Results tagged “theenvironment”

Written by DCist contributor Amy Cavanaugh With all the Smithsonian museums clustered around the mall, it’s easy to overlook the Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum, which has been chronicling the life of the area’s residents since 1967. Their new exhibit, East of the River: Continuity and Change, celebrates 500 years of southeast Washington in a sweeping overview of its triumphs and tragedies. From archaeological artifacts to paintings to documents to video, the multimedia components of East...

Morning, Washington. We hope you were out enjoying the fantastic weather, especially since the environment has been front and center in the news this weekend. As you must have heard, our former Vice President turned Global Warming Guru had to shove over the Oscar on his mantle to make space for half of a Nobel Peace Prize. Maybe after the news you were inspired to go check out the 20 amazing houses built on the...

Cultural Tourism DC's free WalkingTown DC event this Saturday, Sept. 29 has a walking tour for everyone, but one of the tours that most interests us is the "What’s Going On: Marvin Gaye Park" tour, led by volunteer Steve Coleman and presented by the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development. From 10 to 11:30 a.m., participants will have the opportunity to follow the path of famed soul singer Marvin Gaye’s early life growing up...

The 5th annual SILVERDOCS AFI/Discovery Channel Documentary Festival officially kicked off last night at the AFI Silver Theater and Cultural Center in Silver Spring with the Washington, D.C. premiere of Jim Brown's film Pete Seeger: The Power of Song. Even though the film was playing in three separate theaters within the complex, there weren't enough seats to go around for all the invited guests who RSVP'd for the opening ceremony. Festival volunteers indicated they had...

Good morning, Washington. You know, it didn't seem like that much of a storm. But apparently last night's brief thunder and lightning wrought more than their fair share of havoc: lightning struck a shopping center in Maryland, badly damaging it. In fact, WJLA had footage of the shopping center's laundromat last night — it had been completely obliterated. We had no idea! Still, it at least appears that the power system wasn't too badly affected:...

Written by DCist contributor Kelly Rand With Leonardo DiCaprio riding around in a hybrid car and Al Gore winning an Oscar for An Inconvenient Truth, “green” seems to be all the rage these days. But glass artist Erwin Timmers was “green” before “green” was cool. Co-founder and director of the Washington Glass School and Studio, Timmers experiments with firing techniques to incorporate discarded tempered glass into his art, giving it new life and diverting it...

Hook, now open on M Street in Georgetown, is a restaurant focused on serving “responsibly sourced seafood and local products.” We loved the idea, but naturally had a few doubts. Like: "is it going to cost me an entire week’s worth of pay to dine at another overpriced trendy Georgetown restaurant?" Or, "is there going to be a pretentious presence about the place because they are focused on sustainable seafood and feel that everyone should?"...

We mentioned before that some Republicans in Congress were trying to prevent the free Live Earth concert from happening on the Mall. Turns out they were successful: it's going to be at Giants Stadium in New York New Jersey instead. With a reunion of The Police. Thanks guys. We don't need a vote in Congress or a free concert. You're really looking out for us. Republicans James Inhofe and Mitch McConnell led the charge against...

We mentioned it in the morning roundup, but it's worth celebrating this news with a post of its own: D.C. is getting a golf tournament. And not just any golf tournament! No, as the Post reports, we've somehow lucked into hosting a new PGA Tour event put on by the Tiger Woods Foundation. The Post sports folks are beside themselves — both Boswell and Wilbon have columns today rhapsodizing about the new event. We can't...

TUESDAY Got someone in your life who neatly fits within the Young Adult demographic? They’d be pleased as punch to meet China Mieville, whose new fantasy novel, Un Lun Dun, reads like a Pan’s Labyrinth without all the blood-spatter and heavy overtones of European fascism. And, yeah, you grown-ups will probably dig it as well. Politics and Prose, 5015 Connecticut Ave NW, 7 p.m. WEDNESDAY There was a time when “hooking up” really meant something....

I know it's asking a lot, but let's assume the National Geographic Society has some pretty good photographers on its payroll. Then you know that in their current show by photographer Reza, One World One Tribe, you'll find some fantastic examples of photojournalism, which is enough of a reason to check it out. However, what makes this exhibit fascinating are Reza's insights into the nature and purpose of war photography.

Take a drive around the city. Expensive downtown high-rises lining one block contrast with poor and working class neighborhoods a few miles down the road. Sandwiched in between are the complex "emerging" neighborhoods whose ever-changing streets are constantly clogged with construction equipment. This is the urban landscape, and it's what photographer Ken D. Ashton seeks out to document as its inhabitants constantly change and rebuild and, sometimes, neglect it. His new show at Flashpoint, De...

There are lots of good reasons to ride Metro when moving about the city. It's cheaper and easier than buying and maintaining a car, it's good for the environment, and it teaches patience. Perhaps the best reason to be a regular user of rail transport, however, is because placing oneself on or near a roadway in the metropolitan area will get you all smashed up with a probability approaching 1. The Associated Press reports today...

On Saturday night, Washington National Opera unveiled the first installment, Das Rheingold, of its new staging of Richard Wagner's operatic tetralogy Der Ring des Nibelungen at the Kennedy Center Opera House. A co-production with San Francisco Opera, this "American Ring cycle" is the work of director Francesca Zambello and a team of American artistic collaborators. They have brought together images drawn from the history of the United States to transform Wagner's libretto, based on pre-Christian...

Tiny particles, given movement and behavior directives by an unknown source, are suddenly released to the elements. They charge ahead, encountering one another and reacting and creating new shapes and patterns in their wake. Each time they move, the environment changes, entropy increases, and eventually the entire system devolves into chaos.

You've been warned: your iPod may well be stolen while you ride the rails to and from home and work. What was once a phenomena limited to Boston and New York, iPod-related thefts have made their way down I-95 and are now affecting Metrorail commuters. Police recommend being discrete with your iPod, especially by avoiding the now infamous and easily recognizable white headphones. Butterstick Becomes Hottest Ticket in Town: Yesterday we complained of not...

Good morning, Washington. We hope you're reading this from the comfort of your toasty home, sipping some coffee and wriggling your toes in slippers shaped like some ridiculous sort of animal. If this is in fact the case, let us offer a word of advice: STAY INSIDE. Today's high temperature is going to be 43 degrees. 43! It's still November — we're just not prepared to grapple with highs of 43 yet. Call your boss and say you'll be in late. Like, April-late.

Wal-Mart Lobbies Maryland Legislators: The retail giant is worried about legislation pending in Annapolis that would force it to spend more money on its workers' healthcare. The house that Sam built has been in the news recently both for a leaked memo detailing its plans to minimize healthcare costs by only hiring healthy workers, and for the anti-WM documentary that premiered in D.C. on Tuesday. The Post reports that the company is countering these threats by courting Maryland lawmakers, and in particular the legislature's African-American representatives. The bill in question was passed in April but vetoed by Governor Ehrlich. That veto may be overridden in January.

Animal Abuse On Rise: Maybe we're just getting old, but these days it really does seem like the proverbial kids are out of control. Juveniles are being blamed by many for the minor crime wave that parts of the city have been experiencing. Now NBC4 reports that youths are also responsible for a recent spate of cruelty toward animals (please be aware that the preceding link contains descriptions of the offending acts). This news comes on the heels of confirmation that teenagers were responsible for most of PG County's carjackings.

ICC Debate Continues: The Washington Times' Metro section takes a break from its usual cavalcade of xenophobia to report on the latest goings-on in the world of ICC advocacy. The news? Well, there isn't any. As before, some think the road will improve traffic; others don't. Some think the ICC will bring jobs; others say it won't. And some think the environment will be damaged by the road, while others disagree. It seems that the process is mostly moving forward under its own inertia at this point. The next milestone for the project is the state's completion of an environmental impact statement. Construction is scheduled to begin next year.

Council Likes Stadium Design: D.C. Council members have been given a peek at the results of the baseball stadium design process, and they liked what they saw. The proposed design, by architectural firm Hellmuth, Obata & Kassabaum Sport uses lots of steel, stone and glass to achieve a modern, semi-transparent look. It appears that the only councilmember with reservations about the design is Jack Evans, who thinks a brick stadium may be cheaper — and look better. Although the initial response was positive, no final decision has yet been made. The design drawings won't be released to the public for another few weeks, but the Post has a detailed written description of the stadium plan.

Briefly Noted: Man hit by train at Columbia Heights Metro...
Post profiles controversial Judge Palumbo...
Md. teen's death resulted from blunt trauma...
Police continue to investigate Jefferson Memorial stabbing...
WMATA approves Vienna Metro land deal...

Image posted to DCist Photos by ambimb

It may not have been scenic, but it was intended to make a point. As Jerry Kilgore, Virginia's Republican gubernatorial candidate, stood above I-66, he sold a plan he hopes will sway enough Northern Virginia voters to pull in his favor come the November 8 election -- the addition of two lanes to I-66 from the Beltway into the District.

Wal-Mart--the love 'em or hate 'em big box retailer -- has managed to stretch a 97,687-square-foot loophole in a 75,000-square-foot Calvert County regulation aimed at limiting the ability of big box retailers to set up shop in historic town centers, according to the Post.