WASHINGTON — In the early 2000s, the issue of Muslim schoolgirls, teachers, and civil servants wearing headscarves in public institutions and schools was a heated national debate in France and a source of discussion and controversy around the world. In 2009, President Nicholas Sarkozy rekindled the flames of that debate … Continue Reading…
WASHINGTON — Having worked in France for what we call a “metropolitan community of cities” in Nantes and for a regional council in Brittany, one of my objectives for my Comparative Domestic Policy fellowship at GMF was to have a close look on how metropolitan and regional organizations in the … Continue Reading…
WASHINGTON — Recent news story: a religious minority seeks to construct a building to conform with its faith and architectural traditions. The majority, of a different faith, denies permission. Sounds like Switzerland? In fact, this story comes from the other side of the Atlantic. Amish residents of Morristown, New York, … Continue Reading…
WASHINGTON — When I traveled abroad as an American Marshall Memorial Fellow in October 2008, I discovered something most people wouldn’t notice. The notion of an attorney with his partner, a dog guide, draws attention on both sides of the Atlantic. I recall one individual claiming that disability law, policy, … Continue Reading…
U.S. President Barack Obama and leaders of the rest of the G-20 won’t arrive in Pittsburgh for the summit until Thursday, but there’s plenty of excitement in the air already. A flurry of last-minute road resurfacing projects wrapped up over the weekend. The first protest marches on Sunday went off … Continue Reading…
President Obama’s plan to invest $13 billion in inter-city high speed rail has drawn excited praise from urbanists and environmentalists, and skepticism from conservatives. Liberals tend to argue that high-speed rail will take cars off the road and planes from the sky, while encouraging development of central cities. Conservatives tend … Continue Reading…
Earlier this month, civic leaders in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (a part of GMF’s Transatlantic Cities Network) officially kicked off a two-year participatory regional visioning project. The aim of the project will be to draft a set of concrete goals – a “to-do list” – for the greater … Continue Reading…