Public works

Qatar's World Cup Echoes Brutal American Labor History

by Jason Steinhauer

Exposés of the brutal conditions faced by migrant laborers who built Qatar's World Cup facilities echoes the history of American public works, where workers' bodies and lives were subordinated to budgets and timetables. 

A Community of Necessity: The Quabbin Reservoir's History and the Future of "Managed Retreat"

by Elisabeth C. Rosenberg

In 1939 the dammed Swift River submerged four Massachusetts towns beneath the new Quabbin Reservoir. The story of the residents, politicians and engineers of the Swift Valley foreshadows the negotiations that will accompany a managed retreat from places jeopardized by climate change.

How About Reviving the Civilian Conservation Corps?

Joe Biden has proposed something akin to the CCC if elected: the Civilian Climate Corps. Workers would manage forests, restore ecosystems, and even remove invasive species. 

Millions of Young Men Toiled in FDR’s ’Tree Army’ to Help End the Great Depression. Could it Work Again?

Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley of Oregon are introducing legislation for a revived version of the New Deal-Era Civilian Conservation Corps, seeking to create jobs in forestry, parks, and land conservation. 

How the World’s Largest Garbage Dump Evolved Into a Green Oasis

Freshkills is possibly the least likely poster child for urban ecological restoration in the world, and it is radical not just for the way it works — by encouraging flora and fauna do as they please — but for its sheer size. It is almost unbelievable that New York City would set aside a parcel of land as big as Lower Manhattan south of 23rd Street — and just let it go to seed.

Wanted: A Civilian Coronavirus Corps

by Jonathan Zimmerman

We already have a template for it: the original CCC.

Spiritualism and Suspension Bridges: John Roebling and a Biographer's Sympathy for the Weird 19th Century

by Richard Haw

A biographer of Brooklyn Bridge designer John Roebling expected to write about a genius. He also ended up writing about a complete weirdo, and how one man could be both.

What The Depression-Era Works Progress Administration Can Teach Us About The Arts During A Crisis

During the Great Depression, art became a part of people's everyday lives, notes art historian Jody Patterson.