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group2wsfb · 4 years

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Milestone one

Milestone 1 - due Sunday 16th August (2 weeks)

Molly - key motivations, outcomes and engagements

Kharma - Investigate other creative interventions/projects, mapping the context

Jess - key opportunities and challenges, scope

Ryo - key stakeholders

Natasha - unpacking the provocation, contextual information about the partner

Partner Name

World Science Festival Brisbane

Provocation

Project for World Science Festival Brisbane

Unpacking the provocation

Outline your initial impressions and thoughts around the provocation (Please note this is not about outlining ideas, rather about identifying impressions, interests and possible opportunities to explore).

After the presentation by Sally McRae for the World Science Festival Brisbane, it is clear that the festival has been successful in attracting a wide range of audiences as a result of their extensive variety of exhibitions and attractions. World Science Festival Brisbane has grown to be a well-established annual event whose vision is shared and supported by the Queensland Government. It has become a major tourism drawcard bringing in millions into the state’s economy as it celebrates creativity, innovation, science, technology and art in Queensland (WSFB, 2020). The festival itself lends access to audiences with little interest in science and art as well as audiences passionate about science and art. Throughout the provocation, it was evident that the festival aimed to develop their reception towards the young adult audiences predominately adults around 18-25 years old (McRae, 2020).

Sally seemed to be very interested in attracting the audience through means that are outside of the regular screen and to use technology that is more immersive and engaging e.g. VR, AR or online gaming. She was also interested in the idea of collaborating with global partners to celebrate natural events around the world e.g. earth hour, comet sightings, interactive satellite imagery. The hopes that were drawn out of the provocation towards WSFB were that they aim to deliver a different form of the festival rather than scaling it down and were also passionate about having sustainability at the forefront of it all (McRae, 2020).

As WSFB encompasses a wide variety of science and art exhibitions, we as a group were excited to find out which area we wanted to develop and build upon. There is an obvious draw to bring the festival on an online platform but we as a team were more interested in how we could accommodate a physical celebration within the limitations and scope of the situation with COVID-19.

World Science Festival Brisbane. (2020). About the Festival. World Science Festival Brisbane. https://www.worldsciencefestival.com.au/about/about-the-festival/

McRae, S. (2020). KKB385 Creative Enterprise Studio 3: Industry Provocations World Science Festival [Video]. https://blackboard.qut.edu.au/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_151682_1&content_id=_8656549_1&mode=reset

Contextual information about the Partner

Write a short statement outlining what the industry partner does.

WSF Brisbane is a production of the World Science Foundation who are a not-for-profit organisation headquartered in New York City. Each year the World Science Festival Brisbane takes science out of the laboratory and into the streets, parks, museums, galleries and performing arts venues of Brisbane and regional Queensland. The Festival brings some of the world’s greatest thought leaders to Queensland, showcase local scientists and performers from around the Asia Pacific region, and host the brightest and the best from previous events in New York (WSFB, 2020).

What sector does your industry partner work in?

WSFB is a festival presented by the Queensland Museum with generous support from their partners. Since the first annual festival in 2016, the event has grown to become a major tourism drawcard in its own right, attracting more than 700,000 visitors injecting more than $32 million into the state’s economy. It is one of the many highlights on the It’s Live! in Queensland events calendar, worth $880 million to the state’s economy in 2020 (WSFB, 2020).

Where and when does your industry partner operate?

The festival itself is held annually usually around March however it is assumed that WSFB and their partners would operate throughout the year in preparation. WSFB have grown to allow its festival and events to be held in many more regional areas within Queensland. The full list of cities involved in this year’s festival include Brisbane, Chinchilla, Gladstone, Toowoomba, Townsville and Ipswich (WSFB, 2020).

World Science Festival Brisbane. (2020). About. World Science Festival Brisbane. https://www.worldsciencefestival.com.au/about/

World Science Festival Brisbane. (2020). About the Festival. World Science Festival Brisbane. https://www.worldsciencefestival.com.au/about/about-the-festival/

World Science Festival Brisbane. (2020). Festival Information. World Science Festival Brisbane. https://www.worldsciencefestival.com.au/festival-information/

Key motivations, outcomes and engagement

Why does your industry partner do what they do?

World Science Festival Brisbane states in their FAQ’s page that their mission is to “…help create a general public informed by science, inspired by its wonder, convinced of its value, and prepared to engage with its implications for the future” (WSFB, 2020). As such, we can understand that WSFB intends to use science to engage many parts of the community. Also, due to their use of practical events, we can understand that WSFB intend to create a space in which their varied audiences can interact with science in fun an engaging way.

What forms do their outcomes take? Analogue/digital? Performance, artefacts, exhibition, discussions etc.?

does your industry partner engage with their audience/clients/users?

WSFB outcomes take on all sorts of formats, however in the past, these formats have been primarily physical or analogue. Which presents an issue in COVID times as they want all their content to be accessible online. During the Provocation meeting, it was noted that all the online content that WSFB has produced in the past has not done as well as they wanted (McRae, 2020). In regards to their audience, there is a large focus to families and children, often lacking access to the young adult audience.

How do they engage with their audience/clients/users?

WSFB uses various social media outlets to engage with their audience. Between Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, Facebook is definitely the standout in regard to engagement which aligns with their local outreach and general audience demographics. As was discussed in the Provocation meeting, WSFB has also trialled live events on these sites and has often struggled with this as an engaging space (McRae, 2020). As well as this, WSFB also circulates analogue advertising across the city – flyers, banners, signs etc.

How is this engagement measured?

It can be understood that WSBF hopes that this engagement with audiences will present in outcomes of ticket sales, shows and venues selling out, crowds, and word of mouth. These are all very physical outcomes that WSFB is very comfortable with. For example, one event that WSFB had planned for the 2020 festival was Answers from the Ashes (WSFB, 2020), which was a talk that was set to be hosted at QPAC’s Concert Hall, a big prestigious venue that WSFB would only book if they were confident that their engagement would reflect in ticket sales.

World Science Festival Brisbane. (2020). FAQ’s. World Science Festival Brisbane. https://www.worldsciencefestival.com.au/festival-information/brisbane/faqs/.

World Science Festival Brisbane. (2020). Answers from the Ashes. World Science Festival Brisbane. https://www.worldsciencefestival.com.au/event-program/brisbane/answers-from-the-ashes/

Scope

Identify the scope of their work. How many people do they reach/engage/employ?

World Science Festival Brisbane is popular among children and typically engages a large family audience, along with attracting some curious adults and academics with an interest in science (McRae, 2020). In 2019 over 200,000 people attended the festival, with almost 300 participants, performers and activity providers also involved in the festival. WSFB enlists a number of guest speakers each year including scientists, astronauts, astrophysicists and a variety of professors. WSFB is also supported by the Queensland Government through Tourism and Events Queensland and Arts Queensland, alongside Queensland Museum Network and a number of other festival partners within the industry (WSFB, 2019).

How frequently do they run?

The World Science Festival originated in New York in 2008. Queensland is currently the only global extension of the festival, with the Brisbane event first appearing in March 2016 and running annually ever since. The Queensland Museum Network has exclusive licensing to host the World Science Festival in the Asia Pacific up until 2021 (WSFB, 2020).

Are there other ways to measure their scope?

Attendees and volunteers of WSFB in 2019 expressed that they were more excited and willing to learn about science, STEM and possible career pathways after attending the festival. Partners and participants collectively agreed that WSFB makes an important contribution in STEM engagement and learning (WSFB, 2019). WSFB encourages greater STEM participation from under-represented groups, with 86% of attendees from these groups indicating that their willingness to learn more about science increased after attending the festival (WSFB, 2019).

World Science Festival Brisbane. (2019). Program Guide. World Science Festival Brisbane.

https://www.worldsciencefestival.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/PROGRAM-GUIDE_2019.pdf

World Science Festival Brisbane. (2020). About The Festival. World Science Festival Brisbane.

https://www.worldsciencefestival.com.au/about/about-the-festival/

World Science Festival Brisbane. (2019). Impact Assessment Report. World Science Festival Brisbane.

http://www.worldsciencefestival.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/ATTACHMENT-3-IMPACT-ASSESSMENT-REPORT-2020.pdf

Key stakeholders

Identify your industry partner’s key audience/clients/users

Does your industry partner have any key investors/partners/collaborators?

The main audience of World Science Festival Brisbane is a wide range of age groups, including students, families, curious adults and seniors (McRae, 2020). In 2019, more than 7,100 students attended WSFB as part of a pre-planned school excursion (QMN, 2019). The 2019 program was held with 297 participants, activity providers and performers in six locations including Brisbane, Gladstone, Chinchilla, Toowoomba, Townsville and Ipswich. It has also collaborated with more than 30 partners from the government, academia and the private sector who have contributed $3 million in cash and in-kind donations (QMN, 2019). In addition to support from Queensland Museum Network and Queensland Government, WSFB collaborates with partners to build shared visions, clearly defined results, and relationships that are premised on measurable and rewarding impacts on STEM (WSFB, 2020).

Does your industry partner have links to the community?

WSFB hosts regional programs every year. The program offers a number of free events for all ages and aims to show the way to a future career by interacting with rural and remote communities (WSFB, 2020). For example, WSFB worked with their community partner, QGC, to provide an opportunity for local participation in the Queensland community in 2017. The program provided residents in and around Gladstone, Chinchilla with the opportunity to explore the wonders of science. This has allowed their community members to understand the mysteries of past and present environments to shape the future (Future Makers, 2020).

Future Makers. (2020). World Science Festival Brisbane 2017. Future Makers.

http://www.futuremakers.org.au/wsfb2017/

Queensland Museum Network. (2019). Board of the Queensland Museum Annual Report 2018-19.

https://network.qm.qld.gov.au/~/media/Documents/QMN/Reports/QMN+ANNUAL+REPORT+2018+2019+FINAL+LoRES.pdf

World Science Festival Brisbane. (2020). Festival Partners. World Science Festival Brisbane.

https://www.worldsciencefestival.com.au/about/sponsors-and-partners/

World Science Festival Brisbane. (2020). Regional Program. World Science Festival Brisbane.

https://www.worldsciencefestival.com.au/regional-program/

Mapping the context

What is the broader field that your partner works within?

The content presented in The World Science Festival is key focused upon intertwining modern science with fun forms of education. These broader fields are executed through the use of creative practice.

What are the key ideas, considerations and trends in their field?

The scientific field is constantly expanding, this gives the festival new content each year. With the trend of environmentalism growing, science based events (including World Science Festival) are targeting audiences with eco friendly activities.

The stereotypes surrounding science have impacted how the general public perceives events such as the world science festival. The trend of science being ‘boring’ or only ‘highbrow’ needs to be broken down in order to entice regular families; students or workers to participate.

Whereas the new methods to successfully involve target audiences through interactive education as a trend that greatly support the fun but education goal off these events.

World Science Festival Brisbane. (2020). About The Festival. World Science Festival Brisbane.

https://www.worldsciencefestival.com.au/about/about-the-festival/

Investigate other creative interventions/projects

Is there anyone else working in the same area as the industry partner?

Within Australia there are numerous Science festivals that aim to excite and educate the general public. While The World Science Festival is the largest: Curiosity; Pint of Science and National Science Week run similar themed projects. Though the programs all aim to spread scientific interest they execute this objective in their own ways.

Are they doing anything different? Addressing different sectors? Using different forms? Can we learn or adopt anything from them?

For example, Pint of Science Week successfully targets an adult audience by partnering with beer breweries. Pint Of Science Week, uses this to entice attendees into fun but educational programs. This works because it draws in the intended audience and goes against the negative stereotypes of science events.

The World Science Festival could use this method by using something their target audience (18+) are already interested in to intertwine with the science theme. This would not only draw in people who are interested in science, but also those who enjoy the other element. An example of this would be to partner Science with film.

National Science Week provides an App that can track the science events in each area. Given the current global Covid 19 situation online usability and design is more important than ever. If The world Science Festival were to use an app to bring most of its content online, it would be modern, helpful and extremely adaptive to the times.

Curiocity Brisbane. (2020). About. Curiocity Brisbane.

https://curiocitybrisbane.com/

Pint of Science Week. (2020). About. Pint of Science Week.

https://pintofscience.com.au/about/

National Science Week. (2020).About. National Science Week.

https://www.scienceweek.net.au/about/

World Science Festival Brisbane. (2020). About The Festival. World Science Festival Brisbane.

https://www.worldsciencefestival.com.au/about/about-the-festival/

Key opportunities and challenges

Outline the potential opportunities and challenges identified in the provocation presentation.

There were a number of opportunities and challenges identified in the provocation presentation for the World Science Festival Brisbane. The greatest challenge outlined was maintaining audience attendance at the festival within the limitations of COVID-19. While outside gatherings are limited during this time, WSFB would ideally like to uphold the scale of the festival and present some outdoor events where possible (McRae, 2020). How international guests, panel discussions and workshops could remain incorporated in the festival are other concerns that come with the COVID-19 limitations. The solution to these challenges must also be affordable to accommodate the festival's reduced budget (McRae, 2020).

With the expectation of an online platform comes the opportunity of being accessible to a wider range of people, uniting and engaging audiences on a global level. This also provides an opportunity for the festival to expand their age demographic, specifically towards teenage and young adult audiences (McRae, 2020).

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politicsprose · 7 years

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P&P at Busboys and Poets: the Summer Ahead

P&P is looking forward to hosting plenty of exciting (and free) author events at Busboys and Poets locations this summer! Check out what’s on the way:

Twitter and Tear Gas by Zeynep Tufecki (@zeynep) Direct Action by L.A. Kauffman (@LAKauffman) Tuesday June 6, 2017 at 6:30 p.m. Busboys and Poets 14th & V

Zeynep Tufekci, a New York Times contributor and a faculty member at Harvard’s Berkman Center and the University of North Carolina’s School of Information and Library Science, looks in detail at the role of technology in three recent uprisings: the Zapatistas in Mexico in 1994, Egypt's Tahrir Square in 2011, and the Occupy movements in the U.S.

Kauffman is a long-time organizer, strategist, and journalist. She’s been at work on this detailed and insightful history of protest for twenty-five of the thirty-plus years she’s been involved in organizing. The book starts with the myriad socio-political movements of the 1960s and traces activism through ACT UP to Occupy & Black Lives Matter. Tufecki and Kauffman will be in conversation. Tufecki’s Twitter account, linked above, is very active, and often links out to other must-read pieces. Check out this essay Kauffman wrote earlier this year as a teaser of her experience as an activist.

The Reminders by Val Emmich (@ValEmmich) Wednesday, June 7 at 6:30 p.m. Busboys and Poets 14th & V

Emmich’s bittersweet first novel focuses on Gavin Winters, who has just lost his partner. After burning all the mementos and relics of his relationship with Sydney, he tries another way to relieve his pain: he moves from Los Angeles to New Jersey and asks his friend’s daughter Joan to use her preternatural memory to help him. If she can bring back Sydney by recalling his visits over the years, Gavin will use his musical talents to help her win a songwriting contest. But he hadn’t bargained on some of the surprises lingering in her uncanny memory, and Gavin soon has different kinds of loss to grapple with.

Emmich is also a singer-songwriter and actor, and his presentation will include an acoustic performance. If you want a preview, Emmich put out a series of YouTube videos talking about his process for the book. For more info about the event, click here.

Loving by Sheryll Cashin (@SheryllCashin) Monday, June 12 at 6:30 p.m. Busboys and Poets 14th & V

Cashin’s study of racism in America uses the 1967 Loving v. Virginia decision as a fulcrum for her investigation of the history of the idea of whiteness and her vision of a future that’s not merely color blind, but truly diverse and celebrated as such. A professor of law at Georgetown, frequent media commentator on law and race relations, and author of books including Place, Not Race, Cashin observes that approval for interracial marriage was just 4% in 1967, while today some 87% approve. Combined with rising rates of cross-racial adoption and immigration, interracial romance heralds the social revolution of a new “culturally dexterous” population.

Cashin will be in conversation with WAMU Editorial Director Alicia Montgomery as part of the WAMU Books series. Earlier this year, Cashin made an appearance on C-SPAN assessing Obama’s legacy on race relations. For more information about the event, click here.

The Least Among Us by Rosa L. DeLauro (@rosadelauro) Tuesday June 13 at 6:30 p.m. Busboys and Poets 14th & V

DeLauro has represented Connecticut’s Third District in Congress since 1991, and is known for her impassioned advocacy of the social safety net. The ranking member on the Labor, Health, Human Services, and Education Appropriations Subcommittee, DeLauro grew up with the Roman Catholic values of hard work and compassion. Acting on her parents’ model, DeLauro has used her office to fight for programs including food stamps, housing assistance, worker protection, and more. Her book recounts both her legislative battles, including the challenge of coming into office in the wake of the Gingrich Revolution, as well as the stories of people whose lives have been changed by progressive social policies.

Before attending the event, discover more about the Congresswoman’s platform and the actions she takes on a day-to-day basis by perusing her official website. For more info about the event, click here.

The Ends of the World by Peter Brannen (@PeterBrannen1) Wednesday June 14 at 6:30 p.m. Busboys and Poets 14th & V

As the world enters the Anthropocene, there’s a lot of talk about the sixth extinction. But what about the previous five? Brannen, an award-winning science journalist and former journalism fellow at Woods Hole, broadens our views of both climate and climate change with this vivid tour of the pivotal events of the Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian, and other eras. Using fossils and myriad geological records, he shows us the globe as we’ve never seen it before, tracing the scars of asteroids, glaciers, fire, and other literally Earth-shaking calamities. By piecing together what happened in deep time, Brannen shows us what to expect in the near future.

Brannen will be in conversation with Ed Yong, author of I Contain Multitudes. Late last year, Brannen wrote a great essay about whales’ strange evolutionary journey. For more info on the event, click here.

In Search of the Lost Chord by Danny Goldberg Monday, June 19, 2017 at 6:30 p.m. Busboys and Poets 14th & V

In his magical mystery tour of a book, Goldberg, president of Gold Village Entertainment, and former head of Atlantic Records, looks back over 1967, a year that included the release of the Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, and debut albums from the Doors, the Grateful Dead, Jimi Hendrix, and Janis Joplin. Then there was the Summer of Love, LSD, Muhammad Ali’s draft-dodging conviction, Stokely Carmichael and Black Power, the murder of Che Guevara, and much more. Goldberg gives us 1967 as he experienced it and draws on interviews with some of its stars, including Allen Ginsberg, Timothy Leary, Ram Dass, Tom Hayden, and Gil Scott-Heron, showing the year’s lasting cultural and political significance.

Goldberg will be in conversation with Sidney Blumenthal, author of A Self-Made Man and Wrestling with His Angel. At his personal website, Goldberg has a personal blog for those curious to know more about him. For more info about the event, click here.

Radicals Chasing Utopia by Jamie Bartlett (@JamieJBartlett) Tuesday, June 20 at 6:30 p.m. Busboys and Poets 14th & V

The number of radical groups worldwide has surged in recent years, and ranges from ISIS to followers of Bernie Sanders to the citizens of Liberland, the world's first libertarian nation. However extreme some of these subcultures are, Bartlett, author of The Dark Net and one of today’s leading thinkers on radical politics, argues that all must be taken seriously. Each makes an important contribution to social change, whether by being symptomatic of society’s deeper malaise or by offering a viable vision for the future. Bartlett, Director of the Centre for the Analysis of Social Media at Demos and a technology columnist for the Telegraph, reports in detail on a variety of underground and radical sub-cultures, exploring their members’ motivations, goals, and overall critique of the status quo.

Bartlett's talks page on his personal website has links to many of his appearances in the last several years. For more info about the event, click here.

Life’s Work by Dr. Willie Parker (@DrWillieParker) Wednesday, June 21 at 6:30 p.m. Busboys and Poets 5th & K

As access to legal abortion becomes more restricted and organizations providing the service face cuts in federal funding, the fate of Roe v. Wade is in peril. To understand what the Trump era means for reproductive rights, join us for a discussion of the issues with a panel of distinguished writers and public figures headed by Dr. Willie Parker, winner of the 2015 Planned Parenthood Margaret Sanger Award, and whose Pink House is the last remaining abortion clinic in Mississippi. Parker will be in conversation with Ilyse Hogue, President of NARAL Pro-Choice America and Reverend Dr. Christine Wiley and Reverend Dr. Dennis Wiley, co-pastors of the Covenant Baptist United Church of Christ.

The discussion will be moderated by Jamila Taylor, a senior fellow at American Progress who specializes in domestic and international women’s health, reproductive rights, and reproductive justice. Dr. Parker was also at Politics and Prose’s Connecticut Ave. store in April. Here’s video of that event, in conversation with Katha Pollitt. For more information about the event, click here.

A Surprised Queenhood in the New Black Sun by Angela Jackson Sunday, June 25 at 6:30 p.m. Busboys and Poets 14th & V

Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000) was the first African American to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize, winning it in 1950 for her collection, Annie Allen. Mentored by writers including Langston Hughes and Richard Wright, Brooks chronicled the realities of urban black life in works of both lyrical power and narrative urgency. She became a leader of the Black Arts Movement in the 1960s and ‘70s, was appointed the Illinois Poet Laureate in 1968, and served as the Consultant in Poetry to the Library of congress—forerunner of today’s U.S. Poet Laureate—in 1985-‘86. In her warm and deeply researched biography, Jackson, an award-winning novelist, poet, and playwright, celebrates a poet whose work is as fresh and inspiring today as when it was first published.

Here’s a video of Jackson reading her poetry aloud in a collaboration with the Museum of Contemporary Art in San Diego.

Beyond June, P&P is hosting three further author events at Busboys and Poets through July and August. Basic details are below, check back on this post soon or visit our online events calendar for more information!

Chester B. Himes: A Biography by Lawrence P. Jackson Tuesday, July 11, 2017 at 6:30 p.m. Busboys and Poets 14th & V

Chokehold: Policing Black Men by Paul Butler, in conversation with Kojo Nnamdi as a WAMU Books event Wednesday, July 12, 2017 at 6:30 p.m. Busboys and Poets 14th & V

Hurston Wright Foundation Summer Workshop Reading featuring Kyle Dargan, Tiphanie Yanique, and Sheri Booker Tuesday, August 8, 2017 at 6:30 p.m. Busboys and Poets Takoma

#book event #author signing #busboys and poets

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nathanielburgos · 4 years

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Immigrant Heritage Month – The American Story

CitizenPath is proud to support Immigrant Heritage Month for a seventh consecutive year. Immigrant Heritage Month celebrates a United States that is fueled by immigrants from around the world and the honors ways in which America and the immigrants who have built our country are linked in a shared, productive history.

Our great nation was created by people with families that originally came from other countries. In June, we celebrate the strength that this diversity created.

Immigrant Heritage Month

Immigrant Heritage Month is powered by FWD.us, a bipartisan political organization that fights for immigration and criminal justice system rights. The campaign is a collaboration of community organizations, elected officials, corporations, artists, and thought leaders to gather and share inspirational stories of American immigrants.

CitizenPath joins a list of partners that includes companies such as Facebook and Telemundo, and a plethora of non-profit organizations like Project Citizenship and CLINIC.

“One of the remarkable things about America is that nearly all of our families originally came from someplace else. We’re a nation of immigrants. It is a source of our strength and something we can all take pride in.” — Barack Obama

Immigration is Entrepreneurial

Columnist George F. Will writes that immigration is an “entrepreneurial act.” Immigrants are risk takers that left their native cultures in pursuit of new opportunity in America. This willingness to take chances and challenge the status quo has created countless businesses in the United States.

The Partnership for a New American Economy uncovered some remarkable statistics in a recent study that researched how immigration has affected the U.S. economy:

Immigrants are more than twice as likely to start a business as the native-born. In 2011, the immigrant business-formation rate was 550 new businesses per month for every 100,000 immigrants, while the native-born rate was only 270 new businesses per month for every 100,000 native-born.

40 percent of Fortune 500 companies were founded by immigrants or their children. This trend will most likely continue because immigrants start more than 25 percent of all businesses in seven of eight sectors of the economy that the U.S. government expects to grow the fastest over the next decade.

Immigrants are increasingly like to start a business, while the rate of new-business generation among the native-born is declining. The rate at which immigrants start new businesses grew by more than 50 percent between 1996 and 2011. During the same period, the business-formation rate for the native-born declined by 10 percent.

“It says something about our country that people around the world are willing to leave their homes and leave their families and risk everything to come to America. Their talent and hard work and love of freedom have helped make America the leader of the world. And our generation will ensure that America remains a beacon of liberty and the most hope fill society this world has ever known.” — George W. Bush

Immigration is a Job Creator

Immigrants have had an enormous impact on U.S. jobs and the gross domestic product (GDP) – They are job creators. In example after example, the nation’s economic growth is being led by immigrant-owned businesses.

The Fortune 500 companies started by immigrants or their children (40% of Fortune 500 companies) generated revenue greater than the GDP of nearly every country in the world (except Japan, China, and the United States). $1.7 trillion in revenues is attributable to the companies founded by immigrants, and that figure rises to $4.2 trillion when combined with the revenues of companies founded by the children of immigrants.

One in every 10 people employed at a privately-owned U.S. company works at an immigrant-owned firm and immigrant-owned businesses pay out $126 billion in payroll per year.

Every low-skilled, non-agricultural, temporary worker who comes to the U.S. to fill a job that may otherwise be left open creates an average of 4.64 U.S. jobs. These low-skilled jobs are the necessary backbone to support higher-skilled positions.

Immigration Spurs Innovation

Immigrants don’t simply fuel business growth. They are proven leaders in the area of STEM: science, technology, engineering and math.

U.S. immigrants help drive STEM innovation by earning patents on new research, products, and ideas.

“Non-resident aliens” comprised almost 41 percent of all masters and doctorate degrees in STEM fields in 2009. 40 percent of STEM masters degrees and 45 percent of STEM doctorates were awarded to “non-resident aliens”.

76 percent of patents awarded to the top ten patent-producing U.S. universities in 2011 had at least one foreign-born inventor. For high-tech and cutting-edge fields, the rate of foreign-born patenting at those institutions was even greater: semiconductor device manufacturing (87 percent), information technology (84 percent), pulse or digital communications (83 percent), pharmaceutical drugs or compounds (79 percent), and optics (77 percent).

“More than any other nation on Earth, America has constantly drawn strength and spirit from wave after wave of immigrants. In each generation, they have proved to be the most restless, the most adventurous, the most innovative, the most industrious of people. Bearing different memories, honoring different heritages, they have strengthened our economy, enriched our culture, renewed our promise of freedom and opportunity for all…” — Bill Clinton

The Immigrant Heritage Month campaign encourages both recent immigrants and native-born Americans to share their immigrant stories. Sharing your story is easy. Simply upload a photo, briefly tell your story, tag with the hashtag #IHM2020 or #CelebrateImmigrants and post on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram. Or you can see events on the IAmAnImmigrant.com website.

About CitizenPath

CitizenPath provides simple, affordable, step-by-step guidance through USCIS immigration applications. Individuals, attorneys and non-profits use the service on desktop or mobile device to prepare immigration forms accurately, avoiding costly delays. CitizenPath allows users to try the service for free and provides a 100% money-back guarantee that USCIS will approve the application or petition. We provide support the adjustment of status application (Form I-485), naturalization application (Form N-400), and several other immigration packages.

The post Immigrant Heritage Month – The American Story appeared first on CitizenPath.

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mikemortgage · 6 years

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When it comes to natural gas, US ‘open for business’

WASHINGTON — Last November, diplomats from Brazil to Japan joined oil and gas executives at the headquarters of Washington’s largest lobbying group to christen a new partnership.

Inside the marble walls of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, a crowd of 200 welcomed the U.S. Gas Infrastructure Exports Initiative — a coalition of 25 companies, nine trade groups, five law firms, at least five federal agencies and a non-profitthink-tank . Its mission: to drive sales of American natural gas by pumping dollars into pipelines and gas-processing facilities overseas.

The initiative, co-ordinated in part by a natural gas lobbyist, is the latest federal effort to market the fuel as a “clean” energy source amid surging U.S. drilling and exports. American gas production is projected to account for almost 40 per cent of the world’s gas growth through 2040, according to the International Energy Agency. Countries like China are buying up tank loads of LNG — natural gas that has been supercooled to liquefy it — to generate power, heat buildings and fuel trucks.

“When it comes to exporting LNG, the United States is open for business,” Mark Menezes, undersecretary of the U.S. Department of Energy, assured the audience at the launch of the gas initiative. Menezes, a former utility industry lobbyist, added that exporting U.S. liquified natural gas is “clearly in our economic interest.”

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This story is part of a collaboration between the Center for Public Integrity, The Texas Tribune, The Associated Press and Newsy.

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Since its launch a year ago, the initiative has funded 13 gas projects in 20-plus countries and generated more than $1.5 billion in exports, according to the U.S. Trade Development Agency, which heads the program. USTDA is a tiny federal office that helps companies secure funding for projects in developing countries like India and Mozambique as a way to promote U.S. goods and services. In letters to members of Congress, USTDA described the gas initiative as a way “to ensure that emerging markets have the gas infrastructure necessary to be long-term off-takers of U.S. LNG exports.”

This comes as the science underpinning the fuel’s status as a climate-friendly alternative to coal has eroded. Natural gas is made up primarily of methane, a potent greenhouse gas many times more powerful than carbon dioxide. Recent research shows methane leaks at oil and gas sites were 60 per cent higher than current federal estimates. Even if methane weren’t an issue, gas still emits a significant amount of carbon dioxide when burned — roughly 50 per cent less than coal and about 25 per cent less than gasoline or diesel. Those reductions wouldn’t be enough to head off catastrophic climate change at a time when experts at the United Nations say the Earth is heating up faster than ever.

Despite these downsides, investment in gas infrastructure has only accelerated. The country’s handful of LNG export terminals all sent out their first shipments within the last three years, and there are plans for at least a dozen more terminals. Record-high U.S. gas production is also spawning thousands of miles of pipelines and hundreds of gas-fired power plants nationwide, despite urgent recommendations from scientists for a more rapid and extensive transition to zero-emissions sources of energy, such as solar and wind. The latest from the government’s National Climate Assessment showed global-warming impacts are already being felt, from worsening blazes such as the November wildfire that tore through Northern California — the deadliest in state history — to intensifying storms like Hurricane Florence, which pummeled the Carolinas with record rainfall in September.

By specifically promoting LNG exports, the U.S. is helping guarantee the success of a handful of companies — using taxpayer dollars to boost a nascent industry it also regulates. Arguably, no company has benefited more from the government’s LNG push than Houston-based Cheniere, which in 2016 became the first U.S. company to export the commodity from a major terminal and is among the gas initiative’s 25 corporate partners. Cheniere was the lone U.S. company exporting LNG to burgeoning markets like Asia until earlier this year.

Cheniere has become one of the hottest energy stocks and a company in close orbit to the White House. Carl Icahn, a major Cheniere investor, is a friend of President Donald Trump’s who served briefly as his special adviser on deregulation before resigning amid news coverage alleging conflicts of interest related to his other energy holdings. (Icahn wrote in his resignation note that he left to avoid “partisan bickering.”) The company is expanding both of its sites on the Gulf Coast.

Programs like the gas initiative are contributing to an infrastructure build-out that environmentalists and researchers say will lock the globe into using another fossil fuel for decades.

“The world as a whole is going to need to reduce its use of all fossil fuels, gas included, in order to achieve the kinds of emission reductions we need,” said Nathan Matthews, a senior attorney at the Sierra Club. “When we’re building infrastructure now, it’s got to be the infrastructure that’s gonna get us to zero emissions.”

The Sierra Club was among several green groups that initially championed gas as a pathway to renewables but quickly soured on the fuel amid mounting concerns over methane and drilling. In 2012, Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune wrote, “It’s time to stop thinking of natural gas as a ‘kinder, gentler’ energy source,” as he launched Sierra’s “Beyond Natural Gas” campaign.

The USTDA declined to make Acting Director Thomas R. Hardy available for an interview. In an emailed statement, Hardy defended the gas initiative as a “common-sense approach” to help countries grow “while reducing the negative health and environmental impacts” associated with fuels like coal and diesel.

“USTDA is proud of its long-term commitment to supporting energy projects around the world, which are introducing lower carbon-intense energy solutions in emerging markets,” he wrote.

The idea for the gas initiative dates back to the Obama administration, when USTDA officials began planning a public-private partnership centred on gas exports. That effort, which was part of an overall strategy by Obama officials to promote LNG as a climate-friendly fuel, stalled but was ultimately launched by the current administration. The agency had been targeted for elimination by Trump but survived, becoming a fervent champion of his “energy dominance” agenda.

Though tasked with promoting a variety of exports, USTDA has long focused on energy. Projects in that sector accounted for 46 per cent of its activities last year. Transportation, in second place, made up 20 per cent of funding. In addition to launching the gas initiative, USTDA also restarted its efforts in the coal sector, an industry Trump promised to revive during his presidential campaign.

USTDA’s budget looks minuscule compared to the likes of the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Export-Import Bank and the International Trade Administration — federal agencies that help finance private businesses and also signed on to the gas initiative. The typical USTDA grant is $500,000; rarely do they exceed $1 million. But small awards don’t mean small returns. The agency claims every dollar it invested in 2017 generated $95 in exports. Companies have used USTDA grants to fund studies, training and contracts for technical expertise.

Not every LNG supporter is a fan. The Heritage Foundation, a free-market group that approves of LNG exports, considers USTDA a form of corporate welfare and suggested in its budget recommendation last year that the agency be eliminated. Nick Loris, a Heritage fellow, said USTDA’s gas efforts “just belong in the private sector, and if they’re good economic ideas, the private sector will find ways to make the proper investments.”

USTDA has received more than 40 gas-related proposals this year, including a facility to help supply LNG to Morocco, Spain and Portugal, a gas-fired power plant in Egypt, gas terminals in Honduras and Romania, and a floating gas processing unit on China’s east coast. The USTDA declined to provide any information on the projects it has chosen to fund.

One of the agencies working on the gas initiative is the Energy Department. Energy Secretary Rick Perry was on hand to celebrate Poland’s 24-year gas contract with Cheniere last month in Warsaw as part of an LNG-focused tour of Eastern Europe. Perry, who has become an unofficial cheerleader for the natural gas industry, met with Cheniere’s CEO during his first month on the job in 2017. He has also travelled to India and Saudi Arabia, two nations that have purchased gas from Cheniere, to promote LNG. A Cheniere spokesperson declined to comment. The Department of Energy did not respond to requests for comment.

The USTDA initiative offers low stakes and potentially high rewards for partners. An agency document advised prospective participants that there were “no required meetings, no funding requirements, or any other heavy lifting. All you have to do is say you want to be part of the group, and send us your logo for our marketing materials.”

Gas initiative members include the American Petroleum Institute, a trade group that has lobbied extensively for LNG exports, fought against drilling oversight and funded research and marketing efforts disputing climate change. Law firm K&L Gates, which has a dedicated LNG practice, is also taking part in the initiative. API declined to comment on its role in the initiative and K&L did not respond to requests for comment.

Among the first to join the gas initiative was LNG Allies, a trade group that strives to “maximize LNG exports” and has ties to both API and the Independent Petroleum Association of America. The group is operated by Franklin-Hamilton Inc., a private firm wholly owned by public relations consultant Fred Hutchison, who is also the head of LNG Allies. At least through early last year, the embassies of Lithuania, Croatia and the Czech Republic were “informal advisors” to LNG Allies, according to Franklin-Hamilton’s filings with the U.S. Department of Justice. All three countries have raised concerns about Russia’s dominance of the European gas market.

Documents released to the Center for Public Integrity in a records request showed Hutchison acted on USTDA’s behalf to help get the initiative running. In an email to Cheniere, Hutchison wrote, “The USTDA Team I’ve been working with would like to confirm some ‘early partners’ and very much want to include Cheniere on that ‘short List.”‘ In an email to USTDA, he wrote, “I am pleased to let you know that the K&L Gates law firm has agreed to be listed as a partner with USTDA (and LNG Allies) on the U.S. Gas Infrastructure Exports Initiative!”

Agency officials copied Hutchison on dozens of co-ordination emails, many about the launch event. Responding to questions from the Center for Public Integrity, an LNG Allies representative confirmed Hutchison’s involvement but did not elaborate on his current role with the gas initiative. “LNG exports provide hundreds of thousands of U.S. jobs and trillions in domestic economic benefits,” the group wrote in its email reply.

Hutchison was among several industry figures at last year’s launch, where climate change was openly discussed ? not as a Chinese “hoax” or questionable science, but as a sales pitch. The fuel’s low-carbon footprint was cited by panelists as a key reason to buy.

In its email to the Center for Public Integrity, LNG Allies called the research on methane emissions “far from settled.” Asked about the downsides of natural gas, the group had a one-word answer: “None.”

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Jie Jenny Zou is a reporter for the Center for Public Integrity, a non-profit, nonpartisan investigative newsroom in Washington, D.C.

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