A Hip Hop Department at Duke University?

Mar 28, 2024 | Arts, Culture, and Entertainment Signals

Beverly French, Arts, Culture and Entertainment Signals Team

Imagine a university music department offering, under one roof, transformative artistic encounters musical practices that include beatboxing, beat-making, Djing, dance, fashion, poetry, theater, and visual arts. Mark Katz, Professor of Music at UNC-Chapel Hill, challenges higher education in his article called 2040 Vision:  What will Arts Education Look Like in the Triangle 20 Years From Now?  He suggests we might find “The 9th Wonder Department of Hip Hop” at Duke University.  Professor Katz is proposing a fundamental change in the way universities teach music and the arts in general. Learn about Duke University.

 

Gas stations in space? Apparently so.

Mar 28, 2024 | Upward Mobility Signals

Judy Nagel, Upward Mobility Signals Team

Fifteen thousand satellites have been sent to space since 1957, and only half are still working. Others are floating uselessly or have burned up. Orbit Fab is now building gas stations in space, providing hydrazine, the most common fuel for satellites.  Read more on satellites.

Latino Futures and Shared Prosperity

Mar 3, 2024 | Upward Mobility Signals

Judy Nagel, Upward Mobility Signals

Assertion: The United States is the most powerful country in the world. We do not need to change our policies.

Twenty years ago, the US made up 46.9% of world capitalization, by 2020 the share of world capitalization had increased to 54.6%The United States is first in world nominal GDP at 40.7% with China at 34.27%. China is first in PPP (purchasing power parity) GDP since 2014. Continue Reading Here

What powers Google data centers?

Feb 20, 2024 | Signals to Watch

Judy Nagel, Upward Mobility Signals Team

Google has initiated a first-of-its-kind approach to powering its data centers –
geothermal energy! With the goal of accelerating a clean energy transition on a
planetary scale, Google has pioneered a horizontal drilling method. It uses new
techniques to harness the consistent heat from within the Earth’s crust and generate
electricity without burning fossil fuels or releasing carbon into the atmosphere. More on energy.

A State Corrections System for 2033

Jan 30, 2024 | Upward Mobility Signals

Jim Golembeski, Upward Mobility Signals Team

Historically, prison conditions in America are not a pretty picture. Wisconsin continues to spend an enormous amount of taxpayer dollars on a system that is inhumane and a vicious cycle for those caught up in it. The current situation at the Green Bay and Waupun prisons has been gaining a lot of media attention. So I ask, what is the single biggest reason that people are sentenced to prison in Wisconsin? Read more about our State Corrections System

Who is Our Customer? looking forward by looking within

Jan 30, 2024 | Envision Success Stories

Kent Paulsen, Director of the Dudley Birder Chorale

In fall 2024, the Dudley Birder Chorale of St. Norbert College will celebrate its fiftieth anniversary, and,
like most 50-year-olds, we of the Chorale find ourselves in a collective mid-life crisis! We could clearly
see a possible future of “decline and collapse.” Our board officers enrolled in Envision’s strategic
foresight training to consider the future of our organization, and, in a wider context, the future of
performing arts among community groups. Two major insights emerged as we went through the
foresight process. Read about Who is our Customer here.