Alison Gillespie : Features

Visitors to Washington, DC often describe the city as very walkable, and are delighted to find they can do most of their sightseeing on foot. But residents often have an entirely different idea of what makes each neighborhood more or less friendly to pedestrians. As advocates prepare to visit the city at the end of October for the National Walking Summit, we hit the sidewalks alongside of a few locals who use foot travel as a way to explore and transform their own neighborhoods -- and lives -- for the better. 

Chef Ryan Gordon at the Queen Vic has started a new partnership with the farmers who provide the fresh, sustainably-grown food for his pub, and he welcomes other chefs to join in the venture.

Last Tuesday some of the city’s green building experts met to discuss how new building codes are changing the way the city lives and works.  The event was produced by ElevationDC and sponsored by the law firm of Nixon Peabody. 

Starting this summer, parents can host birthday parties among the fish, crabs and turtles at the Aquatic Resources Education Center in Anacostia Park.    

DC, a leader in the green building movement, is getting more than just energy savings and good vibes from its green buildings.

D.C.'s fast-growing downtown neighborhoods have new restaurants, offices and apartments--but few playgrounds. With thousands of children expected to be born in the District in the next five years, where will they all play?

In early January, Tommy Wells was appointed Acting Director of the District Department of the Environment (DDOE).  A few weeks after he took over, Elevation DC sat down to talk with him about his vision for his department and his priorities for the coming years.  

What does a great neighborhood need? Parks? Retail? Grocery stores? Elevation DC's panel discussion with former D.C. mayor Anthony Williams and other experts, in a space overlooking the Capitol Riverfront, aimed to figure that out.

Not many people know the Anacostia the way that Jorge Bogantes Montero does. As a natural resources specialist with the Anacostia Watershed Society, Montero is aware of the places where legacy pollutants form a troubled mix of dirty water.  But he has also found places along the shores where wild persimmon and pawpaw fruits can still be found dangling from the limbs of native trees each fall. 

D.C.'s homegrown, DIY "state" fair, held Saturday, celebrated all there is to celebrate about urban gardening and food production in the city.