When it comes to improving neighborhoods, Pete Garcia and Beth Callender aren’t holding their breath while waiting for others to step in. 

The San Diego couple are the minds behind Urban Interventions, a grassroots nonprofit that takes the initiative to improve unsightly areas in downtown San Diego. So far, the couple have planted trees, cleaned streets and installed artwork in the neighborhood. 

Kenneth C. Davis joins host T. J. O’Hara on Deconstructed to talk about his new book, Strongman: The Rise of Five Dictators and the Fall of Democracy. Mr. Davis is a renowned historian and also the author of Don't Know Much About History, which spent 35 consecutive weeks on The New York Times bestseller list and gave rise to the expansive Don't Know Much About-series of books and audios. His books are well-researched and extremely informative.

Alaska voters sent a clear message to state officials in the 2020 election: they want elections that better serve the interests of voters, and by doing so made history as the first state to approve a top-four nonpartisan primary with ranked choice voting in the general election. 

Editor's Note: The following article originally appeared on The Fulcrum and has been republished on IVN with permission from the publisher.

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The wall of official resistance to President Trump's defeat has started to crumble a bit.

Supporting homelessness causes can sometimes feel like rooting for the Los Angeles Chargers.

Not that San Diegans should feel obligated to cheer for a greedy, mercenary NFL owner who unforgivably ripped the heart out of a faithful community by moving his team to L.A. 

Anyone still grasping on to Chargers loyalty, though, has watched recent squads master the art of unlikely last-minute losses. One pundit wrote that the team deserves “a black belt in snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.”

This is the first in a two-part series. Check back with IVN San Diego next week for the next column

More than 50 years have passed since the groundbreaking Equality of Educational Opportunity Coleman Report was published, yet it remains relevant today.

The 750-page Coleman Report, led by James Coleman, was mandated by the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and – although not without controversy – is still the go-to document for evidence-based education policy.

A popular English teacher at Francis Parker School is resigning over pending in-person instruction rules, and officials of the elite private school in Linda Vista fear a student boycott.

Chris Harrington, head of the English Department in the Upper and Middle schools and a faculty member since 1991, emailed students Thursday.

It’s been over a week since Election Day and America still doesn’t know for sure who will be sworn in on Jan 20. It looks an awful lot like Joe Biden, but Donald Trump and his supporters have cast a shadow of a doubt over the election results in close and electorally crucial swing states.

So it’s actually worse than not knowing for sure. A large and irate faction of Americans is certain Joe Biden won. Another large and irate faction of Americans is certain Donald Trump won.

When Sen. Kamala Harris is sworn in as vice president as expected, Gov. Gavin Newsom will have the extraordinary constitutional privilege to appoint her replacement to the U.S. Senate.

This will be one of his most important decisions as governor, as his choice will influence the next generation of political leaders of the world’s fifth largest economy and the nation’s most diverse state.  

The COVID-19-related private event cancellations started in February, reaching a crescendo in March as the pandemic closed down travel worldwide. Meetings, conventions and catered private events, including weddings, ground to an abrupt halt. By the time the state and county issued lockdown orders catering and event professionals' suspended businesses were already facing hibernation at best.

San Diego’s tourism and events industry, which represents about $11.6 billion in annual total visitor spending and employs nearly 200,000 people, mostly shuttered.