Follow the Data Podcast: Times Square – The World’s Plaza
July 29, 2019
This spring, officials celebrated the 10-year anniversary of the Broadway pedestrian plaza in Times Square. Before 2009, Times Square was mainly reserved for cars -- offering little to no pedestrian space. The streets and sidewalks were infamous for being cluttered and congested by traffic. Today, Broadway through Times Square is a lively pedestrianized plaza, with space for people to walk, sit, eat and soak in the city. Our guests today, Janette Sadik-Khan and Andy Wiley-Schwartz have special insight into the transformation of the iconic street into a plaza. Formerly the Commissioner of New York City’s Department of Transportation under Mayor Mike Bloomberg, Janette now leads the transportation team at Bloomberg Associates. Andy served as Assistant Commissioner for Public Space in New York, joining the Bloomberg Associates team after leaving city hall. They take their expertise from working in New York to other cities, like Milan, Bogotá, Athens and Detroit.
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Follow the Data Podcast: Mike Bloomberg 2019 NAACP Convention Remarks
July 25, 2019
The mission of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is to ensure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights of all persons and to eliminate race-based discrimination. The 110th Annual Convention brought together over 10,000 people and under the theme, “When We Fight, We Win,” the group set policy priorities for the coming year. Mike Bloomberg delivered the keynote address at this year’s convention, on the importance of education. He highlighted the need to prioritize education as a path to equality and equity, supporting parent’s involvement in schooling and underscored that education is the key to tackling our biggest challenges.
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Follow the Data Podcast: Census Series – The City of Detroit
July 15, 2019
The first episode of our census series was dedicated to the basics: who gets counted, what the survey is, when it takes place, why it matters, and how cities are preparing for the census. To get a sense of specific preparation plans, we visited a Bloomberg Associates’ client city, Detroit, Michigan. The Mayor of Detroit, Mike Duggan, spoke to Bloomberg Associates Municipal Integrity Principal, Rose Gill Hearn, about his experience with the count, challenges that are specific to Detroit, the extensive efforts Detroit is making to prepare for the count and how he defines success.
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Follow the Data Podcast: Census Series – The Who, What, When, Where, Why
June 24, 2019
In order to be managed, data needs to be collected. One of the largest data collection efforts in the United States is fast approaching; cities and states are gearing up for the 2020 census. Bloomberg Associates, a philanthropic consultancy that works with cities across the world, is advising Detroit and Atlanta to prepare for the decennial survey. Jaime Lavin of Bloomberg Associates municipal integrity team spoke to our podcast host, Katherine Oliver, about the history of the census, how to prepare, and potential challenges in the 2020 count.
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Follow the Data Podcast: Global Health Check-Up with Dr. Kelly Henning
June 17, 2019
Tobacco is a deadly killer, claiming over seven million lives every year, with most of the deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries. Mike Bloomberg has been committed to tobacco control since first entering office as New York City Mayor, and Bloomberg Philanthropies has invested one billion dollars to help implement tobacco control measures. Dr. Kelly Henning leads Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Public Health programs. She’s been on the road, visiting countries across the world, as part of a “global health check-up.” She spoke to the foundation’s operations lead, Allison Jaffin, about the progress countries are making, sharing lessons learned and stories from the road.
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Follow the Data Podcast: Mike Bloomberg Delivers Commencement Address at MIT
June 10, 2019
In his final commencement of 2019, Mike Bloomberg addressed the graduating class of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He highlighted the need for ambitious leadership, especially in the fight to combat climate change. In his speech, Mike announced a new $500 million investment, called Beyond Carbon, to put the U.S. on track towards a 100% clean energy economy. The investment is the largest ever philanthropic effort to fight the climate crisis. To learn more about Beyond Carbon, visit BeyondCarbon.org.
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Follow the Data Podcast: Mike Bloomberg Class Day Remarks at Harvard Business School
May 30, 2019
Mike Bloomberg spoke to the 2019 graduating class of Harvard Business School. As an alumnus, he spoke with special fondness about growing up in nearby Medford, MA, his early career, and what he’s learned since then.
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Follow the Data Podcast: Mike Bloomberg Commencement Address at University of Maryland
May 28, 2019
The celebration of graduates across the world serve as a reminder never to doubt that young people have the power to change the world. Mike Bloomberg spoke to the graduating class of 2019 at the University of Maryland. He remarked how in order to meet the challenges of our time, we must be willing to take risks in defiance of long odds. Additionally, he announced a $2.3 million dollar commitment to support research illustrating U.S. progress towards Paris Agreement goals.
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Follow the Data Podcast: Mike Bloomberg Commencement Address at Washington University in St. Louis
May 20, 2019
This spring, graduates all over the world are celebrating their academic achievements. Mike Bloomberg spoke to the graduating class of 2019 at Washington University in St. Louis. In his commencement address, he remarked on the importance of taking pains to bring truth to light – by reclaiming civic dialogue from those who are debasing and degrading it.
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Follow the Data Podcast: The Innovative Mayor, Naheed Nenshi
May 13, 2019
In this episode of Follow the Data, Mayor Nenshi and James discuss how his experience as a professor and business consultant have informed his approach to the job of being mayor, the “simple social movement” happening in Calgary that’s improving the city’s schools and neighborhoods, and why it’s important for political leaders to talk about pluralism. Additionally, they discuss Calgary’s participation in the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative and the “life-changing career moments” it’s created for a number of Calgary’s civil servants.
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