Episodes

  • The Banks We Deserve

    The Banks We Deserve
    Mar 12 2025
    Oscar Perry Abello’s new book, “The Banks We Deserve,” shows how banks’ money-creation power can be democratized. Helping communities tap into that power could address our climate, housing and economic crises.
    Show more Show less
    36 mins
  • Fixing the Housing Crisis Goes Beyond Building More Units

    Fixing the Housing Crisis Goes Beyond Building More Units
    Mar 5 2025
    The housing crisis isn’t just about supply. This episode explores innovative solutions like community land trusts, tenant protections, and expanded assistance programs that are making homes affordable — and keeping them that way.
    Show more Show less
    37 mins
  • Happy Presidents' Day!

    Happy Presidents' Day!
    Feb 19 2025
    This is Lucas Grindley from Next City, a show about changemakers and their stories. We’re off this week but we’ll be back next Wednesday with more inspiring and workable ideas that move our society toward justice and equity.

    If you can’t wait for the next story, head to NextCity.org for the latest coverage.

    As always, we’d love to hear any feedback from our listeners. Please feel free to email us at info@nextcity.org. And if you haven’t already, subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, Goodpods or anywhere you listen to your podcasts. We’ll see you next week.

    Show more Show less
    1 min
  • Inside the Fight to Save LGBTQ Landmarks and Culture

    Inside the Fight to Save LGBTQ Landmarks and Culture
    Feb 12 2025
    Preserving the stories and spaces that define LGBTQ communities is an act of resilience and resistance. Hear from designers, historians, and activists about the vital work of safeguarding these cultural landmarks and ensuring their legacy endures.
    Show more Show less
    37 mins
  • The Intersection of Philanthropy, Storytelling, and Racial Justice

    The Intersection of Philanthropy, Storytelling, and Racial Justice
    Feb 5 2025
    Stories shape how we see the world. In this episode, we bring together philanthropic leaders to explore how funders are relying on journalism to dismantle harmful narratives, amplify underrepresented voices and create equitable communities.

    If you know Next City, it'll come as no surprise that we believe journalism can be a powerful vehicle for racial justice. Here in the nonprofit media world, we've seen countless examples of how philanthropy can help fund that change by funding impactful, community-driven journalism. And it's not just media funders – increasingly funders who might not traditionally focus on media are leveraging storytelling to advance their broader missions of inclusive economies, cultural preservation, health equity and more.

    “We think of narrative control as a precondition for long-term change,” says Inés Familiar Miller, program officer at the Kresge Foundation's Arts & Culture Program. “Seeing real people can combat some of those negative narratives where someone else is telling you the story of the immigrant community, of the Black community, of the Indigenous community. It's just not the full picture. And once you hear directly from the people … it could provide like a very different perspective.”

    In this conversation, we hear from several funders of Next City's funders, including Miller, Surdna Foundation's Vice President of Programs Patrice R. Green, and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Director of Media Relations Jordan Reese, who describe their strategy in funding journalism and media. We also hear from Karen Rundlet, CEO of the Institute for Nonprofit News, on the need to view our country's journalism infrastructure as a public good.
    Show more Show less
    34 mins
  • Emergent City: A Decade-Long Fight Against Displacement

    Emergent City: A Decade-Long Fight Against Displacement
    Jan 29 2025
    What happens when a Brooklyn neighborhood takes on deep-pocketed developers? In this episode, we talk to the directors of "Emergent City" and the organizers who fought to preserve Sunset Park’s future.

    “Emergent City” (emergentcitydoc.com) documents the 10-year saga of how Brooklyn's Sunset Park community came together to fight a rezoning wanted by deep-pocketed developers. Against all odds, residents won. Filmmakers were there from the very beginning, when developers proposed transforming Industry City, a sprawling industrial site on the Brooklyn waterfront, into a high-end retail and office complex – or, as some residents put it, a “mall.” They were there when Sunset Park residents protested that the Industry City complex, if it won rezoning, would accelerate gentrification and displacement in a neighborhood where about 70% of households are renters. They were there for some 200 days of public meetings.

    By the way—this is our 100th episode! Thank you to everyone who has listened over the years. If you'd like to support and celebrate this work, please visit nextcity.org/donate to pitch in.
    Show more Show less
    34 mins
  • One Way Cities Are Welcoming Immigrants

    One Way Cities Are Welcoming Immigrants
    Jan 15 2025
    IDs aren’t just about identification — they’re about connection. This episode dives into the power of municipal ID programs to foster trust and open doors. We learn from successful programs in two very different cities — New York City and Greensboro, N.C. — that strive to be inclusive.

    For undocumented and underdocumented residents, not having an ID can mean being excluded from all kinds of basic services. You can't drive or open a bank account without an ID. You may be afraid to report crimes to law enforcement. The list goes on.

    But a few cities across the U.S. are experimenting with municipal ID programs — a simple form of ID that provides anyone, including undocumented residents and the unhoused, a way to access essential parts of their cities. In today's episode, we're learning about Greensboro, North Carolina's FaithAction ID initiative as well as New York City's IDNYC program. Both programs were born out of collaboration between nonprofits, police departments and local governments – and both have been replicated by other municipalities across the country.

    “A lot of the clients that come in, sometimes they've recently arrived to Greensboro,” says Araceli Lopez, a community nurse who works at Faith Action International House and helps people get a FaithAction ID card to be able to access medical care. “Maybe five days ago that they just arrived, and they've been having chronic health conditions. The first thing I will ask them if it is if they have an ID, and sometimes they've lost everything on their journey here.”
    Show more Show less
    32 mins
  • Crushing Medical Debt: The Movement to Revolutionize Healthcare Access

    Crushing Medical Debt: The Movement to Revolutionize Healthcare Access
    Jan 8 2025
    In the United States, medical debt isn’t just a financial burden; it’s a reflection of deeper systemic inequities that force individuals to take on “survival debt” — debt incurred just to meet basic needs like health care. Today, Mayor Carter joins us alongside Allison Sesso, the Executive Director of Undue Medical Debt, to explore how cities can lead the charge in addressing medical debt — and what it means to rethink our systems of care, equity, and economic justice.

    St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter joins us alongside Allison Sesso of Undue Medical Debt to explore how cities can lead the charge in addressing medical debt — and what it means to rethink our systems of care, equity, and economic justice.

    This week, in the final days of the Biden administration, the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a rule to prevent medical debt from being included in credit scores. It's a reminder that in medical debt isn’t just a financial burden; it’s a reflection of deeper systemic inequities that force individuals to take on “survival debt” — debt incurred just to meet basic needs like health care – and can impact their lives for years to come.

    That's why more and more cities, counties and states have been pairing up with the national nonprofit Undue Medical Debt to purchase their residents' debt portfolios from collectors and healthcare providers – and then forgiving the debts en masse, paying mere pennies on the dollar to provide serious financial relief. Many have been using federal funds from the American Rescue Plan to do so.

    “We have folks who look at us and say, this doesn't solve health care,” says St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, who worked with Undue Medical Debt to erase $100 million in medical debt for thousands of residents. “And I go, no, that's absolutely accurate. This doesn't solve health care for the planet, for the country, for even our city. It does provide a real, clear breath of fresh air for a whole lot of people who need it right now.”
    Show more Show less
    33 mins