Problem: New York City Education
Summary and Planning:
The articles below really come together to show that even though inner city schools have thousands of in need children, the infrastructure of the schools are not built up to set up the kids for success. New York City has the highest population in a city in the US, yet the governments serving them are not doing them justice by not providing them with the funding they need to prosper educationally. New York prides themselves on their educational standards, but when it comes to inner city schools in need, they let them fall by neglecting them without funding.
Planning as an advocate in this situation would be extremely helpful and strategic. The reason these schools have not been remodeled is because the people inhabiting them aren’t being heard and no one is taking control of that responsibility. The people really need a voice to be heard in order to get support for the funding and grants to pay for the new schools being planned for. Since there is such little support for such a big project, they need an expert to back their needs. An advocate planner can accomplish all these priorities.
Approaching the issue from the standpoint as a consensus builder might be effective in helping shine light on the public schools of New York City and its burrows. The issues vary a lot depending on where you are in the city. A consensus builder may help by educating policy makers on the problem and offering some solutions to help the crumbling infrastructure of these inner-city schools. A downside to using this method would be the possibility of the officials doing nothing. Another downside would be the chance for bias and more harm when getting the publics opinion and forming statistics. The chance for bias and possibly advocacy against a plan may hurt the crumbling infrastructure even more.
Articles:
https://www.chalkbeat.org/posts/ny/2019/01/17/struggling-schools-nyc-essa/
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/05/opinion/the-central-crisis-in-new-york-education.html
https://wibx950.com/how-bad-are-new-yorks-schools-and-teachers-really/
Problem: Traffic in LA
Summary and Planning:
These articles highlight the traffic issue in Los Angeles, CA USA. These articles recognize the problem, some even going as far as ranking LA as the worst place for traffic congestion in the United Sates. Drivers and commuters in LA can experience hours in traffic and significant losses in gas, therefore wasting on average $2,800 per year. The articles also mention shocking statistics for how long a person spends in traffic (9 days each year alone). While a congestion level of 45% does not seem that high, the statistics stated show the dramatic effect of traffic congestion at the current level.
We believe the best style of planning to fix the problem is entrepreneurial. This style of planning is strategic and task oriented. These two ideologies are crucial when dealing with public transportation and the effectiveness of roadways. However, with this style comes some drawbacks. Planners who use this style can be distracted by the heavy business aspects and lose sight of the overall wellbeing of the population, and out of the box thinking required to fix the problem. An entrepreneurial planner may suggest things such as increased public transportation, or a special lane designated for paying drivers.
Another solution would be approaching this problem would be using radical planning to enact change. To use radical planning, one could file a lawsuit against the city, and/or organize protests to create awareness for need of an effective, reliable public transit system. Another reason this viewpoint might be addressed is from the angle of climate change. Protestors could express how the traffic in Los Angeles contributes to the warming of the planet and that a public transit system would be much less damaging on our environment. A downside to using this approach would be the fact that it could do nothing. Without facts and neutral opinions, it may hurt the development of a massive public transit or other ways to alleviate congested traffic. It may hurt it by not providing a detailed plan on what the government should do in some cases.
Articles:
https://usp100la.weebly.com/history-of-transportation.html
https://www.dailynews.com/2018/04/19/los-angeles-has-the-worlds-worst-traffic-congestion-again/