Public markets like ours are part of the civic fabric in many cities. They bring character and identity to a place, provide economic opportunity, and foster a sense of belonging.
Economy
Posted inOpinion
Massachusetts is under economic attack
The Trump administration is waging economic warfare against Massachusetts by turning political points into lethal policies that weaken higher education, life sciences, maritime trade, and tourism — key pillars of our economy that account for about one-third of the state’s gross domestic product.
Posted inOpinion
Massachusetts has one of the slowest job growth rates in the country. That’s a big problem.
Since early 2020, the Bay State has had the third slowest private sector job growth in the nation.
Posted inEnvironment
When the river rises
By 2050, severe floods that were expected to happen once every 100 years will be three times more likely to occur in the Connecticut River Valley in Massachusetts. But the uneven distribution of resources across municipalities leaves some towns less equipped to plan for and respond to disasters.
Posted inOpinion
Why we can’t think straight about the price of eggs
It’s hard to escape the sense that we’re in a crisis and that the best outcome would be for egg prices to drop back to normal as soon as possible. But what if “normal” is actually part of a bigger problem?
Posted inEnvironment
Betting (on) the farm
The latest data from the US Agricultural Census show more than 100,000 acres of farmland in Massachusetts have been lost since 1997. That’s an average of losing just under 15 acres of farmland a day, roughly double the rate of farmland loss nationwide.
Posted inOpinion
Should Massachusetts implement a program providing universal basic income?
The difference of opinion over UBI generally comes down to what’s valued most by either side of the argument: reducing the effects of poverty now or increasing self-sufficiency in the future.
Posted inTransportation
MBTA caught in tariff crossfire between Trump and China
The MBTA is “actively assessing the impacts — potential or otherwise — on existing and future contracts,” after the news that President Trump will hike tariffs on Chinese goods to 104 percent.
Posted inOpinion
Trump is making the challenges facing nonprofits even tougher
Society expects nonprofit staff—who make up 17 percent of the Massachusetts workforce—to sacrifice wages for the opportunity to advance altruistic causes.
Posted inOpinion
In downtown Boston rezoning, let’s not repeat mistakes of the past
IN JANUARY, Boston planning officials unveiled a new zoning proposal for a large area of the city’s downtown, a proposal that would dramatically alter the size and scale of permissible buildings within one block of Boston Common and the Public Garden. Under this proposed new zoning, luxury residential towers as tall as 500 feet – […]