One of the things that drew me to Germantown was the amount of space to plant things in the ground. I’ve had my share of container gardens in concrete backyards that left me wanting to grow more plants. What I really wanted was enough space to grow my own food. In a time when supply
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Make compost from fallen leaves. It’s not hard to gather and shred leaves from the neighborhood to make killer compost that will give your garden a boost this spring. Plant your spring bulbs. It’s your last chance before winter weather sets in, so early this month, go buy the last of the bulbs that are
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The holiday gift-giving season is upon us- make a star of your local makers It’s become something of a sport to call out how much earlier each year stores begin to put up tinsel and displays announcing the holiday gift-buying season. I started seeing Facebook posts as early as mid-October from unsettled friends who went
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America’s workplaces, and the policies that serve workers, are in need of renovation. Do we have the political will for an overhaul? Interview by Heather Shayne Blakeslee We’re awash in news accounts of workplace sexual harassment, the “fight for $15,” cities vying for the Amazon HQ2 bid, and Congress debating which public policies they claim
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Don’t be fooled by stores with a global supply chain that claim to be ‘farmers markets’ By Danie Greenwell Walk into a supermarket and you will find yourself caught up in a whirl of “local,” “organic” and “farm fresh” merchandising. These words are intended to make us feel better about our purchases, but it is
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Pondering Philadelphia’s resilience in the aftermath of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma By Sam Boden Every day, I walk the cement patchwork of the city’s streets and sidewalks, navigating the bumps and cracks of the well-worn roads that make up our neighborhoods. I have seen the ways water gathers in the streets after a heavy rain
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Creatives, wealthy homeowners and anchor institutions in liberal cities need to do more to share the wealth Interview by Heather Shayne Blakeslee Richard Florida’s 2002 book, “The Rise of the Creative Class,” chronicled how cities could redevelop their cores by attracting knowledge workers—a rising tide that would lift all boats. But instead of gains trickling
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Energy efficiency remains a giant opportunity for building resilient cities Illustration: James Heimer By Alex Dews Over the past 15 years, the Philadelphia region has been deeply involved in a national movement to change everything about the building industry: how buildings are designed, built, operated, demolished, disposed of and rebuilt. “Green building” is now in
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Walls and Windows by Heather Shayne Blakeslee We’ve long debated what makes us human. But as our understanding of other species becomes richer and more complex, brick by brick we’re dismantling the imaginary wall that separates us from the natural world. We’ve learned that we are not the only species to have verbal language (whales),
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‘Shop Local’ isn’t just a slogan. Our survival depends on it. Illustration by Jameela Wahlgren Question: Why should I “Buy Fresh, Buy Local”? The Right Question: What is a local economy, anyway? Most of us tend to think of “the economy” as the process of exchanging our money for goods and services, and of receiving
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A West Philly high school student reflects on how we curate our lives Illustration by James Heimer By Cameron Swann The first time I realized that I could make my world beautiful was during a summer program from The School of the New York Times, where I spent two weeks looking at how the curation
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