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Action Steps

How My Sister and I Are Building Houses in Grand Marais

"We don’t build for new people moving into the community, but for the ones already here who are struggling to stay due to costs growing out of their reach. Many people we know have already left due to lack of affordable housing."
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Sue Watlov Phillips. Photo by Sarah Whiting

DEEP DIVE: Why Housing Gaps Are a Central Issue in Society

When I began this work nearly 59 years ago, the landscape was very different. We demolished large amounts of low-cost housing and built office buildings, many of which now sit underused or vacant. At the same time, we began to shift our mental health system, but we failed to build the housing and supports necessary to make that transition successful.
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Consumer Boycotts Reflect Who Actually Controls the Economy

GEO Group, CoreCivic, and CSI Aviation — some of the country’s largest private prison and deportation contractors — gave Trump close to $5 million and received over $5 billion in revenue. Consumer boycotts are designed to showcase other values. Said one, who was arrested for a sit-in protest at Target: "Everyday people are doing their part. We are asking why large corporations will not.”
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Ellie Krug on How to Open Vulnerability and Compassion

“In many spaces, I am the first transgender person they've ever met. For me, that's a great responsibility, so I'm always trying to set the right tone to let people know that I'm really just like them.”
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Changemaker: Outspoken PFAS critic Amara Strande, who died from cancer in 2023

Originally published May 3, 2023 The photos displayed…
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Minnesota Women Labor Journalists Uplifted Working People for Decades

I’m still learning about the writers I’ve mentioned here, many of whom are left out of the usual lists of pioneering journalists and women.
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39

A big event to connect engaged feminists who care about solutions and action
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Santa list

A Place for the Holidays After Foster Care

It might be easy to take for granted what…
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Rescue family

Little Rescue on the Prairie

I have been involved in animal rescue in…
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Veronica Mendez Martinez

A Conversation with Veronica Mendez Moore of CTUL

“My boss said we don’t do that here.” Others heard, “That passed, but it’s not for Latinos.” A law is just a piece of paper unless people can enforce it.
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Diving Deep Into Minnesota Waters (Part 1)

As our Changemakers Alliance (CALL) newsletter reported in May, we visited Lewiston in southeastern Minnesota for a town hall forum about the water quality issues there. In this deep dive story, we will offer details about statewide water quality issues — such as runoff from agriculture and cancerous toxicity dangers. The next installment will include advocacy updates from local advocates working on solutions.
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Deep Dive: Filling Gaps in Public Safety 

The most prevalent issues in community safety include domestic violence, as well as lack of options for treating mental health crises and addictions. This is a deep look at how Minnesota families and neighborhoods are impacted by these often-overlooked issues of public safety, and how Minnesotans can address these issues in a more comprehensive way than what policing is able to handle due to lack of personnel, attention, or training.
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The Value of Sharing Neighborhood Stories in Duluth

People in the Hillside feel a great sense of pride, vibrancy, and beauty, while at the same time they recognize significant challenges, dangers, and concerns.
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Cake Therapy: Baking the Way to Change

When you get into the rhythm of baking and creating cake designs, it takes you out of your mind and into the silence of a safe space.
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The Emerging Story of Brooklyn Center

How community leadership led to funding and citywide engagement
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