An Exploration of Three Pittsburgh Neighborhoods Begins with Homewood
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
THE MAGAZINE OF THE HEINZ ENDOWMENTS COMMUNITY CHRONICLES: Issue 1 2018 AN EXPLORATION OF THREE PITTSBURGH NEIGHBORHOODS BEGINS WITH HOMEWOOD 65695.indd C1 8/23/18 9:56 AM INSIDEISSUE 1 2018 6 FEATURE: IN THE NEIGHBORHOODS In a three-part series, h magazine travels to the Pittsburgh neighborhoods of Homewood, Hazelwood and the Hill District, where The Heinz Endowments and other philanthropies are partnering with residents and local organizations to build on assets and expand opportunities. The fi rst stop is Homewood, a neighborhood at the eastern end of the city where entrepreneurs and artists are working to redefi ne the community. Board of Directors The Heinz Endowments was formed from the Howard Heinz Endowment, established in 1941, and the Vira I. Heinz Endowment, established in 1986. It is the product of a deep family commitment André T. Heinz to community and the common good that began with H.J. Heinz, and that continues to this day. Chairman The Endowments is based in Pittsburgh, where we use our region as a laboratory for the development of solutions to challenges that are national in scope. Although the majority of our Teresa Heinz giving is concentrated within southwestern Pennsylvania, we work wherever necessary, including Chair Emeritus state wide and nationally, to fulfi ll our mission. James M. Walton That mission is to help our region become a just and equitable community in which all of its Vice Chairman Emeritus citizens thrive economically, ecologically, educationally, socially and culturally. We also seek to advance knowledge and practice in the fi eld of philanthropy through strategies that focus on our Christopher D. Heinz priorities of Creativity, Learning and Sustainability. John Heinz In life, Howard Heinz and Vira I. Heinz set high expectations for their philanthropy. Today, the Sasha L. Heinz Endowments is committed to doing the same. Our charge is to be diligent, thoughtful and creative María Marteinsdóttir in continually working to set new standards of philanthropic excellence. Recognizing that none of Damon Aherne our work would be possible without a sound fi nancial base, we also are committed to preserving Carol R. Brown and enhancing the Endowments’ assets through prudent investment management. Jared L. Cohon h magazine is a publication of The Heinz Endowments. At the Endowments, we are committed Judith M. Davenport to promoting learning in philanthropy and in the specifi c fi elds represented by our grantmaking Franco Harris programs. As an expression of that commitment, this publication is intended to share information Wendy Mackenzie about signifi cant lessons and insights we are deriving from our work. Shirley M. Malcom James E. Rohr Editorial team Linda Braund, John Ellis, Donna Evans Sebastian, Carmen Lee, Grant Oliphant, Scott Roller, Courtney Tolmer. Design: Landesberg Design About the cover Visual and performance artist Vanessa German created the whimsically colorful Art House in Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood, where she welcomes local children to join her in indulging their imagination and creativity. Photo by Sam Fairchild. 65695.indd C2 8/23/18 9:56 AM 2 40 2 20 34 TECHNOLOGY SHIFT ENTREPRENEURIAL ENERGY STATE OF THE ARTS As the Pittsburgh region takes the stage as a Economic development is critical to revitalization Integral to revitalization eff orts in Homewood leader in technology innovation and artifi cial eff orts in Homewood, with philanthropic support are artists and arts organizations whose intelligence, making sure today’s local workers given to local entrepreneurs to ensure their stake work brings vibrancy, enthusiasm and hope have a role in this new future is a priority. in the community’s success. to the community. 8 24 40 15208 IN THE HOUSE THE WRITE PLACE Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood is Tyree Allie used to keep to himself before Within the City of Pittsburgh is the City of reinventing itself, reviving the dreams of attending the Lighthouse Project at the Asylum, which brings together international longtime residents, engaging newcomers, Homewood-Brushton YMCA, but now he creates writers fl eeing persecution with local artists and partnering with civic and philanthropic and produces music, opening up new lines of and art lovers to create a lively and creative allies to propel the community forward. communication to his peers and teachers. community that enriches everyone. 14 28 46 HERE AND THERE STRENGTHENING FAMILY TIES GROWING GREEN ACTIVISTS An array of support services being off ered in An increasing number of Homewood residents Homewood provide parents like Shaquala are fi nding that a key component of improving Venson and Dorian Page options for addressing their quality of life involves creating an the needs of their families at any given time environmentally healthy community for and under a variety of circumstances. themselves and their families. 65695.indd 1 8/23/18 9:56 AM 65695.indd 2 8/23/18 9:56 AM 3 TECHNOL0GYconomist Lee Branstetter knows that artifi cial heightened productivity and competitiveness, new intelligence, robotics, autonomous vehicles products, new markets and new jobs. Technological and other transformative technologies are disruption also has eliminated entire occupations Epoised to profoundly disrupt the economy and increased demand for better-educated, higher- and workforce across the region, nation and world. skilled workers. And it has sentenced those not And he has a ringside seat from which to watch equipped to meet those demands to economic it unfold. hardship and dim prospects. “My computer science colleagues believe this Desktop publishing software, for example, will be a big deal in the longer run, and all sectors replaced entire newspaper composing room of the economy will be utilizing these new technolo- departments, eliminating typesetting jobs. More gies,” said Mr. Branstetter, a professor of economics than 150,000 manufacturing jobs in the Pittsburgh and public policy and the director of the Center for region disappeared when the local steel industry col- the Future of Work at Carnegie Mellon University, lapsed under the pressure of technological change, where much of the groundbreaking science in those weak demand and global competition. It triggered fi elds is taking place. an exodus of mostly young adults in search of job “We have some time to put into place policies opportunities elsewhere. that could cushion the impact on people who are But Mr. Branstetter and others believe that likely to be vulnerable to these changes.” doesn’t have to be the case this time around. “We Uber’s self-driving Volvos already roll along have an opportunity to look ahead, fi gure out where Pittsburgh streets and practice on a test track in the next disruption is likely to occur and, for once, Hazelwood Green, where a sustainable commu- actually be ready with public policy interventions nity is rising from the brownfi eld that had been that can make the next round of disruptive impacts the Jones & Laughlin steel mill. A few acres away, much less hurtful and more benefi cial.” what remains of J&L’s Mill 19 is being reborn as a SHIFT An increasing number of southwestern brain center of new technologies that includes the THE PITTSBURGH REGION Pennsylvania stakeholders are embracing the chal- Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing Institute, a IS BECOMING A LEADER lenge, such as companies, universities and colleges, $250 million public–private collaborative founded IN AUTOMATION AND economic development groups, and foundations, by CMU to push the boundaries of automation in including The Heinz Endowments. Of particular U.S. industry. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE. interest to the Endowments is supporting ways to In fact, innovations emerging from Pittsburgh’s BUT EFFORTS ARE improve the prospects of people already struggling companies and its major research universities, CMU UNDERWAY TO ENSURE THAT, to fi nd a place in the region’s economic resurgence and the University of Pittsburgh, have cast the AS THE TECHNOLOGY and to prepare them for the technological advances region as a leading center of invention in the fi elds ADVANCES, LOCAL that are ahead. of automation, advanced robotics, autonomous “At the same time our city and region are wak- vehicles, 3D printing and genomics. WORKERS DON’T GET ing up to a more robust economic future, we see The history of such far-reaching, technology- LEFT BEHIND. under-educated portions of our population losing driven change is rife with examples of the economic BY JEFFERY FRASER the on-ramps to those industry clusters,” said Rob benefi ts that have followed in its wake, including Stephany, the Endowments’ director of Community Jeff Fraser is a Pittsburgh-based freelance writer and frequent contributor to h. He was among a group of writers who recorded, compiled and edited first-person narratives for our last issue, which looked at how to create “a community of we.” 65695.indd 3 8/23/18 9:56 AM AT THE SAME TIME OUR CITY AND REGION 4 & Economic Development. “Our intent is to take a Long-haul trucking is widely ARE WAKING UP TO detailed look at how the region is building its economic considered one of the major occu- future, look at the people who are not actively partici- pations that could be among the A MORRE ROBUST pating in it, and fi gure out what the bridges might be fi rst to absorb the impact of the to help them get there.” rise of autonomous vehicles. With ECONOMIC FUTURE, Major technological disruptions in the past did Endowments support, researchers not lead to widespread, prolonged unemployment. are scouring data, such as the distri- WE SEE UNDER- For much of the 20th century, the level of education bution of trucking activity across among American workers rose steadily, enabling them market segments and where truck EDUCAATED PORTIONS to keep pace with the constant demand for higher- drivers live, to get a sense of how the skilled labor, report Harvard economists Claudia industry is likely to automate in the OF OURR POPULATION Goldin and Lawrence Katz in studies of the issue.