I am a lifelong resident of Charlottesville who grew up in the Vinegar Hill neighborhood before it was destroyed. I have been disappointed in recent weeks by reactions from Charlottesville residents to the proposed land use map. These reactions... More

Carmelita Wood

I was born to a family of educators, domestic workers and laborers. My parents were raised during the Depression under the tyranny of Jim Crow, where they faced racism in education, economic opportunity and their ability to vote. But... More

Jennifer McClellan

I grew up in Petersburg, Virginia, one of the poorest communities in our commonwealth. Petersburg is a strong community thanks to the people I grew up with: our faith leaders; my teacher, Sgt. Maj. Frost; and my grandmother, Mary... More

Jennifer Carroll Foy

I have a clear memory of the first Earth Day. It was April 22, 1970. I was in seventh grade, and rather than riding the bus to Hubbard Trail Junior High in Crete, Illinois, I walked to school, along with my... More

Nancy Hiles Johnson

What if you could grow your money by investing in companies whose missions align with your own? Whether that means improving the environment, housing, education or health care, “impact investing” is appealing because it combines the traditional ideas of... More

Christine Mahoney

We are a wealthy nation with vast resources, yet we have been walloped by a microscopic thing that doesn’t have a single living cell. It certainly doesn’t process with a brain like us. How could such a simple thing... More

Philip Cobbs

By now, truth is hard to find. It’s elusive and hidden in a world of attractive falsehoods. One must go looking for it with unselfish intent, otherwise they will be wowed by sirens singing irresistible tales. The search is... More

Philip Cobbs

Charlottesville has too many blessings to list up in just one sentence. But the devastating pandemic has forced us to confront our challenges and reflect upon the uglier realities of our town, and perhaps there has been no better... More

Kai Oishi

Thank you to Andria McClellan for her timely article on the local effects of extreme weather (Charlottesville’s extreme weather heralds a greater environmental crisis). As she noted, these extreme weather patterns create an enormous negative impact... More

Ellie Syverud

As we endure winter and hope for an early spring, we also know that spring now brings dangerous, heavy rains that are only predicted to grow more frequent. For decades, scientists have noted that extreme weather could be one the... More

Andria McClellan

To state the plain reality: the city is facing a leadership crisis and has been for some months. The turmoil, instability, infighting and uncertainty within City Hall has snowballed to the point where it is impacting the entire organization.... More

Michael Payne

When I watched the video of the police cam recording of their encounter with Mr. Hoffman, I became extremely upset. I knew this feeling all too well. It was one I’d felt many times. My heart... More

Philip Cobbs