QCA.news - Quad Cities news and view from both sides of the river

Wednesday, June 3rd, 2026
	Geneseo Girl Scout helps build new stage at Richmond Hill Park for Gold Award project The new stage is open for public reservation.
	Downtown Moline parking study draws mixed views on community needs Moline officials are gathering feedback on downtown parking, but some residents, visitors and business owners disagree on whether there's a shortage or an abundance.
	Davenport City council to vote on new agreements with Scott County Humane Society Last year, the city ended its humane society contract.
	Henry County to stop nonprofit donations after audit finds constitutional violation Henry County officials will stop donating public money to a private nonprofit after the Iowa State Auditor flagged a $7,500 payment to Main Street Mount Pleasant.
	Traffic Alert: Part of Pine Street to close for road work The road will be closed between 49th and 53rd streets, according to a Facebook post.
	Plans to revamp Davenport animal control services advance A plan to revamp animal control services in Davenport is taking shape as the Committee of the Whole moved forward with some resolutions. Three items related to animal control services were advanced. The first would acquire properties on N. Pine St. near W. 49th St. for future animal control operations. Council members approved a temporary [...]
	Davenport plans purchase of properties for animal shelter Davenport has a tentative deal to buy three north-side properties for a future animal shelter. The city council will review the proposal next week.
	City of Bettendorf names day after devoted community member, student turned staff member at Bettendorf High School The City of Bettendorf has proclaimed that June 2, 2026 shall be known as “Denis Glynn Day.”
	Clinton road will be closed for sewer, water installation Fifth Avenue South in Clinton will experience a partial closure on Thursday, June 4, to allow for preparatory work related to upcoming sewer and water installation, a news release says. The roadway will then be fully closed to all traffic on Thursday, June 4, and Friday, June 5, to complete the installation work. The roadway [...]
	Five current, retired Bettendorf transportation employees honored Five current and retired Bettendorf Community School District transportation employees are being recognized by the Iowa Pupil Transportation Association (IPTA) for their extraordinary years of service and unwavering dedication to safely transporting students throughout their careers, a news release says. The IPTA Longevity Service Award honors transportation professionals who have demonstrated exceptional commitment to serving [...]
	Gov. Kim Reynolds signs final bills from 2026 legislative session Governor Kim Reynolds signed her final 49 bills of the 2026 legislative session, enacting major GOP priorities on immigration and governor powers.
	What is the John Deere Classic’s future in the Quad Cities? John Deere Classic Tournament Director Andrew Lehman said a report in Golfweek stating that the PGA Tour has asked John Deere to move its’ tournament from the Quad Cities to Chicago is false.
	Sterling police seek man involved in fight with pregnant girlfriend Sterling police seek a man who was involved in a fight with his pregnant girlfriend, according to a news release. About 9:14 a.m. Wednesday, Sterling police responded to a domestic battery in the 3600 block of River Road,. Suspect Damion J. Richmond, 25, was involved in a physical altercation with his pregnant girlfriend and left [...]
	MLRA will keep things rolling at Davenport Speedway On Friday, June 5, the racing program will feature the Midwest Latemodel Racing Association., a news release says. The MLRA late model series has raced at Davenport 12 times since 2014. Chris Simpson of Oxford, Iowa, has three Davenport wins. Garrett Alberson and Chad Simpson have two wins each. Bobby Pierce, Chase Junghans, Billy Moyer [...]
	Understanding Familicide: What research reveals after Muscatine tragedy Experts say familicide — the killing of multiple family members by a relative — is rare, but research has identified several common risk factors.
	Public input deadline arrives for Centennial Bridge future Time is running out for the public to weigh in on the future of the Centennial Bridge.
	John Deere Classic leaders address rumors that place the future of the tournament in Chicago Organizers of the John Deere Classic (JDC) deny a claim made in a national golf publication about the future of the tournament. Golfweek reported this week the PGA Tour asked Deere to move the tournament to Chicago. Tournament Director Andrew Lehman says there's no truth to it. The JDC is the region's largest and most [...]
	River Bend Food Bank receives 40,000 pounds of food donations The donation is part of a collaboration between America250 and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
	River Bend Food Bank receives 40,000 pounds of donated food The donation is part of a collaboration between America250 and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
	A dry month of May this year Well underway on the month of June here in the Quad Cities and things have started off hot as we review May this year. Temperatures for the most part have been pretty close to normal, only missing the mark by about half of a degree at 61.9 degrees for the average. On the other hand, [...]
	Train derailment in Iowa: 1 dead after train collides with semi The Poweshiek County Sheriff's Office responded to a crash involving a semi-truck and a train in the 3900 block of Highway 21 just before 12:40 p.m. Wednesday.
	LEAP program focuses on reducing obesity in 6 Iowa counties The five-year, CDC-funded program has been working in Muscatine, Clinton and Cedar Counties for about three years to create long-lasting community solutions.
	Vibrant Arena holds government contractors convention Defense experts held panels to discuss current events and future collaboration efforts.
	Iowa DOT research on superloads, work zone safety earns national honors Researchers were looking at the impact of oversized loads on Iowa roads, particularly rural ones, as well as how effective speed signs are in work zones.
	One dead, another airlifted after train derailment crash in Poweshiek County Both directions of the road are blocked from the crash.
	LEAP program seeking to help address obesity in Iowa Six Iowa counties have adult obesity rates above 40%. That includes Cedar, Clinton, Crawford, Franklin, Muscatine and Pottawattamie counties.
	How to help those impacted by Muscatine shootings All of the victims' names were read aloud during a vigil Tuesday evening, where the football stadium stands were packed as people remembered the lives lost.
	House passes war powers resolution directing Trump to end hostilities with Iran The vote marked a rare bipartisan rebuke of the war, but is mostly symbolic. Democrats have been unable to pass a war powers resolution in the Senate, and even if they could it would likely be vetoed.
	Iowans will get to do something that they haven’t done in 60 years For the first time in 60 years, Iowa voters will see no incumbent governor of U.S. Senator on their general election ballot.
	Man killed in Davenport house fire, woman and child rescued Two dogs also died in the fire.
	Senate Republicans start debate on ICE funding package The Senate voted along party lines to start debate on a Republican bill to fund immigration enforcement through the end of President Trump's term.
	Researchers examine impact of mobile speed signs in work zones Brian Worrel with the Iowa DOT joined The Current to share more about the research and how it could help make our roads safer.
	Sterling police search for suspect accused of domestic battery against pregnant girlfriend Sterling police are searching for Damion J. Richmond, 25, after a domestic battery incident involving his pregnant girlfriend. Call police with tips.
	Get a taste of summer at the Long Grove Strawberry Festival Get a taste of sweet summertime goodness at a QCA tradition! Joni Kuehl-Schneider and Scott Hoag joined Our Quad Cities News to talk about the Long Grove Strawberry Festival. For more information, click here.
	City of Morrison upgrading software services City officials said a new system will allow for more efficient utility billing, faster payment processing and make online services more user-friendly.
	Come hungry for the Aledo Rhubarb Festival Summer is just around the corner, and a delicious QCA tradition will be kicking off soon. Rusty Ruggles joined Our Quad Cities News to talk about the Aledo Rhubarb Festival. For more information, click here.
	Reynolds vetoes bills and provisions on final day of deadline Reynolds on Tuesday vetoed a provision that would have given Health Maintenance Organizations a tax credit to recoup 25% of dollars spent on improving rural health care.
	Putnam Museum organizing 13-day trip to Japan in 2027 Attendees will be able to see several iconic destinations in the country, with stops in Tokyo, Nagoya, Kyoto, Nara, Osaka and Hiroshima.
	Channel Cat landing at the Village of East Davenport to reopen Friday The landing had been closed to riders of the water taxi while construction was underway on $1.8 million worth of improvements.
	Quad Cities doctor to sing at benefit concert for The Center, Davenport Dr. Kathleen Figaro will lead a benefit concert for The Center of St. John’s United Methodist Church on Sunday, June 7 at 3 p.m., in the church sanctuary, 109 E. 14th St., Davenport.
	Have you seen these suspects? Crime Stoppers wants to know! Crime Stoppers of the Quad Cities wants your help catching two fugitives. It’s an Our Quad Cities News exclusive. You can get an elevated reward for information on this week’s cases: ROBERT CARSON, 41, 5 ’8”, 191 pounds, white male. Wanted by Iowa DOC High Risk Unit for parole violation for domestic abuse. AMARI JAMES, [...]
	Trump strips job protections from 8,000 federal workers President Trump signed an executive order that puts some 8,000 high-ranking civil servants into a new category of employees who can be fired for any reason.
	Maxwell, Stoltenberg, Dickson advance in supervisors race Republican voters in Scott County’s Tuesday primary knocked Jennifer McAndrew Lane out of the race for the board of supervisors. Current supervisors John Maxwell and Jean Dickson, as well as former state representative Luana Stoltenberg, will represent Republicans in the November election. Maxwell led candidates with 6,099 votes, followed by Stoltenberg with 5,804 votes and Dickson with 5,055 votes. Lane earned 3,682 votes. There were no other contested primaries in the North Scott area. Kevin Randle, the lone Democratic candidate for the board of supervisors, earned 9,746 votes. Former Scott County State Senator Chris Cournoyer won the state primary for the auditor’s office with 54% of the vote statewide. She took 65% of the Scott County vote. Scott County Republican primary voters favored U.S. Representative Randy Feenstra in the race for governor. He earned 3,802 votes. Zach Lahn, the Benton County businessman who won the state primary, took 3,346 votes. Nearly 2,000 voters cast ballots for gubernatorial candidates Adam Steen (1,267 votes), Brad Sherman (565 votes), or Eddie Andrews (274 votes). Primary voters set up a rematch between Democrat Christina Bohannon and incumbent Republican Mariannette Miller-Meeks for U.S. House District 1—the third consecutive matchup. Bohannon defeated progressive challenger Travis Terrell, and Miller-Meeks defeated perennial candidate Dave Pautsch. Scott County Democrats and Democrats across the state preferred Council Bluffs State Rep. Josh Turek to former Johnson County State Senator Zach Wahls in the primary for Iowa’s open senate seat. Turek earned 6,658 Scott County votes to Wahls’s 3,902.
	Quad Cities Aero, Black Hawk College partner on aeronautics certificate Quad Cities Aero is partnering with Black Hawk College to start the area’s first Professional Aeronautics Certificate (PAC). Students can earn a Commercial Pilot License (CPL) in 12-16 months while studying part-time or in 6-9 months while studying full-time. Classroom instruction will be at the Black Hawk College Quad-Cities Campus in Moline, 6600 34th Avenue, [...]
	Trump confirms calling Netanyahu 'crazy,' says they still get along The president also acknowledged that he cursed at the Israeli leader in a heated phone call in which he told Benjamin Netanyahu not to bomb the Lebanese capital Beirut.
	People with cancer or HIV could lose Medicaid under new work rules, advocates say Adults on Medicaid will be required to work 80 hours per month. The Trump administration says people who are sick will have to prove they are too sick to work to be exempt from the new work rules.
	How a search for good bagels led to a new Rock Island business What started as a late-night bagel rabbit hole became a storefront in the heart of Rock Island.
	Man killed in Davenport house fire, woman and child rescued Two dogs also died in the fire.
	MAHA candidate beats Trump’s choice in Republican primary for Iowa governor - a rare setback for Trump Businessman Zach Lahn’s win in Iowa’s Republican gubernatorial primary over President Donald Trump’s pick, Rep. Randy Feenstra, delivered a rare electoral setback for Trump in a primary season that had previously handed him back-to-back victories.
	Michael Jackson's shadow of doubt A sanded-down biopic about the King of pop and propaganda has resurfaced his music on the charts — along with questions about how his enduring magic became make-believe
	Firings at CBS' '60 Minutes' reflect the fight for media control in the age of Trump The show's new leader says he fired star Scott Pelley for insubordination. Pelley says he was defending the integrity of the show's journalism after three top executives and two reporters were fired.
	Man, dogs die in early morning Davenport fire One man and two dogs are dead after an early morning fire in Davenport. A news release from the Davenport Fire Department said firefighters were called to the 3800 block of Johnson Avenue on June 3 at about 12:48 a.m. The 911 caller reported that the home was occupied by two adults, one child and [...]
	Davenport defends against 'frivolous' open meeting lawsuits; requests sanctions Davenport council members issued a formal response to two open meetings lawsuits this week defending the city's presentations and calling the lawsuits "frivolous and meant to intimidate and harass the Council."
	Who were the 6 victims killed in the Muscatine shooting? Six people were killed Monday during a shooting in Muscatine before the gunman fatally shot himself.
	Iowa Democrats launching 'Iowa Can’t Afford Ashley' tour as US Senate race is set for November Republican Ashley Hinson and Democrat Josh Turek are vying for Iowa's open seat in the U.S. Senate, after Sen. Jon Ernst said she won't seek reelection.
	Man, 2 dogs dead in Davenport house fire A man and two dogs died in an early morning house fire Wednesday.
	T-shirt raises awareness, funds for Children's Miracle Network Grow Clinton is collaborating with a young local resident to raise funds for a cause close to him and his family. Sawyer Dawes has been named as a 2026 Children’s Miracle Network National Champion. His sense of humor and positivity have help carry his family through tough days. The Children’s Miracle Network helps hospitals like [...]
	Tribeca Film Festival opens, 25 years after helping New York recover from 9/11 Actor Robert De Niro and producing partner Jane Rosenthal created the festival in the wake of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center.
	Kewanee police investigate shooting that left one injured Kewanee police arrested a suspect following a shooting that left one person hospitalized Tuesday. Formal charges are pending as the investigation continues. Read the details here.
	Key primary races come to a close across Iowa Matchups have been decided for the Iowa Governor, the Iowa Senate and Iowa's District 1 seats.
	Man faces attempted murder charges after shooting in Kewanee A man faces attempted murder and aggravated battery after a shooting Tuesday sent a man to the hospital.
	The 7 Father's Day gift scams that cost Americans millions every year The 7 Father's Day gift scams that cost Americans millions every yearFather’s Day can be both a sentimental day for celebrants and a lucrative season for businesses. A 2025 NRF-Prosper Insights survey of 8,225 consumers found that U.S. consumers were expected to spend a record $24 billion on Father’s Day gifts that year, up from $22.4 billion in 2024. The average planned spending was about $200 per person.Meanwhile, fraud is becoming more expensive and more convincing. Consumers lost more than $12.5 billion to fraud in 2024, a 25% increase from 2023, and more than a third (38%) of people who reported fraud said they lost money. Nearly three-quarters (73%) of U.S. adults surveyed by Pew in 2025 said they have experienced some type of online scam or attack, while about a third (36%) said they’d bought an item online that never arrived or turned out to be counterfeit and wasn’t refunded.Increased spending, combined with scammers with progressively sophisticated tools to trick shoppers, makes for a perfect storm for fraud this Father’s Day season. Consumers still need to watch out for such red flags as typosquatting sites (fraudulent websites that imitate legitimate sites but with slightly altered URLs) and online stores with questionably low prices. But today’s scams are more complicated: They might use professional product photos, AI-generated reviews, polished storefronts, and social media ads that look authentic to sell cheaply-made products. Or they might compromise gift cards.For those reasons, SmartCustomer covered seven Father’s Day scams to watch out for before you make any purchases.The best defense is a simple five-minute verification habit.1. The Counterfeit, Hazardous GadgetCounterfeit goods remain a major global trade problem. Counterfeit and pirated goods accounted for up to 2.3% of global trade in 2021, and consumer electronics were among the types of intellectual property rights seizures in fiscal year 2024.The classic electronics scam is simple: a product looks like a name-brand device but falls short in performance. When it arrives, the buyer likely feels duped and frustrated. But the bigger problem is that counterfeit electronics can create real safety risks. Low-quality and counterfeit chargers may lack protections against overcurrent, overcharging, overheating, and overdischarge, all of which can create safety hazards.The tells: The price might be dramatically below normal retail, the seller might be unfamiliar, the product might be new but not sold by an authorized dealer, support information isn’t included, or the listing might not show critical product information, such as serial numbers or warranty details.Shop smarter: Buy electronics directly from the source or a known retailer/authorized seller. Be wary of products (for example, chargers or power banks) touted as identical to brand-name products but sold at half the price. And if you’re going to knowingly buy a dupe, make sure you know the risks.2. The Vanishing Online StoreA fake online store can be very convincing. The homepage might have a clean design with authentic-looking product photography, a customer service chat, Father’s Day countdown banners, and a checkout page that accepts credit cards. But when a cheap knockoff, or worse yet, nothing arrives, the site vanishes after collecting payment information.Scammers often create fake websites that look similar to those of popular retailers, tricking consumers into entering payment information for products they never receive. A 2024 report ranked online purchase scams as the fourth riskiest scam type; online purchase scams represented nearly a third (30%) of reports, and an overwhelming majority (87.5%) of those reports involved a financial loss.The urgency around Father’s Day compounds the problem. Shoppers often wait until the last minute to buy a gift and are tricked into what appear to be exceptional deals. Scammers know that this urgency makes people lower their guard and act hastily.Look out for the following tells: The store doesn’t list a physical address or working phone number and has a domain that appears newly created. It has vague return policies and sells high-demand brand products at suspiciously low prices.Shop smarter: Check whether the business name appears beyond its own website. Research reviews of and complaints about the company. Search for scams associated with the company name. Use a credit card rather than a debit or peer-to-peer payment; credit cards provide dispute rights when an item never arrives or a charge is incorrect.3. The Social Media AdSocial media has become one of the biggest fraud channels. In 2025, consumers reported losing more than $2.1 billion to scams that originated on social media, with Facebook associated with more reported losses than any other social platform. With this type of scam, a sponsored ad appears on a social media platform (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, TikTok). It might appear among updates from friends or between posts from local businesses and brands that consumers follow. It advertises a product using a logo that looks like a brand-name logo, often with a particularly great deal that is time-sensitive (e.g., “Father’s Day Flash Sale: 70% Off Smartwatches!”). When you click on the link, the landing page looks like a major retailer, and the product photos look authentic. But after you submit payment, the store sends cheap knock-offs or nothing at all.Look out for the following tells: The ad sends you to a look-alike domain, not the official retailer. The price is wildly below market. The comments are full of generic and similarly worded praise. The profile running the ad has little history and few real followers, or a name that doesn’t quite match the brand.Shop smarter: Never complete a purchase through a social ad without independently verifying the seller. To do so, open a new browser tab, then search for the official retailer’s website. Check there to see if the seller is an authorized partner. Also, check the product on the official site to make sure the prices match up reasonably. Lastly, look for reviews of the seller’s exact web address to make sure you learn from relevant experiences.4. The Compromised Gift CardGift cards are one of the easiest Father’s Day gifts and one of the easiest products for scammers to exploit. There are three common versions of this type of scam.First, criminals might physically tamper with gift cards on store racks, copy the card number and PIN, reseal the packaging, and wait. Once a shopper buys and loads the card, the scammer drains the balance.Second, a fraudster might impersonate a government agency, tech company, utility, bank, or family member and pressure the victim to buy gift cards and read the numbers to the scammer over the phone. Third, criminals might gain access to online gift card accounts through hacking or phishing, then sell or use the stolen card information online.Gift card fraud is prevalent and costly. The Federal Trade Commission received more than 41,000 gift card fraud reports in 2024, representing $212 million in losses; through the first three quarters of 2025, there were already more than 30,000 reports and $199 million in losses.The FTC advises consumers to inspect physical gift cards before buying to avoid buying cards with visible PINs or damaged protective stickers. Remember that legitimate government agencies or businesses won’t demand payment by gift card.Look out for the following tells: Scratched PIN covers, loose packaging, stickers placed over barcodes, or cards hanging in easily accessible racks that enable tampering.Shop smarter: Buy digital gift cards directly from the retailer’s website or purchase physical cards from behind the counter when possible. Keep the receipt. Refuse if anyone asks to be paid with a gift card number.5. The Tech Support ScamSome scams actively prey upon the gift recipient. For example, your father opens his new tablet, laptop, smartwatch, or smart speaker. Soon afterward, he gets a message or phone call from someone claiming to be from a familiar, reputable company. The person insists the device needs activation, warranty registration, a security update, or premium support. The goal is to get remote access, a credit card number, a login, or enough personal information to steal an account.Older adults are especially vulnerable to this type of scam. In 2024, consumers aged 60 and older were five times more likely than younger consumers to report losing money to tech support scams, with older consumers reporting $159 million in losses to tech support scams. This type of scam is particularly malicious because it happens at a vulnerable moment: setup. When a new device already feels complicated, a warning message claiming the device is insecure or unregistered can sound plausible.Look out for the following tells: A company contacts you first and says there is an urgent problem with a device you just received. The message asks you to call a number on a pop-up message, grant remote access, pay a support fee, or verify an account using sensitive information.Shop smarter: Real tech companies don’t make cold calls to activate a device. If a warning appears, don’t call the number listed in the pop-up message or email. Go directly to the manufacturer's official support page or call the number printed on legitimate product documentation.6. The 5-Star Review MirageFake reviews enable scams. A knock-off gadget with thousands of glowing reviews might make it seem legitimate. A counterfeit seller uses review farms, paid reviews, AI-generated testimonials, or refund-for-review schemes to make inferior knockoffs look like high-quality products.The FTC's 2024 ruling on consumer reviews and testimonials prohibits the sale or purchase of fake reviews and testimonials and targets deceptive review practices, including reviews attributed to people who do not exist or people who didn’t actually use the product. But enforcement doesn’t mean fake reviews disappear overnight. Scammers only need to fool buyers long enough to move inventory and change seller names before repeating the cycle.Look out for the following tells: Many reviews are posted within a short time window. The wording sounds repetitive. The photos look staged. The product has thousands of five-star ratings but almost no credible presence outside one marketplace.Shop smarter: Read the one-, two-, and three-star reviews first. Look for specific complaints: overheating, dead battery, warranty denial, counterfeit packaging, a missing serial number, or a disappearing seller. Make sure to check independent review sources. Don’t rely solely upon the seller’s own rating wall.7. The QR Code: A New Twist on the ‘Brushing Scam’This scam involves a new twist on the “brushing scam,” in which scammers send unsolicited packages to boost fake online reviews. Fraudsters include a QR code on or inside the package. Notes that appear legitimate might urge consumers to scan this QR code to activate the device or register a warranty. The problem is that a QR code can send consumers to a phishing site built to steal personal data or payment information.The FBI has warned consumers about QR code scams, including malicious QR codes in physical materials and unsolicited packages. In a 2025 public service announcement, the FBI warned that criminals were sending packages containing QR codes that prompted recipients to provide personal or financial information or download malicious software. The FTC has also warned that unexpected package QR codes can lead to phishing websites or malware.Look out for the following tells: You receive an unsolicited package with a QR code. The QR code leads to a domain that doesn’t match the manufacturer, asks for a credit card to claim a free item, requests your Social Security number, or asks you to download an unfamiliar app.Shop smarter: Don’t scan QR codes found in product packaging. If you want to register a warranty, go to the manufacturer's official website manually. Halt the registration process if you’re asked for sensitive information unrelated to the product.What To Do Before You Buy a Father's Day Gift: A ChecklistFraudsters benefit when shoppers are reckless and don’t take precautions. The best defense is a five-minute verification habit.Before buying, ask the following questions:Does the seller exist beyond this one listing? Search for the history of the business, independent reviews, complaints, and contact information.Is the price believable? A modest sale might not signal a scam; however, significant discounts should be verified.Am I on the official website? Don’t trust or click on links from social media ads or emails. Enter the URL of the site manually.Does the payment method protect me? Credit cards provide dispute rights when products never arrive or charges are wrong; gift cards, wire transfers, crypto, and peer-to-peer payments are much harder to recover.Will the gift recipient be protected from fraud? Warn recipients: no cold-call tech support, no pop-up phone numbers, no gift card payments, and no QR codes unless the destination is verified.Safeguard Your HolidayFather’s Day is a time for celebration. In a marketplace filled with third-party sellers, social media ads, AI-generated reviews, look-alike storefronts, gift card scammers, and counterfeit, hazardous electronics, a little skepticism can help ensure the day goes well and neither the buyer nor the gift recipient experiences fraud.This story was produced by SmartCustomer and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	The future of housing is concrete The future of housing is concreteWood is, by far, the most common material used in the U.S. for single-family home construction.But wood construction isn’t engineered for long-term durability, and it often underperforms, particularly in the face of increasingly common extreme weather events.In response to these challenges, mass-produced concrete homes can offer affordable, resilient housing in the U.S. By leveraging the latest innovations of the precast concrete industry, this type of homebuilding can meet the needs of a changing world.Pablo Moyano Fernández, assistant professor of architecture at Washington University, examines the advantages of mass-produced concrete homes for The Conversation.Wood’s rise to powerOver 90% of the new homes built in the U.S. rely on wood framing.Wood has deep historical roots as a building material in the U.S., dating back to the earliest European settlers who constructed shelters using the abundant native timber. One of the most recognizable typologies was the log cabin, built from large tree trunks notched at the corners for structural stability.In the 1830s, wood construction underwent a significant shift with the introduction of balloon framing. This system used standardized, sawed lumber and mass-produced nails, allowing much smaller wood components to replace the earlier heavy timber frames. It could be assembled by unskilled labor using simple tools, making it both accessible and economical.In the early 20th century, balloon framing evolved into platform framing, which became the dominant method. By using shorter lumber lengths, platform framing allowed each floor to be built as a separate working platform, simplifying construction and improving its efficiency.The proliferation and evolution of wood construction helped shape the architectural and cultural identity of the nation. For centuries, wood-framed houses have defined the American idea of home — so much so that, even today, when Americans imagine a house, they typically envision one built of wood.Today, light-frame wood construction dominates the U.S. residential market.Wood is relatively affordable and readily available, offering a cost-effective solution for homebuilding. Contractors are familiar with wood construction techniques. In addition, building codes and regulations have long been tailored to wood-frame systems, further reinforcing their prevalence in the housing industry.Despite its advantages, wood light-frame construction presents several important limitations. Wood is vulnerable to fire. And in hurricane- and tornado-prone regions, wood-framed homes can be damaged or destroyed.Wood is also highly susceptible to water-related issues, such as swelling, warping and structural deterioration caused by leaks or flooding. Vulnerability to termites, mold, rot and mildew further compromise the longevity and safety of wood-framed structures, especially in humid or poorly ventilated environments.The case for concreteMeanwhile, concrete has revolutionized architecture and engineering over the past century. The material offers unmatched strength and durability, while also allowing design flexibility and versatility. It’s low-cost and low-maintenance, and it has high thermal mass properties, which refers to the material’s ability to absorb and store heat during the day, and slowly release it during the cooler nights. This can lower heating and cooling costs.Properly designed concrete enclosures offer exceptional performance against a wide range of hazards. Concrete can withstand fire, flooding, mold, insect infestation, earthquakes, hail, hurricanes and tornadoes.It’s commonly used for home construction in many parts of the world, such as Europe, Japan, Mexico, Brazil and Argentina, as well as India and other parts of Southeast Asia.However, despite their multiple benefits, concrete single-family homes are rare in the U.S.That’s because most concrete structures are built using a process called cast-in-place. In this technique, the concrete is formed and poured directly at the construction site. The method relies on built-in-place molds. After the concrete is cast and cured over several days, the formwork is removed.This process is labor-intensive and time-consuming, and it often produces considerable waste. This is particularly an issue in the U.S., where labor is more expensive than in other parts of the world. The material and labor cost can be as high as 35% to 60% of the total construction cost.Portland cement, the binding agent in concrete, requires significant energy to produce, resulting in considerable carbon dioxide emissions. However, this environmental cost is often offset by concrete’s durability and long service life.Concrete’s design flexibility and structural integrity make it particularly effective for large-scale structures. So in the U.S., you’ll see it used for large commercial buildings, skyscrapers and most highways, bridges, dams and other critical infrastructure projects.But when it comes to single-family homes, cast-in-place concrete poses challenges to contractors. There are the higher initial construction costs, along with a lack of subcontractor expertise. For these reasons, most builders and contractors stick with what they know: the wood frame.A new model for home constructionPrecast concrete, however, offers a promising alternative.Unlike cast-in-place concrete, precast systems allow for off-site manufacturing under controlled conditions. This improves the quality of the structure, while also reducing waste and labor.The CRETE House, a prototype worked on by a team at Washington University in St. Louis about a decade ago, showed the advantages of a precast home construction.To build the precast concrete home, the team used ultra-high-performance concrete, one of the latest advances in the concrete industry. Compared with conventional concrete, it’s about six times stronger, virtually impermeable and more resistant to freeze-thaw cycles. Ultra-high-performance concrete can last several hundred years.The strength of the CRETE House was tested by shooting a piece of wood at 120 mph to simulate flying debris from an F5 tornado. It was unable to breach the wall, which was only 2 inches thick.The Compact House offers another example of a potential solution for affordable, resilient housing. The house consists of a modular, precast concrete system of “rings” that can be connected to form the entire structure — floors, walls and roofs — creating airtight, energy-efficient homes. A series of different rings can be chosen from a catalog to deliver different models that can range in size from 270 to 990 square feet.The precast rings can be transported on flatbed trailers and assembled into a unit in a single day, drastically reducing on-site labor, time and cost.Since they’re built using durable concrete forms, the house can be easily mass-produced. When precast concrete homes are mass-produced, the cost can be competitive with traditional wood-framed homes. Furthermore, the homes are designed to last far beyond 100 years — much longer than typical wood structures — while significantly lowering utility bills, maintenance expenses and insurance premiums.The project is also envisioned as an open-source design. This means that the molds, which are expensive, are available for any precast producer to use and modify.Leveraging a network that’s already in placeTwo key limitations of precast concrete construction are the size and weight of the components and the distance to the project site.Precast elements must comply with standard transportation regulations, which impose restrictions on both size and weight in order to pass under bridges and prevent road damage. As a result, components are typically limited to dimensions that can be safely and legally transported by truck. Each of the Compact House’s pieces are small enough to be transported in standard trailers. Courtesy of Pablo Moyano Fernández Additionally, transportation costs become a major factor beyond a certain range. In general, the practical delivery radius from a precast plant to a construction site is 500 miles. Anything beyond that becomes economically unfeasible.However, the infrastructure to build precast concrete homes is already largely in place. Since precast concrete is often used for office buildings, schools, parking complexes and large apartments buildings, there’s already an extensive national network of manufacturing plants capable of producing and delivering components within that 500-mile radius.There are other approaches to build homes with concrete: Homes can use concrete masonry units, which are similar to cinder blocks. This is a common technique around the world. Insulated concrete forms involve rigid foam blocks that are stacked like Lego bricks and are then filled with poured concrete, creating a structure with built-in insulation. And there’s even 3D-printed concrete, a rapidly evolving technology that is in its early stages of development.However, none of these use precast concrete modules – the rings in the prototypes – and therefore require substantially longer on-site time and labor.Precast concrete homes offer a compelling vision for the future of affordable housing. They signal a generational shift away from short-term construction and toward long-term value — redefining what it means to build for resilience, efficiency and equity in housing.This story was produced by The Conversation and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	How to reduce customer churn in ecommerce How to reduce customer churn in ecommerceAs an ecommerce founder or direct-to-consumer operator in the growth stage, you likely understand the art of customer acquisition. But as your business scales, acquisition alone stops being enough. In addition to getting customers to make their first purchase, you’ll also need to give them a reason to come back.Customer churn is a growth leak that founders might ignore in the beginning. In those early days, it makes sense to prioritize putting your energy into landing new customers. However, acquisition gets expensive, whereas fostering a base of repeat customers costs less and helps business grow.In this article, Mercury, a fintech platform that offers business and personal banking services, explores how to reduce churn in ecommerce, so you can confidently keep your revenue on track. By the end, you’ll know how to measure and reduce customer churn in ecommerce to build a more resilient and insight-driven business.What is customer churn in ecommerce — and why does it matter?Customer churn in ecommerce businesses refers to the percentage of customers who stopped buying from your business over a specific period of time. It’s related to revenue churn, which, similarly, measures the amount of recurring revenue you lost from customers over a specific period of time.In ecommerce, churn can show up in different ways. It can refer to buyers who only make one purchase from your store and don’t return. It can also refer to a customer that used to regularly purchase from your business, but suddenly stops. If you sell subscriptions, someone who cancels is also an example of customer churn.Customer churn can be voluntary, where a customer intentionally chooses to not purchase from your business again. Or, it can be involuntary, where a customer unintentionally stops buying from your business, like when their credit card on file expires. Churn in ecommerce is a key performance indicator worth tracking. It can signal possible issues in the business, such as poor customer experience, pricing issues, values misalignment, and weak product-market fit.Repeat customers drive revenue, and retention compounds over time, which helps you grow your business. But ecommerce businesses that don’t make an effort to reduce churn will inevitably hinder their profitability and make it harder to sustain growth.How to calculate churn rate in ecommerceYou can calculate the churn rate in your ecommerce business with this simple formula:Churn rate % = (The number of customers lost during a period / the number of customers at the start of the period) x 100For example, if you started off with 1,500 customers and 95 of them stopped buying from you, your company’s churn rate would be:(95 / 1,500) x 100 = 6.33%You can also use variations of this formula to better understand your churn rate, including:Cohort-based churn: Instead of looking at the churn rate for all customers, focus on a specific segment of your customer base. For example, this could be all customers who started in January or all customers who purchased a specific service.Repeat purchase rate: Instead of focusing on who leaves, this metric looks at who stays. You can calculate it with this formula: (Customers who made more than one purchase / total customers) x 100.What is a good (or average) churn rate for ecommerce?Before getting into average churn rates for ecommerce, it’s important to understand why averages can be misleading. Benchmarks can be helpful tools, but it doesn’t always make sense to take them at face value. What’s good for your business will depend on your business model, industry, time frame, and stage of business.That said, here are a couple benchmark churn rates for ecommerce businesses:Direct to consumer (non-subscription, annual): Overall, average churn rates for an ecommerce store can be close to 80%. However, this number can be as low as 20% to 30% annually in some non-subscription categories.Subscription (monthly): Though it varies depending on factors like customer segment and type of product, churn rates for subscription-based ecommerce businesses could fall between 5% to 10% monthly.Instead of chasing averages, pay attention to the specifics of how your business operates and track the relative improvement in performance instead. For long-term success, focus on how to reduce churn month over month and increase your customers’ repeat purchase rate.Why customers churn in ecommerceWhat are the root causes of customer churn in ecommerce? There are a few key reasons customers decide to walk away:Product-market mismatch: The product doesn’t fully meet the customer’s expectations or needs. Whether it’s due to product quality, use case, or price, in this scenario, the customers your business was targeting aren’t the ideal ones for the product.Poor first experience: A negative first encounter with your business — such as shipping delays, torn packaging, or slow customer service — creates doubt. It can make the customer unsure whether you’re the right business for them or if they can trust your brand.Weak post-purchase engagement: If you don’t send any follow-ups after a customer’s initial purchase, such as emails or newsletters, the customer may simply forget about your business and passively churn.Better alternatives and price sensitivity: Shoppers are constantly comparing options. If you don’t clearly communicate what makes your product different, they’re more likely to choose a competitor, especially if one feels like a better value.Lack of brand connection: If they don’t have an emotional connection to your brand, customers might not have a compelling reason to buy from you again. In this case, they’re less likely to feel loyalty to your business and may believe they can find a substitute for your product elsewhere.How to reduce churn in ecommerceTo reduce customer churn in ecommerce, implement these high-impact strategies.1. Improve the first purchase experience.A customer’s first purchase is one of your highest leverage moments as a business, so it’s crucial to start off with a bang. Design packaging that enforces value, and make sure your product arrives on time. Communicate at every step, such as with real-time shipping updates, helpful information about how to get the most out of the product, and a request for feedback.2. Build strong post-purchase flows.To reduce drop-off after the first purchase, you have to help customers build a habit of buying from your business. You can encourage them to purchase again through email and SMS sequences, product education, and timely reminders. For example, you could send details about how to use the product, social proof, answers to common questions, and next-step recommendations.3. Incentivize the second purchase early.There are several incentives you can offer to accelerate the second purchase and dramatically reduce churn. Consider limited-time offers, bundles for multiple products, subscription upgrades, coupons, and an enticing free gift with their next purchase.4. Personalize retention efforts.Generic retention messaging will yield weak results. To increase your repeat purchase rate, you must fuel interest with relevant and engaging messaging. Segment your audience by purchase history, product category, purchase frequency, or engagement type. Then, tailor messaging based on whether the customer is a first-time buyer (in this case, provide education and time-sensitive discounts) or repeat customer (if so, offer loyalty perks).5. Align product quality and customer expectations.Your product promise has to match reality. Use real product images in your marketing and ensure you’re not over-selling the product. Focus on who the product is for and also who it’s not for, so customers know whether they’re in the right place when they land on your website.6. Create reasons to come back.Customers return for the product, but they also return for the brand experience. Encourage re-purchasing habits by offering multiple reasons to come back to your store, such as to see new, monthly product drops, valuable how-to or educational content, community-based loyalty programs, and social engagement opportunities, such as compelling content featuring the product.7. Fix operational friction.Small frustrations can lead to churn. So, make it easy for your customers to do business with you. Review and optimize your returns and refunds processes, and look at how you can improve the responsiveness of your support team. Even if a customer didn’t love their initial purchase, they may come back and purchase something else if they enjoyed engaging with your business.Using data to understand and predict churnTo build your skills in ecommerce customer churn analysis and prediction, you have to know what to look for. Basic tools, like email marketing software and your ecommerce sales dashboard, can help.To get started, focus on the following areas.Cohort analysisDetermine how retention changes over time for a specific group of customers. You’ll want to uncover the biggest churn moment, so you can implement strategies to fix it. For example, if customers who bought in December all churn after their first purchase, it could be because you’re not offering any incentives for them to come back after the holiday season ends.Time since last purchaseThe time since last purchase is one of the biggest signals of churn risk. Track the average time between purchases and trigger win-back emails or SMS messages before customers exceed that timeframe.Engagement drop-offBefore you notice churn, you may notice customers have stopped engaging with your business. They’ll stop opening emails or liking posts on social media. To minimize churn, start your re-engagement campaigns early as soon as you notice engagement drop-off. Offer value-based messages and showcase what’s new to capture customer interest.Common churn mistakes founders makeFrom time to time, you may take a wrong turn while managing ecommerce churn. Be aware of these common pitfalls, so you can avoid them:Only focusing on acquisition: Acquiring new customers has become 60% more expensive in 2026 than it was in 2020, while retention costs have only climbed by 12%. If you only focus on acquisition, your company’s growth will become dependent on continuous spend.Ignoring the post-purchase experience: Onboarding emails, usage information, and replenishment reminders can go a long way in reducing churn. Don’t create churn by ignoring customers after they make a purchase.Overcomplicating retention strategies: You don’t need to design an elaborate loyalty program or complex lifecycle marketing systems. Focus on ensuring your business has product-market fit and creating a good first impression first.Not measuring churn at all: If you don’t know when or why customers are dropping off, you can’t tell if any changes you make are working. Pay attention to repeat purchase rate, time between purchases, and cohort retention rates.Churn isn’t just a metric, it’s a signalAs an ecommerce founder, you don’t have to choose between investing in retention or acquisition. You can and should invest in both. Acquisition fuels business growth, and retention helps you build a solid foundation, which supports your margins.As one of the most powerful growth levers, retention creates a compounding impact on your business, without proportional spend. When you implement strategies to reduce customer churn, you’ll foster predictable revenue, increase lifetime customer value, and strengthen your business over time. Mercury is a fintech company, not an FDIC-insured bank. Banking services provided through Choice Financial Group and Column N.A., Members FDIC.This story was produced by Mercury and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	Bettendorf Police Department receives full state accreditation The Bettendorf Police Department (BPD) is proud to announce that it has achieved full accreditation through the Iowa Law Enforcement Accreditation Program (ILEAP). This is the first time the department has received accreditation. The ILEAP Board awarded the accreditation on April 20 and the accreditation certificate was formally presented to BPD by ILEAP Director Mike [...]
	Many babies sickened in ByHeart formula botulism outbreak needed more treatment after hospitalization Many babies sickened in ByHeart formula botulism outbreak needed more treatment after hospitalizationMost of the babies hospitalized in a recent nationwide outbreak of infant botulism linked to ByHeart baby formula have needed additional physical therapy and other medical support after going home, according to new data shared April 24.“Although many infants are now progressing in their recovery, evaluating their outcomes is essential to understanding the progression and severity of illness observed during this outbreak,” said Myra Brooks, a member of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Epidemic Intelligence Service, who presented the data at the service’s annual conference in Atlanta. The conference highlights the work of the agency’s disease detectives.Brooks, a first-year EIS officer, works with the CDC’s National Botulism Consultation Service and was part of the response to the outbreak linked to ByHeart infant formula last year. It is the first documented outbreak of infant botulism linked to powdered formula, she noted.The CDC declared the outbreak over on Feb. 26, with 48 confirmed and probable cases of infant botulism in 17 states that were linked to the baby formula. All of the infants required hospitalization; there were no deaths. All of ByHeart’s Whole Nutrition Infant Formula products were recalled.Infant botulism is caused by babies ingesting spores of Clostridium botulinum bacteria, which can activate in their intestines and produce a dangerous toxin that can cause muscle weakness and paralysis. Initial symptoms can include difficulty sucking and swallowing, constipation, and loss of head control. Without treatment, breathing difficulties can develop.Health investigators were able to obtain and review the medical records for 46 of the 48 infants, which showed that most of those who were sickened had moderate to severe disease.Those with moderate disease, 61% of the infants in the outbreak, required assisted feeding or noninvasive respiratory support, Brooks said. Another 11% of the infants had severe disease. “During hospitalization, these infants experienced respiratory difficulty, requiring intubation or received a surgically placed feeding tube,” she said.The remaining 28% of infants in the outbreak were classified as having mild disease, although they still needed hospitalization.While the outbreak cases stayed in the hospital for a median of eight days, some of those with severe disease were hospitalized for more than a month, according to her presentation slides.For many of the infants sickened in the outbreak, their medical treatments needed to continue after leaving the hospital, Brooks said.“A third of infants were discharged with nasogastric tubes to supplement feeding, and two-thirds of infants had follow-up orders for physical, speech or occupational therapy,” she said.The infant botulism outbreak was first identified in early November by the California Department of Public Health, which runs the national infant botulism program that distributes the only FDA-approved drug to treat children sickened by the toxin. The department noticed an increase in medication requests among babies who had consumed ByHeart formula and alerted federal officials.Outbreak cases continued to rise in the weeks that followed amid delays by retailers in removing recalled formula from store shelves that were compounded by delays by the Food and Drug Administration in sharing information with state food safety officials about where the product was being sold.While health officials initially thought babies had started falling ill in August 2025, they later identified cases going back to December 2023.Although ByHeart’s products made up only about 1% of the formula products sold in the United States, the premium organic brand had a loyal following, and the outbreak shook some consumers’ confidence in formula safety generally.The federal investigation of how ByHeart’s formula became contaminated has in recent months focused on the product’s ingredients. Earlier this year, the FDA announced that tests had detected contamination with Clostridium botulinum — the bacteria that cause infant botulism — in some samples of powdered whole milk used to make the formula.The FDA has said its investigation into the root cause of the contamination is ongoing, but the agency has not provided any update since Feb. 26.ByHeart’s media team, in an email to Healthbeat late on April 24, said the company continues to work with the FDA on its investigation. “Our root cause investigation remains ongoing, and we’ll share updates as they become available,” the email said.This story was produced by Healthbeat and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	Greetings from Porto, whose lanes are lined with colorful textiles Linen scarves, cotton aprons and dishtowels adorn the entrances to souvenir shops, many of which are run by Bangladeshis whose home country shares Portugal's rich tradition of textile manufacturing.
	How to maximize internship season and start your financial future How to maximize internship season and start your financial futureFor young adults entering the workforce, there is good news and bad news right now.Let’s start with the bad: The job market is looking a little bleak, at 7.8% unemployment for those ages 22-27, according to the latest data from the New York Fed.Those are the worst numbers since the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Recent college grads are doing a little better, but not much, with their unemployment rate at 5.6%. Meanwhile, AI is hovering like a dark cloud over the whole landscape, threatening to disrupt entire industries.So here’s a potential bright spot: The number of internships is actually up significantly, rising 31.6% year-over-year, according to an analysis from ZipRecruiter.Internships are the “clearest on-ramps” to the workforce right now, says the job site’s annual report for new grads. If you do land one, here’s the key advice: Make the absolute most of it.“Soak in every minute you can,” says Sydney Woodward, a financial planner with YeskeBuie in San Francisco. “Ask for references, resume help, and advice.“And leave a lasting impression: Right now, these professionals are your bosses, but in 10 years they will be your peers.”Indeed, internships are ideal career launching pads in a number of different ways. First, to gain skills and demonstrate your competence. Second, to deepen your network and make connections that will pay off for years to come.And third, they allow you to start laying the foundations of your financial life. From creating first banking accounts to building credit to learning how to budget, these are important first steps on your decades-long financial journey.So don’t let the moment slip, and take full advantage of your internship time window. Current, a consumer fintech banking platform, shares advice from the experts:Start building a professional network right away. As the most junior person on the team, it can feel awkward to reach out and ask for one-on-one time with peers and bosses. For your future career’s sake, get over those jitters and start planting the seeds of those critical relationships.“When it comes to networking, it helps to shift the mindset from ‘What can I get from this person?’ to ‘How can this be mutually beneficial?’ ” advises Jessica Kirwin, a financial planner in Issaquah, Wash. “Use your time wisely by being prepared with your most important questions and specific requests. Most importantly, send a thank you note, show appreciation and stay in touch — it could turn into a longer-term relationship.”Don’t limit your networking to your immediate circle, either. Make contacts in different divisions of the company, at other firms in the industry, and at events and conferences of professional trade groups. That will lay the groundwork for future advancement.Construct your online profile and keep it up-to-date. If you’re making career strides at your internship, but no one knows about it, that’s a problem. You want to make yourself discoverable to future employers and third-party recruiters, and that means putting together comprehensive online profiles on sites such as LinkedIn.Young adults seem well aware of the importance of this step: The share of new graduates with Indeed profiles jumped from 11.5% in 2023 to 19.1% in 2025, according to a new report from the popular jobs site.Don’t assemble a bare-bones placeholder, but one that accurately reflects what you’ve been up to and what you’re looking to do. Made an important new contact at the company? Add them as a connection, and interact with their content. Completed a new certification or received an award? List that on your roster of skills and accomplishments.Put your financial building blocks in place. An internship is often the first time that a young college student has money coming in, and has to seize the reins of their own financial lives.Even if the amounts aren’t earth-shattering — the median hourly wage for internships is currently $19.23, according to ZipRecruiter — this is precisely the right moment to take action.That means beginning to put money away for future goals, and you’ll want to look for a high-yield savings account to get the most from your money. It also means starting to build a solid credit record, which will take years to fully manifest, but can be accelerated with the use of a secured charge card. A secured charge card can help you build your credit history while minimizing your risk of debt, as you can only spend the amount of money available in your account. Look for one with a low or no required security deposit and that reports to all three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion).It also means smart budgeting, opening retirement accounts like a Roth IRA for the first time (which requires earned income), and preparing for the unexpected. Do your best to put together an emergency fund, says Woodward, which should be about three to six months’ worth of expenses, if finding full-time work after your internship should prove difficult.“I’d suggest they get a clearer handle on their cash flow right away, and look into using budgeting tools like YNAB for college students,” says Kirwin. “Then they can understand exactly what resources they have, can make more intentional spending decisions, and see their net worth grow over time.”This story was produced by Current and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	Pride Wall display will be at Metropolitan Community Church, Davenport A colorful, loud, gaudy and history-laden Pride Wall will be on display at Metropolitan Community Church of the Quad Cities (MCC QC) beginning Sunday and through the month of June, a news release says. “Our Art Wall is full of pride memorabilia, original artwork and items of historical significance to the Quad Cities LGBTQ community,” [...]
	The Green New Deal has evolved. Now it’s all about ‘affordability.’ The Green New Deal has evolved. Now it’s all about ‘affordability.’Eight years ago, three little words took hold of the environmental movement: Green New Deal. Part popular slogan, part political philosophy, the phrase described a sweeping agenda to create jobs, advance social justice, and combat climate change through major public investment inspired by the New Deal of the 1930s. The term made its way from hats and protest signs to the halls of power, where it shaped local and national policy. Progressives even pressured future president Joe Biden to adopt plans to address the crisis in the lead-up to the 2020 election.Congress eventually whittled his ambitions down to the Inflation Reduction Act, a package of green tax credits and incentives that became the nation’s first comprehensive climate policy. That is, until Republicans dismantled the law last year, Grist reports. Under President Donald Trump, the national policy wins Democrats had scored by leveraging the Green New Deal’s momentum all but vanished. The party was left soul-searching, wondering how it should talk about climate change, or if those calling for solutions should even talk about it at all.Progressives seem to have settled on an answer: Make everything about affordability. A new climate agenda released on April 15 by the Climate and Community Institute, a left-leaning think tank, aims to lower costs for everyday people through home insurance rate caps, bans on utility shutoffs, and other measures. It promotes “green economic populism,” a framework to provide relief for the working class through policies that also happen to cut carbon emissions (such as free transit or a moratorium on data centers), while regulating the corporations contributing to climate change and the cost-of-living crisis.The architects of the so-called “working-class climate agenda” say they’ve learned lessons from the Green New Deal and the Inflation Reduction Act: One lacked political will, while the other failed to deliver tangible results to working-class voters quickly enough. “I think we’re all hugely inspired by the Green New Deal, and the Green New Deal moment, and what that represented,” said Patrick Bigger, research director at the Climate and Community Institute. “But I think that we recognize that we’re in a radically different place, politically, socially, economically now than we were eight years ago.”American voters have declared, in poll after poll, that their top concern is paying the bills as food, housing, and health care become more expensive. But many of these rising household costs are related to climate change. Because heat waves diminish harvests, and extreme weather leads to spikes in energy prices and home insurance rates, climate advocates are connecting the dots. An analysis that the Brookings Institution released last year found that the effects of a warming world — including the health costs of wildfire smoke and flooding — are costing the average household somewhere between $219 and $571 a year.As the war in Iran drives up fuel prices, revealing the economic fragility of the nation’s dependence on oil, it creates a unique opportunity to advance the new agenda, said Daniel Aldana Cohen, a sociologist at the University of California, Berkeley, and founding co-director of the Climate and Community Institute: “It should be easier than it’s ever been before to say, ‘Fossil fuels are unreliable. They drive up your cost of living. They cause wars and people die. And if we make a green transition, that will make everyday life better for working people who are struggling.’”The agenda was also inspired by the mayoral campaigns of Zohran Mamdani in New York City and Katie Wilson in Seattle, both of whom won elections last year with populist platforms focused on affordability. Like the Green New Deal, green economic populism also seeks to mobilize massive investments in communities, infrastructure, and industry. In the medium-term, that means rolling out technologies that can cut household expenses alongside fossil fuel use, like heat pumps, induction stoves, and electric vehicles — and making them accessible to the working class, unlike Biden’s EV tax credits that were taken advantage of mainly by the wealthy.Some of the climate solutions you might expect are noticeably absent from the agenda. For example, it makes no call for carbon taxes or cap-and-trade, since these economic systems can pass on costs to consumers — an option Bigger said is “not politically tenable right now.” Meanwhile, some of the plan’s suggestions, such as implementing rent caps or freezes, might not even strike most people as climate policies. But making housing easier to afford is a climate solution, according to Wilson, the new mayor of Seattle, where transportation is the leading source of carbon emissions. “When you build affordable housing in the city near where people work, near where people shop, near where people do all the things — that is what enables people to not drive a car an hour to get to work each day,” Wilson said during a press briefing about the agenda.Grace Adcox, senior climate strategist at the progressive polling firm Data for Progress, said Americans’ lack of trust in institutions, combined with a skepticism that they’ll reap the benefits, could make implementing bold public investments difficult. “I will say that the biggest question I often get about proposed climate solutions or climate infrastructure is, ‘How can you assure me that I’m not going to be paying the cost down the line?’” Adcox said. Her polling firm, however, found that 70% of voters believe economic policy can simultaneously lower costs and emissions.But Emily Becker, director of communications for the climate and energy program at the center-left think tank Third Way, described the agenda as “Biden on steroids,” warning that it may not resonate as broadly as its proponents hope. “It lacks the imagination of the Green New Deal, and it lacks the pragmatism of the Inflation Reduction Act,” she said. “They find themselves stranded between, ‘OK, do we tell policymakers how to make something durable that works and that has political fortitude? Or do we paint the picture of the world we wish to build?’” That middle ground makes her think the agenda won’t catch on. She also thinks using a populist framing to convince the public to care about climate is unnecessary. “You are lucky to be a clean energy advocate in this moment, because clean energy is affordable energy,” Becker said. “So talk to them about addressing energy affordability and how clean energy can satisfy that.”Advait Arun, an energy policy analyst at the Center for Public Enterprise, which advocates for state-led economic development, said the agenda is promising, but wonders if focusing so narrowly on how climate-friendly measures could cut individuals’ bills might be a mistake. Could climate advocates get so caught up in, say, pitching people on how a heat pump could cut their electric bills that they fail to fight for the larger changes needed to reduce price spikes? Or communities’ recovery costs after weather disasters? “I think [it] actually limits our imagination for the kind of stability we can sell and the kind of politics we can build around it,” Arun said.The architects of the plan are working with their allies to refine the particular policies of the agenda, but they feel confident in the general vision. “I would characterize green economic populism at this stage,” Bigger said, “as very much that sort of overarching North Star towards which we’re orienting.”Frida Garza and Jake Bittle contributed reporting to this story.This story was produced by Grist and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	1 person, 2 dogs dead in Davenport house fire One person and two dogs died in an early morning house fire Wednesday.
	Play all day, party all night at Be Downtown, Bettendorf The Downtown Bettendorf Organization (DBO) has announced expanded programming for Be Downtown on Saturday, June 6, offering a full day of fun that transitions from a family-friendly outdoor festival to an evening of live music throughout downtown Bettendorf, a news release says. The day kicks off with a free outdoor festival from noon to 7 [...]
	Sauk Valley Area Chamber announces scholarship recipients The Sauk Valley Area Chamber of Commerce (SVACC) has announced recipients of its 2026 scholarship program, awarding more than $17,000 in scholarships to local students pursuing higher education, technical training, and career development opportunities, a news release says. This year's scholarship recipients include: Charles A Farnham Business Scholarship The Charles A. Farnham Business Scholarship is [...]
	Genesius Guild kicks off season with 'Love's Labour's Lost' The Genesius Guild theater in Rock Island will kick off its 2026 season with four performances of Shakespeare's "Love's Labour's Lost." Show dates are June 6, 7, 13, and 14, with performances starting at 7 p.m. at Lincoln Park's Don Wooten stage. Admission is free. This is the first time the Genesius Guild has staged "Love's Labour's [...]
	Orion board approves street banner purchases for America 250, Hometown Heroes The village of Orion has approved the purchase of street banners commemorating America's 250th anniversary.
	Public weighs in on future of Centennial Bridge during meeting in Rock Island West End Revitalization hosted the meeting about the three alternatives the Iowa and Illinois DOTs have proposed for the Centennial Bridge, including replacing it with a bridge at 11th Street.
	Everyday People: Librarian joins Davenport rally to show support for community unity Alison Tollas attended Sunday's rally because she is seeking a community of people who care about helping others.
	Fool House, pickleball classic, will bring music, action to downtown Davenport A stretch of West 3rd Street in downtown Davenport will be transformed on Saturday, June 6 as local businesses join forces to host a full day of live music, pickleball and fundraising, a news release says. The action will take place on 3rd Street between Harrison and Ripley Streets. The evening will feature Fool House: [...]
	Building a pipeline: High schoolers gain on-the-job experience at Oertel Metal Works
	President Trump seeks control of science funding The White House Office of Management and Budget is moving to take more control of billions of dollars in federal grants. Critics say the proposed change would jeopardize the integrity of U.S. science.
	Heat, humidity, and finally some rain The Quad Cities will enjoy another comfortable day Wednesday before the humidity levels go up and hot weather settles in through next week. It'll be dry again today, but a few showers are possible later Thursday. Our best rain chances arrive Friday and Friday night. Here's your complete 7-day forecast.
	Ukrainian drones strike a St. Petersburg oil terminal ahead of Putin visit Ukrainian drones struck an oil terminal in St. Petersburg and set it ablaze, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, as the city hosted an annual economic forum promoted by President Putin.
	Is It Hesperia or Moline? This is Roald Tweet on Rock Island.We all know people who have grown up to fit their names. At least one town near Rock Island did just that.By 1843,…
	Movies and TV shows casting across the US Grusho Anna // Shutterstock Movies and TV shows casting across the US The glitz and glam of Hollywood captures the attention of Americans starting from an early age. Beyond celebrities' Instagram Stories and red carpet poses, there are actors out there paying their dues and honing their craft in pursuit of a sustainable career or a fulfilling sideline. Submitting to casting calls is a big part of that journey.Whether you're a working actor or an aspiring one, you might be curious to know which movies and TV shows are casting roles near you. Backstage compiled a list of projects casting right now across the U.S., and which roles they're looking to fill. Media_Photos // Shutterstock High-Impact Vertical Drama Series - Project type: vertical series- Roles: --- Lead Female (lead, female, 18-35)--- Lead Male (lead, male, 18-40)- Roles pay up to: $6,400- Casting locations: nationwide- Learn more about the vertical series here Grusho Anna // Shutterstock 'Uncanny Valley High' - Project type: feature film- Roles: --- Sarah (lead, female, 14-25)- Roles pay up to: $3,000- Casting locations: Worldwide- Learn more about the feature film here Grusho Anna // Shutterstock 'The Storm' Working Title - Project type: feature film- Roles: --- Stephanie (lead, female, 25-45)--- Marcos (lead, male, 25-45)--- Esperanza (supporting, female, 50-70)- Roles pay up to: $2,500- Casting locations: nationwide- Learn more about the feature film here Grusho Anna // Shutterstock Coming of Age Feature Film, Twin Boys - Project type: feature film- Roles: --- Sam (supporting, male, 13-15)--- Brin (supporting, male, 13-15)- Roles pay up to: $8,436- Casting locations: nationwide- Learn more about the feature film here KinoMasterskaya // Shutterstock 'Love in the Wind' - Project type: feature film- Roles: --- Luke (lead, male, 18-30)--- Savannah (lead, female, 18-30)- Roles pay up to: $1,000- Casting locations: Los Angeles, CA; Austin, TX- Learn more about the feature film here Media_Photos // Shutterstock Autism and ADHD in Relationship Themed Skits - Project type: scripted show- Roles: --- Lead Actress (lead, female, 18-35)--- Lead Actor (lead, male, 18-35)- Casting locations: Nashville, TN- Learn more about the scripted show here Media_Photos // Shutterstock 'Lights Out: Who's Out' Vertical Thriller Series - Project type: vertical series- Roles: --- Richard (lead, male, 40-50)--- Mia (lead, female, 25-30)--- Liam (lead, male, 25-30)- Roles pay up to: $4,800- Casting locations: Worldwide- Learn more about the vertical series here Grusho Anna // Shutterstock 'Falling for the Underground King' - Project type: vertical series- Roles: --- Dean (lead, male, 22-35)--- Nora (lead, female, 18-25)- Roles pay up to: $5,600- Casting locations: Worldwide- Learn more about the vertical series here Dpongvit // Shutterstock Buffalo, Confidential TV Series - Project type: scripted show- Roles: --- Pursuers (background / extra, male, 20-60)--- Pursuers (lead, female, 20-60)--- To portray: Very tall mountain men & woman types. Must be able to work local to NYC. Thx! (lead, female, male, 30-70)- Casting locations: New York, NY- Learn more about the scripted show here Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock Christmas Decorating Competition Show - Project type: reality TV- Roles: --- Homeowner Team - Christmas Decorating Competition (real people, all genders, 5+)--- Know an Atlanta Homeowner Who Loves Christmas? (real people, all genders, 14+)- Roles pay up to: $500- Casting locations: Atlanta, GA- Learn more about the reality TV show here Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock 'DJD' - Project type: documentary series- Roles: --- Mr. (lead, male, 40-60)--- The New Mrs. (lead, female, 40-60)--- Miss (lead, female, 20-35)- Roles pay up to: $300- Casting locations: Los Angeles, CA- Learn more about the documentary series here Grusho Anna // Shutterstock In delusions - Project type: feature film- Roles: --- Paige (lead, female, 25-27)--- Mr Cotton Watts (lead, male, 50-60)--- KIMBERLY (supporting, female, 25-27)- Roles pay up to: $3,000- Casting locations: Worldwide- Learn more about the feature film here Tikkyshop // Shutterstock GoodShort App Vertical Micro-Series - Project type: vertical series- Roles: --- Female Talent (lead, female, 18+)--- Male Talent (lead, male, 18+)- Casting locations: Worldwide- Learn more about the vertical series here guruXOX // Shutterstock Netflix's 'AIG,' DC Metropolitan Background - Project type: feature film- Roles: --- DC Commuters / Travelers / Pedestrians/Joggers / Political Office Staffers/Security (SAG-AFTA covered) (background / extra, 21-65)--- DC Commuters / Travelers / Political Office Staffers/Crew (NON SAG-AFTA covered) (background / extra, 21-65)- Roles pay up to: $224- Casting locations: Washington, DC; Alexandria, VA; Baltimore, MD- Learn more about the feature film here muratart // Shutterstock YouTube Competition Show Project - Project type: scripted show- Roles: --- Muscular Guy (supporting, male, 18-24)--- Funny Guy (supporting, male, 18-24)--- Crazy Kid (supporting, 8-12)- Roles pay up to: $400- Casting locations: Los Angeles, CA- Learn more about the scripted show here This story was produced by Backstage and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
	The White House's new site about 'aliens' has nothing to do with UFOs The site compares undocumented immigrants to extraterrestrials, refers to people as "it," and says "they do not belong here"
	A science powerhouse bets on genetic therapy to beat brain disorders The Allen Institute in Seattle says scientists have now learned enough about how the brain works to start fixing it when it breaks.
	'They went through my vocal cords': Barry Manilow recovers after lung cancer surgery Nearly 83, Barry Manilow is recovering from cancer, preparing for a series of concerts, and releasing his first album of new songs in nearly 15 years, What a Time.
	The world is connected by copper. It's a huge target for thieves The value of copper is rising, and thieves can make money by stripping it from phone poles, streetlights and EV chargers. But those thefts cost the rest of us.
	California's primary for governor is undecided as candidates vie to be in the top two Republicans and Democrats all compete together in the unusual primary to set the one-on-one race in November. Two Democrats and one Republican were in close contention.
	Iran fires missiles in Kuwait and Bahrain, U.S. strikes Iran facility Kuwait said Wednesday it had suspended commercial flights after an Iranian drone attack hit the country's airport, injuring a number of people hours after Iran and the U.S. traded missile strikes.
	Iran fires missiles at Kuwait and Bahrain, U.S. strikes Iran facility The U.S. military said that Iran fired missiles at Kuwait and Bahrain that failed or were shot down, and that the U.S. launched strikes on an Iranian facility in response.
	See results for Quad-Cities area races in the 2026 Iowa primary See unofficial results of state and local races in Iowa’s 2026 primary election, as posted Tuesday night.
	Chris Cournoyer advances in tight Iowa auditor primary Lt. Gov. Chris Cournoyer will advance as the Republican nominee for Iowa state auditor after edging Iowa County Supervisor Abigail Maas in the primary.
	Lahn wins Republican nomination for governor over Feenstra; Miller-Meeks, Bohannan to face off again Voters across Iowa cast their ballots Tuesday in a high-stakes primary election that will set the stage for crucial fall matchups.
	Peabo Bryson, known for 'Aladdin' and 'Beauty and the Beast' duets, has died at 75 Grammy Award-winning R&B singer Peabo Bryson has died at 75. He was known for his Disney duets "Beauty and the Beast" and "A Whole New World." He died Tuesday after having a stroke.
	Feenstra concedes in GOP primary; Lahn emerges victorious Trailing by nearly 2,000 votes with nearly all precincts reporting in Iowa, U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra has conceded the governor's race to businessman Zach Lahn.
Tuesday, June 2nd, 2026
	Rep. Randy Feenstra concedes to Zach Lahn in 2026 Iowa GOP gubernatorial primary Though the Associated Press had yet to call the race as of 10:45 p.m. Tuesday, Feenstra announced he was conceding his campaign to Lahn at his campaign watch party in Hull Tuesday night.
	Rep. Randy Feenstra concedes in Iowa GOP governor primary to Zach Lahn Rep. Randy Feenstra, who was endorsed by President Trump, said late Tuesday that he called Zach Lahn to concede in the Iowa GOP primary. The Associated Press had not declared a winner in the race as of 11:50 p.m. With 99 percent of the precincts reporting, Lahn led Feenstra 80,765 (37.79%) to 79,113 (37.01%). Feenstra [...]
	Andrew Fitzgerald advances to November race for Iowa House District 98 Early unofficial results show Andrew Fitzgerald leading and claiming the Democratic nomination in Iowa House District 98.
	Why one of the cities most dependent on the Colorado River now has water for sale Once one of the most dependent on the Colorado River, San Diego now may have water to sell to states that are seeing their supplies from the shrinking river cut.

Wednesday, June 3rd, 2026

Tuesday, June 2nd, 2026