs and Funding
- Much of our infrastructure is invisible to its users, and so are some of its costs. Those problems can be addressed in ways that can hold down the costs of infrastructure and make it more self-sustaining.
- A Misguided Pension Reform for Government
- Pressure is building for state and local governments to switch their workers to defined-contribution retirement plans. But defined-benefit plans have advantages that should not be ignored.
- The Democratization of Power and the Electric Utility of the Future
- Our one-way, hub-and-spoke model for delivering electricity dates back to the days of Thomas Edison. But disruptive technologies are enabling a new model that will transform utilities as we know them.
- How Financial Empowerment Can Save Cities Money: 'the Supervitamin Effect'
- A comprehensive approach to financial counseling that originated in New York City is spreading across the country. It holds the promise of saving cities money over the long term.
- Why Municipal Bankruptcy is Rare (and Should Be)
- It's expensive, time-consuming and seldom produces the hoped-for results. Municipalities instead should heed the lessons of those that have dealt with tough fiscal times effectively.
- How Edmonton is Finding Value in Its Waste Stream
- By reusing, recycling or composting everything possible, the Canadian city of Edmonton is on its way to reaching the seemingly impossible goal of diverting 90 percent of trash from landfills.
- Beyond the 'Brain Drain': How Cities Really Need to Sell Themselves
- Cities worry a lot about losing talented people, but few of them do much to attract new people. A sales mindset needs to be part of the culture of the community.
- Struggling Cities and the Promise of Inclusive Competitiveness
- Entrepreneurs are busy in our increasingly multicultural urban landscape, but they're not creating many jobs. That could change if we invested in them.
- How System Dynamics Can Help Governments Make Better Decisions
- System dynamics was invented a half-century ago to use technology to analyze complex industrial processes. It's got a lot of potential for the public sector.
- Bakersfield's Creative Solution for Trash-Littered Freeways
- When the state stopped picking up litter on the highways, Bakersfield, Calif., found a sustainable way to get the job done -- and help the homeless in the bargain.
- How Today's Black Boys Could Be the Entrepreneurs of Tomorrow
- They are competitive, creative, innovative, resilient and courageous. If those sound like core characteristics of successful entrepreneurs, they are, and we need to build on them.
- The Illusion of Growth Economics: Can Cities Like Charlotte Reinvent Themselves?
- A city that's growing can spend more money while keeping taxes low. But when the limits of growth are reached, it will need to reinvent itself.
- The Never-Ending Debate over Charter Schools
- They're serving millions of students, with hundreds of thousands on waiting lists, and enjoy broad public support. So why do they remain so controversial?
- Managing Public Pensions in an Era of Change
- As governments move their workers into new kinds of retirement plans, pension organizations are going to have to change a lot about the way they serve their members. They're going to have to learn to be coaches.
- Moore's Law and the Difficult Challenge of Predicting Our Energy Future
- The ways we produce and distribute energy are going to change, with end users empowered much as in the world of computing. What we can't predict is when that will happen.
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