North Burial Ground as Haven

by Annalisa Heppner

As the Director of City Cemeteries, I have a particular fondness for North Burial Ground (NBG), but here I am writing as a resident of Providence and cemetery enthusiast with my own personal beliefs, why cemeteries matter, and how cemeteries can be transformational spaces in [...]

North Burial Ground as Habitat

by Greg Gerritt

Those of us who live in a city occasionally need an oasis away from the throngs, a place that is relatively quiet, has some open space, and offers us information about the place where we live and the creatures we share our city with.  Providence’s [...]

Ready to Ride the Rails

by Barry Schiller

While some see trains as nineteenth-century technology, modern trains are perhaps the greenest way to travel over intermediate distances, and Rhode Islanders now have more opportunities to do so than in a long time. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) commuter rail service to Providence, which disappeared completely in the 1980s, is [...]

Rest in Peace, Not Pollutants: Green Burials Say ‘No Thanks’ to Chemicals in the Grave

by Mary Lhowe

You couldn’t possibly count the number of places in Rhode Island where you can walk in pure silence except for leaf rustle, moving among drowsing wildflowers, and around shrubs and trees situated by the hand of nature, the landscape free of human objects except for [...]

PVD Libraries Seeing Double

by Roseanne Camacho

Providence has two independently run library systems.  How did that happen?  Newcomers to the city have reason to wonder, but even long-time residents have not always taken in the difference between the Providence Public Library (PPL) and Community Libraries of Providence (CLPVD), until recently Providence [...]

So You’re Thinking About Going Solar

by Ira Belkin

Talk of “going solar” seems to be almost everywhere these days. If it’s not your neighbors bragging about their solar panels or a news report about government incentives, it’s popup ads on your phone or even your friendly neighborhood solar panel representative knocking on your [...]

School Cafeterias to Address Food Insecurity and Waste

by Warren Heyman

A year ago, the Rhode Island legislature passed a series of bills to amend the laws governing all K-12 schools.  The new laws focus on school food waste and student hunger. The bills became RI State law 23-18.9-17 Food Waste Ban and law 16-110-5 Food [...]

Hubbub Over the Bus Hub

by Barry Schiller

Where in downtown Providence should Rhode Island Public Transit Authority (RIPTA) locate its bus hub, the heart of its operations? Kennedy Plaza has long been both a transit center and a civic space.  Flanked by City Hall and the Federal Building and Courthouse, Exchange Place [...]

CD1 Candidates Focus On PVD

by The Providence Eye

We contacted all of the Democratic and Republican candidates who will be on the ballot for the Congressional District 1 Representative position for the September primary, and were interested to learn more about their concerns for Providence. We asked them all this question and their [...]