Author: Impact NYC

Issue Brief

by Impact NYC

The US (especially NYC) has been a melting pot of cultures, providing opportunity to those looking to make a better life. There have been ebbs and flows in policy since the Supreme Court made immigration a federal responsibility in 1875. An initial quota system emerged in the 1920s because of concerns over employment and jobs as well as fear of foreigners. In 1942 the U.S. agreed with Mexico in the Mexican Farm Labor of Agreement for the managed importation of migrant labor at an equilibrium of minimum wage for basic human rights.

But rarely have the tides of immigration swung back and forth as rapidly or as violently as they are today.

Immigration is a policy managed predominantly at the federal level. Key topics include US citizenship, family-based immigration, employment-based immigration (temporary visas and permanent immigration), refugees and “asylees” as well as other diversity visa and humanitarian relief programs. There are approximately 876,000 visas available each year for US bound immigrants.

Yet visas are oversubscribed, and it is estimated that there are approximately 11- 12 million illegal immigrants in the United States. Six states, including New York, house more than 60% of the total.


Download the PDF version of Impact Boders, an Immigration IssueBrief here

The History of Border Walls in the USA

by Impact NYC

Watch Border Mini-Documentary

The Impact Public Service Fund exists to promote effective government of, for, and by the people. When a citizen’s ability to get straight answers on issues that affect them is compromised, Impact is here to help.

To that end, our team is launching an original video series: Impact Spotlight. Each 15-minute piece will arm you with the facts you need to be be a part of the global dialogue on a key topic of the day. No agenda, no spin—we don’t care what your opinion is, as long as it’s informed.

Our first video, “The Worlds Busiest Border,” addresses the US-Mexico Border. For decades, politicians have used the Southwestern border to frame arguments around immigration, jobs, security, and more. In contrast, we get straight to the facts: what when did the border come about, what’s actually there today, who’s crossed it, what effect do our laws have?

We hope you’ll use this and future Impact Spotlight videos as a platform to develop your own civic expertise and engagement. Either way, please let us know what you think. Like the American government itself, in the Impact community, your opinion doesn’t just matter—it’s all that matters.

Can we de-incarcerate America? Prosecutorial reform, reduced sentencing, rehabilitation, and other models.

by Impact NYC

Nothing has changed more in the past couple of decades than attitudes toward the crisis of incarceration in America. What was largely an invisible civilization of confinement—millions of men and women locked up for, cumulatively, millions of years—is now a commonplace concern. Everyone running for the Democratic nomination pays lip service to the need to address mass incarceration, and what were once essential political instincts—to side with the police and the prosecutors in every instance, to “get tough on crime”—have become, at the very least, negotiable. We have gone from “Lock ’em up!” to “Lock ’em up?” to “Set ’em loose!,” all in a relatively short time.

The Blue Economy: Looking at Pollution in Oceans and Seas and Its Impact on Human Health

by Impact NYC

“The Great Pacific Garbage Patch” is proof of the extent of pollution in our oceans. It is a vortex of debris that covers an estimated surface of 1.6 million square kilometers. How big is that? Twice the size of Texas. With up to 2 million tons of plastic entering the ocean each year, experts estimate that 1.8 trillion plastic pieces are floating within the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Consequently, marine life in this area is exposed to various risks such as plastic ingestion, malnutrition, exposure to toxic chemicals, and plastic entanglement. As plastic enters the marine food web, the human food chain becomes vulnerable as well. But ocean benefits to humans go beyond the food chain. Needless to say, placing our seas in peril also endangers the human race.

When our very existence depends on the state of our waters, isn’t it time that we treat our oceans better?

Customer Service And Circuits: Walmart, McDonalds And The Emerging Robotic Labor Force

by Impact NYC

Robots used to be something present in science fiction movies and fantasy novels. But not anymore. A robotic workforce has already replaced more than 80 percent of the manufacturing sector. And other sectors are following suit. Some of the largest companies in the retail and food industries are ramping up their robotic automation tremendously. So what will this mean for consumers, as well as employees, in the future?

 

Robotic automation offers many advantages, but it also introduces change. While there are several benefits to a robotic workforce, there is also the costs to appreciate. While convenience, efficiency and even safety may be enhanced, that doesn’t mean new challenges will not be encountered. Customers and workers alike need to prepare for these challenges as it appears that a robotic workforce is inevitable

 



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What’s the deal with the Gateway?

by Impact NYC

There’s light—and money—in the tunnel for the Gateway Project, according to the chairman of the House of Representative’s Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.

Oregon Rep. Peter DeFazio told the New York press corps Thursday that he would specifically write the rehabilitation and reconstruction of Amtrak assets linking the Empire and Garden states into a $2 trillion infrastructure expenditure plan. The remarks followed a tour DeFazio took of the atrophied century-old tubes currently carrying commuters under the Hudson River.

$2 Trillion Dollar Infrastructure Plan in talks

by Impact NYC

WASHINGTON — Democratic congressional leaders emerged from a meeting at the White House on Tuesday and announced that President Trump had agreed to pursue a $2 trillion infrastructure plan to upgrade the nation’s highways, railroads, bridges and broadband.

Senator Chuck Schumer, the minority leader, said that there had been “good will” in the meeting and that it was “different than some of the other meetings that we’ve had.” Standing alongside Speaker Nancy Pelosi, he said the group planned to meet again in three weeks, when Mr. Trump was expected to tell them how he planned to actually pay for the ambitious project.

Water Street Tampa: $3 Billion Future City Make Over with Coverage of Dreamit Accelerator

by Impact NYC

Tampa Bay, Florida is one of the twenty largest metropolitan areas in the United States made up of Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater. All, three are growing exponentially and house over 3.7M residents. Tampa is on the verge of a modernization makeover courtesy of Bill Gates and Jeff Vinik. The city’s downtown area, covering 53 acres of land will undergo a $3 billion redevelopment that is to create bold impacts to the waterfront neighborhood.

The massive Tampa Bay smart city project will be developed by Strategic Property Partners (SPP), which is a joint venture between Gates’s investment fund Cascade Investment LLP and Vinik, a local businessman who owns both the National Hockey League (NHL) team Tampa Bay Lightning as well as the Arena Football League team the Tampa Bay Storm.

Tampa’s Water Street Transformation

Located on Florida’s west coast on Tampa Bay, the city of Tampa has nearly 400,000 residents in its 175.22 square mile area. Soon, the long-dormant downtown will experience a change thanks to the combined efforts of Jeff Vinik, a big-thinking business man, with the help of an investment fund from world-famous billionaire Bill Gates, and many other collaborators.

Vinik is ambitious, envisioning a live-work-and-play environment within the mixed-use waterfront neighborhood. Dreaming big, he is using a combination of his business acumen, influence, and personal wealth in order to reinvent Tampa via the Water Street project.

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