MacNEIL/LEHRER PRODUCTIONS AND THE WILLIAMSBURG FOUNDATION AWARD $26,000 GRANT TO HOUSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY AND HOUSTON PBS / CHANNEL 8
October 10, 2007 - Houston Public Library and HoustonPBS/Channel 8 have been awarded a $26,000 grant from By the People , an initiative of MacNeil/Lehrer Productions in partnership with The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation.
The grant will fund Houston as one of 11 community summits held around the country as part of Dialogues in Democracy: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness , co-sponsored locally by the Houston Area League of Women Voters. One-hundred randomly selected Houstonians will join in the dialogue November 3, at Houston Public Library's (HPL) new Looscan Neighborhood Library, to discuss the rights and responsibilities of citizens and the government regarding air quality. Looscan Neighborhood Library is HPL's first "green" library. It was designed from the start using sustainable construction and operating methods to improve environmental quality and is the City of Houston's first facility certified by the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (L.E.E.D.) Green Building Rating SystemT.
The dialogue participants will receive informational background materials on the issues related to air quality in the Houston area. They will meet in moderated small-group sessions and will also have an opportunity to question a panel of experts who offer different perspectives on the topic. After the event, they will be surveyed on their views and priorities.
This structured, representative Citizen Deliberation is a unique opportunity for ordinary citizens to grapple with significant policy challenges that affect the City of Houston. Mayor Bill White and Rice University Professor Dr. Stephen Klineberg will kick off the day's events, with the invited participants encouraged to voice their opinions during this special gathering of concerned citizens, community leaders and government officials.
The day's results will air in part on HoustonPBS/Channel 8's "By the People: Air Quality in Houston", hosted by Houston Chronicle Reporter Dina Cappiello, on Friday, November 16 at
8 p.m. Parts of the local broadcast will air sometime in January 2008 as a segment on a national PBS show filmed earlier at the famed House of Burgesses in Williamsburg. Besides Houston, 10 additional cities are hosting dialogues on subjects such as immigration, education and health care. These cities include Albuquerque, New Mexico, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Denver, Colorado, Kansas City, Missouri, Omaha, Nebraska, New Haven, Connecticut, Cleveland, Ohio, Bowling Green, Ohio, Rochester, New York and Seattle, Washington.
To learn more about Dialogues in Democracy: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness , please call 832.393.1333.
ABOUT HOUSTON PUBLIC LIBRARY Houston Public Library includes 36 neighborhood libraries, a Central Library (under renovation until early 2008), the Houston Metropolitan Research Center, the Parent Resource Library located in the Children's Museum of Houston, and the Clayton Library, Center for Genealogical Research. Serving 4 million customers per year, HPL is committed to excellent customer service and equitable access to information and programs by providing library customers with free use of a diverse collection of printed materials and electronic resources, Internet, laptop, and computer use, Homework Help, and a variety of database and reference resources with live assistance online 24/7. For further information visit online at www.houstonlibrary.org or call 832-393-1313.
ABOUT HOUSTONPBS/CHANNEL 8 HoustonPBS was America's first public television station and one of the founding stations of the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) in 1969. Supported primarily by viewer contributions with additional money coming from grants, special events and corporate sponsorships, HoustonPBS has a mission to educate, inform and entertain the people of Southeast Texas . As a not for profit television station, HoustonPBS provides a varied schedule made up of national Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) programming; award-winning locally produced programming; college courses; and select acquired programs. Beyond broadcast, our facility is also a site for town hall meetings, national videoconference broadcasts, and a variety of innovative community educational and outreach programs.
