City of Aurora’s Post

My latest article about the last call fifty years ago.

People, both within and beyond LUC, are the heartbeat of our organisation. 💚 We take immense pride in the diversity of skills, perspectives, and experiences that form our collaborations, shaping the success we celebrate together. 🙌🎉 At the onset of this year, we marked the well-deserved promotions of 55 colleagues. Their dedication and unique contributions are integral to the fabric of LUC, defining our collective identity and fuelling our ongoing success. In this quarter's newsletter, we highlight projects that exemplify our people-centric approach. The true strength of our work lies not only in the expertise within LUC but also in the meaningful collaborations we foster with individuals, organisations, and communities - creating better futures for people, nature and places. 🌍💡🤝 #PeopleFirst #Collaboration #Promotions #CommunityEngagement #Newsletter

Jon Fine is here! He’s a longtime journalist, cultural critic, and touring musician, and now he’s the editor in chief of The New Wine Review, an exciting publication that digs into the world of low-intervention wine. In this conversation we talk about what’s exciting in wine today and how The New Wine Review is changing the way wine is written about—the voice, the language, the attitude. I hope you enjoy this talk.

Doing better at talking about my research is one of my New Year's resolutions. Want to help? Subscribe to my quarterly newsletter at https://lnkd.in/eAdgHpWi and find out what I've been up to at Madrigal Research!

As I’ve identified in numerous write-ups, our conversations drift through many different topics but we usually spend a bit of time on one or two items. Like the eclipse last week, this week’s main conversation point also came as no surprise: broadcaster Rebecca Lobo’s comment about Albany and the reaction that followed. Not every controversy has a universal response, but we were mostly in agreement that - although her comment was rude (or at least flippant) - there was some truth spoken, and now it’s what we choose to do about it (including nothing, which is also a choice). Of course there are reasons for Albany being a bit quieter than she and other visitors may have expected or desired - Easter weekend and Monday night (typically a dark night for restaurants and bars), as well as staffing challenges that pretty much all the hospitality industry is trying to work through. But this was a unique opportunity to shine and we knew it was coming. Inside the arena, I don’t think there was any issue with the energy, the competitiveness of the games, and the sold out crowd, including Ted Lasso (who somehow was able to find his way to Albany). Perhaps it’s reputation or that smAlbany attitude that we haven’t quite shaken yet, but those of us who know the region can rattle off a long list of things to do. How we make sure it’s available and accessible to anyone who wants it is the new challenge if we don’t want to get cracked on again. On a lighter note, whenever Melanie Metzger is on, I always ask her to tell us a fun library fact including services libraries provide the public may not be aware of. Did you know that our regional libraries have baking pans and utensils available to sign out, including some branches that can loan out mixers? Another reason why libraries are so good for our community. #TheMoreYouKnow Joining Melanie and me this week were Karen Candida-Lombardo, Crickett Thomas-O'Dell, Rose Miller, SPHR, Heather Rogers, Miriam Dushane, PHR, SHRM-CP, Alana Feldman, Robert Pistilli, Kellie Fredericks, Dr. Tom Denham, Betty Wall, P.E., Kate Otis, Tammy Doucette, Charles (CJ) Harkola, Jennifer DeGroff, Steven Horowitz, Sherry Long, MJ, Phil Wilton MBA, and Jill VanHoesen. The Our Hour Coffee Hour is sponsored by Motor Oil Coffee. #CoffeeHour #CantGetWormsAtTheLibrary #Sure

Check out the latest issue!

It can be easy to just accept the status quo, never questioning the systems in place around us. My book list this month includes three books that challenge that frame of thinking in unique ways. My first pick this month was inspired by my recent trip to Spencer Stuart's Nordic offices. In "The Nordic Theory of Everything" Anu Partanen compares U.S. life to Nordic life. This book, along with my recent travels, reminded me that in America we often assume that our way is the best way, or at least the only way. Partanen shows how Nordic systems can offer a better quality of life, encouraging us to question and consider alternatives to our societal norms. In "Paved Paradise," Henry Grabar dives into America's parking crisis and its ripple effects on other problems. It's a powerful reminder that something as mundane as parking can shape our cities and lives, and how we might be able to break free from it. Lastly, "Antifragile" by Nicholas Taleb challenges the idea that stability is always best, arguing that volatility and uncertainty can be beneficial. Taleb’s concept of antifragility suggests that embracing chaos can make us stronger, encouraging us to see the potential in disorder and unpredictability. What's on your book list this month? #readinglist

Check out what’s growing in the farm this week! 💚 YOU can help us GROW 🌱 LIKE, SHARE, & COMMENT

Audience capture is a Faustian trade: fame for personhood, celebrity for integrity, and public attention for public decency. https://hubs.ly/Q02hs65S0

The nighttime economy in our cities is filled with snares. Municipal employees get tangled by the Department of Red Tape and Fear. Individual stakeholders are overwhelmed by the Quagmire of Bureaucrats. Consultants can't get past City Gatekeepers. Advocacy groups too often hear back only from the Division of What *Can't* Happen. I know a little about skeptics. Especially when it comes to the nighttime economy. Let's explore tips, techniques, and tools during my "Getting Your Skeptics On Board" workshop at the Responsible Hospitality Institute's Sociable City Summit in Dallas, Apr. 18-20. I'm just one a many presenters, panelists, and experts you'll learn from. Register for RHI's Sociable City Summit: https://lnkd.in/gdEkvn3M