• Slug: Green Energy Jobs. 915 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Amelia Monroe
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – The nation’s first solar-powered cobalt processing facility will break ground next year in Yuma County, a $300 million project subsidized by a big federal investment in climate-friendly projects.

The plan is one of two dozen projects underway in Arizona catalyzed by the Inflation Reduction Act signed by President Joe Biden in August 2022. The law set aside $370 billion to promote clean energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Continue reading “Arizona has seen growth in clean energy jobs under Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, at a cost Republicans call wasteful”

• Slug: ASU Budget Cuts. 785 words.
• File photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Aaron Stigile
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – Arizona State University announced measures on Monday to deal with higher education budget cuts passed by the state Legislature. They include a tuition surcharge, cuts to programs such as the Arizona Teachers Academy and the Arizona Promise Program and the closing of its Lake Havasu center. Thousands of students and employees are expected to be affected.

The tuition surcharge is a $350 additional payment for full-time on-campus students in spring 2025. Part-time on-campus students will pay a proportional charge.

Continue reading “ASU tuition surcharge, cuts in response to state budget reflect lower Arizona higher education spending”

• Slug: Republicans Defecting. 985 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Nash Darragh
Cronkite News

MESA – Election season is in full swing. Arizona is one of the most important states in this year’s presidential “race to 270.” The purple state contains 11 electoral votes that could make or break either campaign for former President Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris. Republicans in Arizona who are publicly switching their support to Harris could have an impact.

“I remain registered as a Republican because I think it most closely identifies with where I’m at politically,” said Mesa Mayor John Giles, who has endorsed Harris. “There are absolutely things about the Biden-Harris administration that I have policy differences with. I think the fearmongering from the Trump campaign about Vice President Harris being a socialist or calling her Comrade Harris, you know, those are way overblown. I think she’s demonstrated that when it comes to governing and when it comes to problem solving, she will do that. She will compromise, and she’ll work with Republicans, and she’ll govern from the middle.”

Continue reading “After Mesa Mayor John Giles endorses Kamala Harris, some Arizona LDS members follow suit”

• Slug: Little Tokyo Endangered. 660 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Emery Davis
Cronkite News

LOS ANGELES – Following Little Tokyo’s designation as one of America’s most endangered historic places, the area is looking to return to its flourishing past.

Throughout its 140 years, Little Tokyo has faced many challenges, including racial discrimination and cultural erasure. However, it continued to celebrate thriving legacy businesses and provide a safe haven for Asian culture.

Continue reading “‘It needs to continue’: LA’s Little Tokyo ‘endangered’ designation spotlights community’s need for help”

• Slug: Museum Foot Traffic. 1,690 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Jalen Woody
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – Arizona changes every day. The state’s count of new buildings and people grows daily. As the state changes, so do the museums, which are challenged by a constantly changing city with new possibilities, tastes and people.

Museums in Arizona continue to change their tactics to draw in new audiences. These attractions are expensive to run but must continue to innovate what they have. Otherwise they risk the chance of losing their core audience.

Continue reading “Innovation can be a challenge for museums. Here’s how 3 in Arizona are trying to bring in visitors”

• Slug: News21-Fractured-Language Barriers. 2,655 words. Note: An abridged version of 1,447 words is also available. 
• With audio story and 9 photos.

Note to CN clients: This story includes Arizona material.

By Celia Frazier
News21

LAS VEGAS – In the heart of Las Vegas’ Chinatown, residents gather for a celebration of the annual Dragon Boat Festival. Some stop in to grab shiny, red packages of premade zongzi.
Others grab flyers decorated with a colorful dragon boat and something else: a QR code taking them to information about how to vote – all translated into Chinese. As demographics shift, advocates from Nevada and Arizona to Alaska are fighting to make voting accessible for citizens who speak different languages. But challenges remain – from the cost of translating materials to outright resistance to the idea.

• Slug: Arizonans BMX Hall of Fame. 945 words.
• No photos.

By Brenden Paul
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – Kim Hayashi rose to dominance thanks to her “go big” jumping style. Now she’ll “go big” into the USA BMX Hall of Fame this weekend in Tulsa, Oklahoma, alongside fellow Arizonan Debbie Kelley.

Hayashi and Kelley will be two of the eight members inducted into the USA BMX Hall of Fame Class of 2024, as voted on by over 500 BMX experts, including current Hall of Famers, BMX historians and selected members of the BMX media.

“It’s pretty humbling. It feels like a huge honor,” said Hayashi, 38, who lives in Chandler. “Especially when you look at the women’s side, there’s not a lot of female names up there (at the Hall of Fame). To see some of the people that I looked up to, some of the people that were my heroes, and seeing my name next to theirs is a huge honor.”

Continue reading “Track titans: Two Arizonans among inductees into 2024 USA BMX Hall of Fame class”

• Slug: News21-Fractured-Generation Democracy. 2,576 words. Note: An abridged version of 1,150 words is also available.
• With video story, audio story and 16 photos. Also available: “The Civic Duty,” a series of three video explainers.

By Delaney Chase and Emily Richardson
News21

Note: This story has a strong Arizona focus.

NEW YORK – With studies showing a decline in civics education and knowledge across the U.S., programs from Arizona to New York are working to engage the next generation in democracy. In New York, high school students who gathered this summer for “Democracy Camp” were asked to consider a question: “What is my role in an ideal democracy?” In Arizona, Camp O’Connor takes seventh and eighth graders on a five-day journey through the workings of government. “There’s space to be better,” says one young voter.

• Slug: Who Crosses Border. 880 words. By Mia Osmonbekov.
• File photo available (thumbnail, caption below).

WASHINGTON – Republicans have been warning that “military-aged” men have been crossing the Southwest border in threatening droves since President Joe Biden took office – especially from adversaries such as China and Russia.

“It’s like a military invasion,” former President Donald Trump said at a rally in Tucson last week. “We are being conquered and we are being occupied by a foreign element. And you know, if you think about it, China has a 5 million man army.”

Continue reading “More migrants are coming from outside the Americas, but Donald Trump’s claims of ‘military invasion’ by China are unfounded”