Building Local Power presents empowering stories and transformative ideas that drive community resilience, equitable economies, and sustainable futures.
Author, former bookseller, and passionate antimonopoly advocate Danny Caine loves to talk to the people fighting monopoly power in their communities. There are people working together to make their communities stronger, healthier, and more self-reliant. These are their stories.
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BLP's new season, "The Data Centers are Coming," uncovers how deeply the data center conflict is steeped in America’s legacy of monopolies versus motivated communities.
Christopher Mitchell, director of ILSR's Community Broadband Networks initiative, talks to Building Local Power about the interconnected importance of affordable and reliable broadband access.
Brenda Platt, director of ILSR's Composting for Community Initiative, joins Building Local Power to discuss composting, community, and the legacy of David Morris.
John Farrell shares insights into his time working with ILSR co-founder David Morris, including David's remarkable prescience about the economics of solar power.
Stacy Mitchell shares the wisdom and motivation she received from ILSR co-founder David Morris, which shapes her work at the forefront of the antimonopoly movement.
Ladybird Diner's Meg Heriford joins Building Local Power to talk pie, crisis, and how to build and nurture community during unpredictable and volatile times.
Adriana Valdez discusses the inspiration behind the Secret Mall Apartment, a project she undertook in 2003 to protest unsustainable development in Providence, Rhode Island.
North Carolina State Rep Dante Pittman discusses how innovative ideas and leadership have led to economic growth in his hometown of Wilson, N.C.
In recognition of ILSR co-founder David Morris's life and work, we revisit David's BLP interview in 2017 about local power and the power of cities.
Join Building Local Power for a 5-part investigation into how monopoly power exploits systemic racism, inspired by ILSR’s Power Play report.
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Reverend Ryan Brown and Adam Stromme discuss their efforts to unionize a North Carolina Amazon warehouse and the role racism plays in the warehouse's story.
Producer Mars Verrone shares stories about the creation of Union, a new documentary about the fight to unionize an Amazon warehouse.
Not only does AI technology have severe climate impacts, it exacerbates environmental inequity. UC Riverside professor Dr. Shaolei Ren joins us to explain.
UC Davis professor Andrea Cann Chandrasekher shares her research into consumer redlining, the practice of retail chains providing lesser service in poor or BIPOC neighborhoods.
In this season of Building Local Power: The City Series, we take a tour of cities and towns across the U.S. and talk to guests who are working to make their communities more locally self-reliant. Independent business owners, elected city officials, and community leaders explain how their work is moving the needle toward a more just, sustainable, and democratic future.
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ILSR's Ron Knox joins us to revisit a 2019 BLP episode on independent musicians in the wake of the DOJ lawsuit against Live Nation.
We discuss The White House’s new strategy to reduce food waste, cut methane emissions create jobs, and foster resilient communities.
ILSR co-director John Farrell joins Building Local Power to discuss how utilities perpetuate a monopoly model that is damaging our health, environment, and economy.
ILSR’s Stacy Mitchell illustrates how independent pharmacies are the unsung heroes of healthcare, providing critical services that chain pharmacies simply can't match.
How to Get Away with merger tells stories that serve as a reminder of the power of local initiatives to challenge profit-driven corporate consolidation. These efforts are combatting corporatism within their communities and states, mobilizing grassroots movements, and working towards a shared vision for a healthier and more sustainable future.
Listen to the Season Recap
A brewer details the struggles faced by smaller breweries in a consolidated beer industry, and highlights the importance of creativity, community, and empowerment.… Read More
An environmental lawyer and activist calls bigness the most pressing issue in the waste industry. … Read More
A NYC composter fights to fend off Wall Street and invest in the land and her community. … Read More
A determined coalition fights to block a private takeover of the state’s largest utility. … Read More
A community advocacy organization fought to transfer power from a fossil fuel-backed investment firm to community-driven clean energy.
From the Capitol to K Street, a Wisconsin native finds a home at Consumer Reports advocating for broadband access and affordability. … Read More
Sparklight monopolization of East Carroll Parrish prompts leaders to build a fiber-to-the-home network for fast, affordable Internet. … Read More
Communities nationwide proactively address food security by opening grocery stores that adopt innovative ownership, access, and governance approaches.
The Frontline Stories series profiles the people directly involved in combating monopoly power. First up, the fight against dollar stores in Toledo.
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Two advocates for affordable life-saving drugs share their stories exposing America’s healthcare woes… Read More
A Georgian devotes herself to expanding the rural South’s broadband for better healthcare access… Read More
An activist mobilizes hundreds of residents in an effort to shut down a coal plant… Read More
A tenant organizer battles profit-focused private equity firms for safe, affordable housing.
Three composters face funding challenges in an effort to foster land stewardship.
A fisherman explains how corporations are displacing independent fisherfolk… Read More
“The Onion Man” gives a first-hand account of what is driving farmers to extinction… Read More
A grocery store owner transforms a food desert into a food oasis.