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21st Century Jobs in MN
Looking Forward to Clean Energy
Tuesday, May 21 
6:30 p.m. Social and Refreshments
7 p.m. - Program
Brooklyn Park City Hall
City Council Chambers
5200 85th Avenue North
Climate change is causing melting arctic ice, drought leading to higher food prices in the Midwest, more catastrophic storms, food and water shortages in Africa, and rising sea levels flooding low lying Asian Cities and villages. We can do something about it right here in Minnesota. We have an abundance of wind and as much solar as Jacksonville, Florida. Increasing clean energy goals in Minnesota will not only be kinder to the earth, its people, and its animals, it will also create many good paying jobs, and put Minnesota on the path to economic prosperity. Join us to find out how.
 J. Drake Hamilton
Science Policy
Director, Fresh Energy
J. Hamilton is in demand throughout MN to speak on climate change and the enormous benefits of clean renewable energy for MN. Find out how MN is moving ahead on clean energy jobs that generate renewable energy, protect our health, reduce climate change, and keep energy dollars in MN.
 Senator Chris Eaton
The 2013 Solar Energy Jobs Act
Senator Eaton co-sponsored the bill that would make MN a leading state for clean energy and create good paying jobs requiring many different skills. Find out how her bill did in the House and Senate during the legislative session and what the next step will be.
We would like our forums to reflect your interests and concerns. Please feel free to make requests and suggestions for topics and speakers. Contact Gail Hanson,
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or Carol Woehrer,
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Sponsors
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African Civic Engagement Conversation |
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Now it's time for African Immigrants to move from civic spectators to policy makers by taking leadership roles on local park boards, PTA's, philanthropic groups, city commissions, and local governments. That was the main theme of the African Civic Engagement Conversation that took place in May at the Brooklyn Park City Council Chambers. Think Again MN Board members Linda Freemon and Carol Woehrer participated in the planning of the Civic Engagement Conversation.
Brooklyn Park, a city of 77,000, is nearly 50 percent minority. About 21 percent of the city is foreign-born. Brooklyn Center, a city of 30,000, is about 55 percent minority, according to U.S. Census data. About 23 percent of its population is foreign-born.
Read the articles on the Conversation reported in the Star Tribune and Twin Cities Daily Planet:
Brooklyn Park forum: Immigrant and minorities need to step up and take more civic roles
Brooklyn Park African and African-American communities convene 350 leaders for civic engagement
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To Friends Who Joined Us to
Celebrate Cinco de Mayo -
A Big Thank You!
 We would like to extend a big thank you to everyone who attended Think Again MN's Cinco de Mayo Celebration and to those who made donations for our upcoming projects especially the Minnesota Latino initiative. Think Again MN Board member Samuel Verdeja will be visiting Latino communities throughout Minnesota to start forums and civic engagement projects.
The accompanying photos are Samuel's step daughter Wendy Everett and his granddaughter Catalina Martinez who performed dances from different regions of Mexico for us. Everyone appreciated their beautiful dresses and dances and Wendy's excellent description of the origin of the dances.
Founder of the Cinco de Mayo movement in Minnesota, Samuel Verdeja explained the origins of Cinco de Mayo when the Mexicans defeated the French at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. He related how the Cinco de Mayo Fiesta in West St. Paul got started in 1982.
Think Again MN Board member Linda Freemon welcomed everyone at her beautiful home in Brooklyn Park. She and her daughter-in-law from Costa Rica prepared delicious chicken and beef tacos, Program Director Carol Woehrer brought pastries and Tres Leches Cake from the Crystal Panadaria, and Samuel Verdeja provided the margaritas. One of the guests commented on Facebook, "Had a great time celebrating Cinco De Mayo on Saturday. It was a great fundraiser by Think Again MN to support empowering issue forums in the Brooklyns sister cities and throughout Minnesota."
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Inequality
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 All across Corporate America, top executives are accumulating vast wealth while employees lose their jobs, have their wages reduced, and lose their benefits. Peter Drucker, the Austrian born American who founded modern management science, considered excessive executive pay an assault on the good management of enterprise.
Ford employees have seen their pay decline from $28 an hour to $19 along with giving up cost of living increases and health benefits. Though the decline in compensation is considered absolutely necessary for Ford employees, CEO Alan Mulally apparently does not think such an emphasis on austerity applies to his own compensation. His pay package alone for 2012 was $21 million. In addition, in 6 years, he has amassed $300 million in Ford stock.
Such excessive executive pay made possible by decline in the financial well being of workers is not tolerated in other countries. The financial compensation of Toyota CEO, Akio Toyoda, in comparison, was $1.48 million. In France, the newly elected government of President François Hollande placed a cap equivalent to about $580,000 on executive pay at the 52 companies where the French government holds a majority stake. This is about 20 times the average pay of French workers at the lowest 10% of wages. A whopping 83 percent of the French public supported limiting maximum pay for all CEO's. Peter Drucker himself recommended that executive pay be no more than 20 to 25 that of workers.
See the article by Sam Pizzigati: "The Bailouts Taxpayers Seldom Ever Notice."
Sam Pizzigati edits Too Much, the online weekly on excess and inequality published by the Washington, D.C.-based Institute for Policy Studies. His latest book, The Rich Don’t Always Win: The Forgotten Triumph over Plutocracy that Created the American Middle Class, 1900-1970, has just been published.
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Inequality
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The “working poor” ... are in fact the major philanthropists of our society. They neglect their own children so that the children of others will be cared for; they live in substandard housing so that other homes will be shiny and perfect; they endure privation so that inflation will be low and stock prices high. To be a member of the working poor is to be an anonymous donor, a nameless benefactor, to everyone else.
Barbara Ehrenreich, Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America
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Solar Energy
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How a Country With One of the World's
Largest Economies Is Ditching Fossil Fuels
Tara DePorte writes that the German energy transformation called "Energiewende" has all the signs of a modern miracle: a commitment from all political parties, from the most conservative to the most liberal, to shift the world's fourth largest economy to 80% renewable energy by 2050. While Germany has nowhere near the wind and solar resources of Minnesota, it expects to reach 35% renewable power by 2020 and could reach 40%.
Germans who install solar panels can sell surplus power back into the power grid at a rate guaranteed for 20 years. This guaranteed payment, called a "feed in tariff" engages the German public in the transition to clean energy, while creating a more decentralized system of energy production and increasing the energy independence of Germany. While the U.S. media continues to ignore climate science consensus and debates the existence of manmade climate change, the German media and public are on the road to energy independence and rapidly cutting their climate impacts. Find out what has enabled Germany to make remarkable progress on transitioning to a clean energy economy in these two articles:
"How a Country with One of the World's Largest Economies is Ditching Fossil Fuels"
"What Germany Can Teach Americans about Transforming our Energy Systems"
To learn how Germany has made this remarkable progress toward clean energy, and how Minnesota could too, read Clean Break by Journalist Osha Gray Davidson. Clean Break is the story of how German citizens led the transition to clean energy from the bottom up and democratized the electric system in the process. 65% of Germany's renewable energy is owned by individuals, cooperatives, or communities. Download this inspiring story for $1.
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Achievement Gap Committee Early Childhood Education Forums
Governor Dayton has proposed new funding for early child care and education in his budget. To inform the public, the Achievement Gap Committee organized forums to highlight current research and practice around early care and education, particularly as it relates to closing the achievement gap. Use the links below to watch the videos of these forums.
Forum 1: Exploring “Quality” Care: What does quality look like, is it the same across cultures, and do state investments in quality have a long-term benefit or fade out with time?
 Rob Grunewald, associate economist, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, Focusing on “fade out”: Do early childhood investments have long-term benefits, and if so, how?
Kathryn Tout, co-director, early childhood research, Child Trends: What have we learned about quality early care from MN research and pilot programs, and how do we take quality to scale?
Betty Emarita, founder/president, Development and Training Resources: Does quality early care look the same across cultures, and what do we know about cultural best practices?
See John Risken's Video for the first forum
Forum 2: What is Minnesota’s plan for increasing access to quality early childhood education, and how is it working in communities of color?
 Karen Cadigan, Director of the Office of Early Learning: How does Parent Aware improve early education programs’ quality, family support, K-12 alignment, and accountability?
Bao Vang, Community Outreach and Quality Coach with Think Small: Is Parent Aware meeting the needs of new immigrant families and those who are English Language Learners?
Barb Fabre, Director of Child Care and Early Childhood Programs, White Earth Reservation: Does Parent Aware work for Native American families?
See the article about the second forum: "Early childhood education: What does culture have to do with it?"
See the video: MN's Plan for Increasing Access to Early Childhood Education
Background:
For background on the huge benefits of quality early childhood education for the public, families, and the lifelong development of the children who receive it, see the 30 minute Real Progress TV interview with Art Rolnick, U of M Humphrey School Fellow and former Federal Reserve Economist.
The Achievement Gap Committee sponsors monthly forums with experts on education and ways to close the achievement gap. It was started six years ago by former Mayor of Minneapolis and U.S. Congressman Don Fraser in response to Minnesota's having one of the highest achievement gaps in the U.S. The Convenors are Don Fraser and Grant Abbott
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