Miami is a city with some pretty deep divides: geographic, cultural, and economic. But it’s also a city where, in the best moments, all those differences come together into something messy and great.

That’s why Radical Partners partnered with five other local organizations to launch 10 Days of Connection: to make those moments happen, and to build empathy, kindness, and connection across Miami’s lines of differences (we all know the world could use a little more of that right now).

Last year was the initiative’s first year. During the 10 days, a group of transgender Miamians shared their deeply personal transition stories and living life trans. A mosque opened its doors to the community. Women spoke about their generational differences. People invited strangers to dinner. Dozens of encounters like these happened all over the 305.

Tomorrow, 10 Days of Connection begins again. More than 160 organizations have come together to host at least 70 events across the county for all of us to connect IRL. And this year, we’re partnering with Radical Partners on a Facebook group that anyone can join to be part of the 10 Days challenge.

Our goal? To connect beyond those IRL moments and keep the conversations going. There will be daily connection challenges and plenty of tips for neighborhood exploration, movies, books, and food. Someone is already crowdsourcing a dope Spotify playlist featuring artists from different cultures. 

So join us. Step outside your comfort zone. Walk a new neighborhood (there will be 18 neighborhood tours on May 5).  Hear youth share about the solutions they’re working on for the violence they’re facing in the neighborhoods and schools. Come on out to a massive music jam on May 9. (You can find the whole calendar of events –  70 of them! – here.)

We’ll see you in the group and face to face soon.

THE ESSENTIALS:

What: 10 Days of Connection

Who: Radical Partners and their five partners (The Miami Foundation, Miami Herald, MCCJ, The Children’s Trust and The United Way of Miami-Dade). You! Us! Anyone who wants to have a little more understanding of this amazing, multi-faceted city.

Where: The 10 Days of Connection Facebook group and any of these events

Why: Because Miami is better when we break out of our silos

When: May 1 through May 10

Only 11 minutes. The Miami Herald took a deep dive into what went wrong when police responded to the Feb. 14 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas. Some of the main issues: a faulty communication system, a lack of recent active-shooter training and poor collaboration between police agencies. And while friends and relatives continue to cope with the tragic shooting, many have gotten special tattoos as tributes to honor the victims. (Sun Sentinel)

A dismissal and departure. Miami Beach Commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez’s lawsuit challenging the state’s “resign-to-run” law was dismissed by a judge. Now she’s giving up her commission seat to stay in the race for Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen’s seat. Rosen Gonzalez sued to challenge the law, which requires local and state politicians to resign if they seek higher office. What happens next? Miami Beach’s commission will pick someone to complete the rest of her term (which ends next year) or hold a special election to fill her spot. (Miami Herald)

Seeing sea level rise. Sea level rise is a constant topic of discussion and debate in South Florida but the average resident in Miami might not really understand how it impacts them. The city hopes to change that with a $100k grant from the Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Mayors Challenge. It’ll use the money to develop an interactive tool that’ll highlight sea rise predictions, the impacts of infrastructure improvements and other weather-related data sets. (Miami Herald)

Diesel dollars. After admitting to deceiving the Environmental Protection Agency a few years ago, Volkswagen has to pay up to $2.7 million to the feds. Florida’s set to receive $166 million of that money over the next decade and the state’s environmental protection department wants to hear from you on how to spend it. The survey period is ending soon though so head here for some deets on how to give your input. (Tampa Bay Times)

Walk, hopefully don’t run. Hustling to and from Metromover stops on busy downtown streets could get a little safer in a few years. The city of Miami commission approved a plan to install new pedestrian crosswalks at six Metromover stations. The improvements include flashing lights that will, ideally, give drivers an extra heads up that pedestrians are crossing. While work on the crossings is set to start in August, the project isn’t expected to wrap up until January 2020. (Miami Herald)

THAT’S ALL FOR TODAY.

Make it a great week 💪