A new statewide initiative from Pathfinders Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D) aims to help individuals with disabilities and their caregivers better navigate opportunities to enjoy Iowa’s parks and cultural spaces. Project designers encourage anyone with knowledge about accessible features to help build the crowdsourced database and map. The survey can be accessed directly at https://bit.ly/ADAmap and on Pathfinders’ website, www.pathfindersrcd.org.

In 2023, the Corridor Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), which is tasked with reviewing and approving transportation investments in the Cedar Rapids metropolitan area, reached out to IISC to learn how they might tailor a 15-Minute City model to suit their needs. Now, a guidebook to “Complete Neighborhoods” that focuses on mid-sized, U.S. cities provides resources and inspiration. Created by three students in the School of Planning and Public Affairs’ Transportation Certificate program, the nearly 80-page guidebook provides overviews of concepts like supportive development regulations, infill development, and parking requirements.

Professor Theresa Bechtel’s community health class, a three-semester course in the College of Nursing, focuses on the social, behavioral, environmental, economic, and medical factors that contribute to a population's health and well-being. As part of IISC’s collaboration with the South Central Iowa Workforce Development Board and Pathfinders RC&D, Bechtel’s class aims to provide analyses of the gaps in healthcare career training and awareness among high school and college-aged students in the region.