Charlotte Viewpoint - Archive No. 24 - October 5, 2024 - Resilience

Photo: AOL Letter from the Founder Western North Carolina is digging out of catastrophic damage brought by days of rain and Hurricane Helene. Carolinians are rallying to provide life saving support to residents. Our quality of life is tied together.  How much a particular weather event is due to climate change is an open question, but there is no doubt about the aggregate data: the planet is warming significantly, generating more frequent and devastating storms. In 2006, we published 'Smart Energy - Becoming Cool" by Anthony Foxx, then Mayor of the City of Charlotte, reporting on bold initiatives then underway to mitigate environmental damage and bring clean energy to the city.  This week the Confluence Music Conference - Charlotte's premier music industry conference and festival - returns to explore and celebrate Charlotte's music scene. Should local music critics "support local music" as an unspoken rule?  In 2014, Bryan Reed addressed the question in his column entitled "Trivial Pursuit."  We also include "Slow Words Movement Thriving at Charlotte Lit," a 2016 article by Kimberly Lawson about The Charlotte Center for Literary Arts, a vital and favorite arts organization supporting writers and engaging readers,   Don't miss "Of Dead Sea Salt and Undies" by Mary Struble Deery, a short story about shopping and desire, an artist gallery by Jonathan Webber, and two of our PDF magazines from 2009 and 2004.  To dare and endure, Mark Peres Charlotte Viewpoint Founder The Charlotte Center Founder & Executive Director From the Archive Smart Energy – Becoming Cool June 6, 2006 by Anthony Foxx The environment has become a top priority for the Charlotte City Council with the addition of an Environmental Committee to the Council’s regular business. As chair of this committee, I am hopeful that Charlotte will continue to make progress toward protecting our air and water quality, making good land use decisions and conserving natural resources and energy. I’m feeling optimistic (despite the now routine headlines about the threat of a rapidly warming planet and other impending environmental disasters) because I know that local leadership can make a big difference. The overwhelming majority of scientists have now conclusively demonstrated that the planet has entered an artificial warming trend, due to the burning of fossil fuels in our homes, cars and industries. But the question of how to move past petroleum is a discouraging one. Keep Reading City Life From 2014: Trivial Pursuit by Bryan Reed Supporting local music only because it’s local isn’t really helping. In the years I’ve spent writing about music publicly, I have been praised for supporting the scene and denounced for antagonizing it, in roughly equal measure. Tellingly, whether somebody voices a compliment or complaint correlates exactly to whether something I wrote about their band (or their friend’s band) was favorable or not. Read the Story Arts & Culture From 2016: Slow Words Movement Thriving by Kimberly Lawson Most contemporary writers are pretty humble folks. We understand it’s asking a lot of people to read our words, especially when they can instead scroll their social media feeds for an escape, or binge-watch The Walking Dead or Game of Thrones for a thrill. Last year, one author told me during an interview for a story previewing his upcoming novel reading: “I’m going to stand up and read from a book I wrote for 10 minutes. It sounds really preposterous when you try to explain it to people.” Read the Story Fiction & Poetry From 2013: Of Dead Sea Salt and Undies by Mary Struble Deery Those folks who hawk goods in the mall concourse really take the fun out of shopping. But I go anyway, because that’s where the store is that sells the kind of undies I like. I’m not fussy about much, but I am about my undies. On sale – seven pairs for $35. That’s my language. Read the Story Artist Gallery From 2005: Jonathan Webber by Jonathan Webber Jonathan Webber resists labels, which may be why he has had so many: photographer, artist, printer, archaeologist, reader, writer, and the guy who knows the book you want without looking it up. The label he wears most proudly is "Dad." View the Gallery Read Past Issues June 2010 Issue March 2004 Issue About Charlotte Viewpoint Charlotte Viewpoint is a magazine about the city and culture of the Charlotte region that ran from 2003-2016. Charlotte Viewpoint published civic and cultural commentary and programmed events about Charlotte for engaged citizens to nurture creative capital, elevate civic discourse and promote intellectual and artistic excellence in the Charlotte region. charlotteviewpoint.org Read More brought to you by: View Past Archive Newsletters You’re receiving this e-mail because you signed up for the The Charlotte Center newsletter. Thanks for reading. Let us know your thoughts about today’s edition. We invite you to share this newsletter with a friend. Sign up for this newsletter here. Design by Maddy Stevens Charlotte Viewpoint has been archived by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Library Robinson-Spangler Carolina Room for its historical significance.