Social equity has long been seen as a key aspect of sustainable communities. In 1996, for instance, the President’s Council on Sustainable Development described a sustainable nation as one that includes a growing economy that provides equitable opportunities for satisfying livelihoods, and a safe, healthy, high-quality life for its citizens now and in the future. More
-
-
The Path to Tragedy
Rolf Loeber and colleagues didn’t anticipate the magnitude of tragedy they would encounter when they began following more than 1,500 Pittsburgh boys from childhood into their adult years to study the developmental pathways that lead children to delinquency and crime. More
-
A Safe Place to Be
Crime again defied conventional thinking, as rates across the nation continued to decline despite a sluggish economic recovery and stubbornly high unemployment. And few regions can boast lower violent and property crime rates than southwestern Pennsylvania. More
-
‘Now We Have a Hammer’
The face of vacancy and blight is grotesque: Lifeless houses with paint flaking from rotted wood facades; rain gutters drooping from roofs; broken-out windows boarded with city-installed plywood; vacant lots strewn with garbage. It’s an epidemic, data suggest, a large-scale problem that municipalities and neighborhood groups have been powerless to do much about, until now. More
-
Steady as She Goes
Southwestern Pennsylvania’s housing market, which missed the mid-decade boom experienced elsewhere across the nation, remains in the midst of a solid recovery, particularly in the City of Pittsburgh, where shifting demographics are turning many neighborhoods decidedly younger. More
-
Unhealthy by Any Measure
Living in a region with an abundance of top-flight hospitals, clinics and physicians is clearly no guarantee residents will embrace healthy lifestyles known to reduce the risk of disease, a recent re-examination of health data suggests. More
-
Bikers Beware
The debate over whether Pennsylvania should require motorcyclists to wear helmets if they don’t want to was settled in 2003 with repeal of the state’s 35-year-old universal helmet law in favor of a weaker one that mostly applies to the youngest riders. The percentage of traffic deaths due to motorcycle accidents has risen across the... More
-
Overabundance
When it comes to governments, southwestern Pennsylvania has plenty. In fact, few regions in the nation are more fragmented. So it’s not surprising that consolidation has been a popular topic of late. And, to some extent, the notion appears to be taking hold. More
-
Of Two Minds
Aross the Greater Pittsburgh region, far more residents are convinced of the economic potential of Marcellus Shale natural gas than support drilling for it. And one likely reason more haven’t thrown their support behind the burgeoning industry is that more than half of them are worried that environmental damage and greater public health risks are... More