This week on Arizona Illustrated… local rapper Cash Lansky is helping the Deuce-Nine to thrive by working with the City of Tucson; Casa Grande celebrates the 100th birthday of Veteran and hero, Bob Brutinel; the invasive Salt Cedar takes water from the desert and leave salt behind and doodling just for the fun of it with Ryan Hill.

Cash Lansky and the 29th Street Thrive Zone

More and more we are seeing creative approaches to civic engagement that’s inspiring people to become more active, informed and connected to one another. In this story we meet Hip Hop artist Cash Lansky who has been a catalyst in bringing people together in his community. Lansky, who having benefited from afterschool programs and positive role models when he was a kid, is now setting out to address the gaps in resources in the neighborhood he grew up in. In addition to starting a nonprofit ‘A Hand Up, Not A Handout’ with his wife, he is now an ambassador for the City of Tucson’s 29th Street Thrive Zone initiative, who in partnership with the Living Street Alliance, is organizing events to gather community-led research. This new and creative approach to civic engagement ensures that solutions are tailored to the unique needs of the neighborhood, often uncovering overlooked perspectives that top-down research misses, and promises to aid people in shaping their neighborhoods with newfound agency and insight.

A Hero's 100th: Iwo Jima Veteran Bob Brutinel's Birthday

We honor the remarkable life of Bob Brutinel, an Iwo Jima veteran, Silver Star and Purple Heart recipient, and essential community member from Casa Grande, AZ, as he turns 100 years old. This special birthday celebration includes a letter from President Biden honoring Bob's service and contributions to our country.

Invasive Desert Plants: Salt Cedar
The Sonoran Desert has thousands of native plants that are desirable in our environment, but other species can thrive here as well, making them invasive and undesirable. The Salt Cedar (Tamarix aphylla) is one of them. This evergreen can cover large areas, competing with native trees and other plants for limited water resources and space, often outcompeting many other plants.

Rituals with Ryan Hill
In this series we dive into the idiosyncratic habits of people. We learn about their rituals, whether personal or communal, and how those rituals have imbued their daily lives with more clarity and meaning.
In this story we “doodle” with artist and educator, Ryan Hill. For Ryan, doodling allows him to enter the “nonproductive space” which allows a stream of consciousness to take hold and can help to feel more attuned to nature and less fixed on results.

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