Negative spaces

April is a time of emergence — for nature and people. Around my home in the San Francisco Bay Area, the hills are a riot of wildflowers, and the sun stays up long enough that I can usually get out for a golden hour stroll on the trails near my house after shutting down my laptop at the end of the work day. The promise of spring feels especially vivid this year, as we emerge from the darkest depths of the pandemic. Through each turn of this crisis, Americans have headed outdoors in greater numbers, more often, and for more reasons than ever before. But this increased demand for the outdoors comes at a time when our nation’s park systems are already falling short. Today more than 100 million people in America, including 28 million children, don’t have a park within a 10-minute walk of home. And parks serving communities of color are, on average, half the size of those that serve a majority-white population. These disparities are nothing new. Researchers from Columbia University and … [Read more...] about Let’s close the park equity divide

As COVID-19 vaccine supply and availability increases, Colorado continues to make progress, fully vaccinating more than 1.3 million (or 1 in 5 Coloradans) as of April 13. But how we measure success in vaccinating against COVID-19 requires us to look beyond the number of people vaccinated and focus on who is being vaccinated. Equitably protecting Coloradans means ensuring the vaccine is readily available to communities most affected by COVID-19. This includes our underserved communities and communities of color, which are at an alarmingly increased risk of contracting and dying from the virus. We know more can and must be done in the space of vaccine equity. To truly address it, we must consider that vaccine equity is also about health equity. It’s about many factors in our communities, including access to housing and transportation, and even debunking myths and misinformation about vaccines – from how they were developed and work, to how safe and effective they are. As a … [Read more...] about Opinion: The first step to COVID vaccine equity is overall health equity

Musician Christina Aguilera said she “hated” being “super skinny” in her 20s. Aguilera specifically said she “appreciated having a booty” once she started to fill out during an interview published Tuesday by Health magazine. Accepting yourself is what beauty is really about ???? @healthmagazine pic.twitter.com/lTT3yQKjxf — Christina Aguilera (@xtina) April 13, 2021 “I think we all have our good days and our bad days in how we feel about ourselves,” Aguilera told the outlet. “Entering this business, I hated being super skinny.” (RELATED: ‘You’ve Never Seen My Body’: Music Star Billie Eilish Shares Message About Those Who Criticize Her Body) “Once I turned 21, I started filling out a little bit, and I was loving my new curves,” she admitted. “I appreciated having a booty. I’ve always said that women are way more interesting to look at than men!” Aguilera also admitted she felt “insecure” about her body in those days. “I have a hard time looking at … [Read more...] about Christina Aguilera Admits She Has A ‘Hard Time’ Looking At Old Photos Of Herself When She Was ‘Super Skinny’

Domestic immunity certificates aimed at reopening British society could be unlawful indirect discrimination and create a “two-tier society”, the equalities watchdog has reportedly said. Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove is currently leading a consultation on immunity certification for domestic use, with the findings expected to be delivered in June. Commonly called vaccine passports, the documents, likely digital , may record whether a person has been vaccinated, is naturally immune after recovering from coronavirus, or recently tested negative for the Chinese virus and could be used to gain access to certain large-scale events like concerts. As recent updates to the UK government’s coronavirus mobile app show, the state also wishes to track the whereabouts of individuals. According to a submission from the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), Britain’s equalities watchdog, seen by The Guardian , there is a risk the new measures will exclude sectors of … [Read more...] about Domestic Vaccine Passports Could Create ‘Two-Tier Society’, Warns Equalities Watchdog

In the largest sale of a Denver-area hotel since the pandemic began, a 461-room property in the Denver Tech Center has changed hands for less than half the price it fetched in 2016. The Hyatt Regency Denver Tech Center at 7800 E. Tufts Ave. last week sold to HRDTC Hotel Owner LLC, an entity affiliated with Ontario-based Westmont Hospitality Management. The sale price was $41.54 million, according to public records. That’s a 57 percent drop from when the seller, CP Denver LLC — an entity affiliated with Columbia Sussex Management — purchased the property. It paid $96 million in September 2016, records show. Westmont and Columbia Sussex did not respond to separate requests for comment on Monday. New York-based Square Mile Capital provided financing for last week’s deal, according to loan documents. The same firm also provided a loan for the 2016 transaction. The Hyatt Regency has 451 rooms, according to the seller’s website. It is one of the 10 largest hotels in the metro … [Read more...] about Hyatt Regency Denver Tech Center sells for less than half of what owner paid in 2016