September 16, 2019
Where there’s wildfire, there’s smoke. Protecting ‘clean-air refugees.’
Summer in Seattle offers a luminous respite from the rest of the year. The clouds depart and carry away the rains as the sky shades cobalt blue and the sun casts golden light from Puget Sound to Mount Rainier. The city feels liberated. Or so residents recall of an earlier time. In the past decade,…
Climate & Energy | Diversity, Equity & Justice | Health & Well Being | Housing & Homelessness | Natural Hazards | Natural Resources & Environment
September 11, 2019
Wartime history found in secret compartment on Beacon Hill
A Beacon Hill couple recently discovered a secret compartment in the basement ceiling of their 1920s house. Hidden inside the compartment was an intriguing collection of World War II and early-Cold War documents that reveal the activities of the Seattle chapter of a mostly-forgotten national organization, as well some other more provocative political activities from…
History & Preservation
September 9, 2019
Project aims to boost care for opioid use among homeless
On August 21, the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation and the University of Washington’s Alcohol & Drug Abuse Institute (ADAI) announced the Meds-First Initiative that expands an innovative approach to treating opioid-use disorder for high-acuity populations to four locations in Washington. The treatment sites are located across the state in North Seattle, Spokane, Tacoma and Walla Walla. “Medication…
Advocacy & Civic Engagement | Diversity, Equity & Justice | Health & Well Being | Housing & Homelessness
September 5, 2019
Over 4,100 earthquakes strike west of Puget Sound, but you can’t feel them
West of Puget Sound, the ground is trembling — but even if you live over there, you probably wouldn’t know it. An episodic tremor and slip (ETS) event appears to be underway, according to scientists at the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network. ETS tends to happen once every 14 months or so, when the Cascadia subduction zone gets a…
Data Science & Spatial Analysis | Innovation & Technology | Natural Hazards | Natural Resources & Environment
August 29, 2019
Mental health benefits of nature should influence city planning, says UW study
City planners should consider the mental health benefits of green spaces when making plans for the future of their cities. That’s according to a new study out of University of Washington that says urban green spaces can help improve mental health. The study found that accounting for the economic impacts of these benefits might help cities prioritize…
Design & Building | Health & Well Being | Land Use & Planning | Natural Resources & Environment
No minorities, no meat? Gig economy deepens cities’ divides
When an Indian customer of online food delivery service Zomato tweeted that he had canceled his order because it had been assigned to a non-Hindu worker, and his request for a Hindu denied, thousands weighed in. Last month’s incident was among a long series of allegations of discrimination related to religion, race, gender or sexual…
Data Science & Spatial Analysis | Diversity, Equity & Justice | Economy & Development | Infrastructure & Transportation | Innovation & Technology
How tech keeps Seattle’s transit system running — and why more innovation could be coming
Amid a sea of green rectangles on a computer monitor, one had turned red. A RapidRide bus — the red rectangle — was traveling a bit too rapidly. It was almost 11 a.m. on Friday, August 23 in the King County Metro Transit Control Center (TCC). Coordinators sat in front of large monitors, tracking the…
Data Science & Spatial Analysis | Infrastructure & Transportation | Innovation & Technology | Land Use & Planning
August 28, 2019
Seismic ‘slow-slip’ event happening now, but will it increase the chance of an earthquake?
Seismologists are monitoring a seismic event that they say is happening right now. It’s called a “slow-slip” event. According to the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network at the University of Washington, this event happens about every 14 months. PNSN has been tracking it for about two decades, ever since the Nisqually earthquake. Think of Earth as…
Data Science & Spatial Analysis | Innovation & Technology | Natural Hazards | Natural Resources & Environment
August 26, 2019
‘The lack of affordable housing is actually costing us’: Cantwell promotes affordable housing bill in Spokane
Had U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell stood at 1 S. Madelia St. just a few years ago, she would have been in a used car lot. But on Tuesday, she was in the the lobby of an affordable housing complex now home to more than 100 residents. Cantwell was joined by Spokane leaders on Tuesday as…
Diversity, Equity & Justice | Economy & Development | Housing & Homelessness | Land Use & Planning | Policy & Law
August 22, 2019
‘Hidden’ data exacerbates rural public health inequities
Differences in the health of rural residents compared to their urban neighbors are startling. In Washington, for instance, rural residents are one-third more likely to die from intentional self-harm or 13 percent more likely to die from heart disease. However, while statistics like these help guide public health policy and spending, they can hide even…
Data Science & Spatial Analysis | Diversity, Equity & Justice | Health & Well Being