Some of my recent work
About business
How the Midwest Will Make America Great. Again.
On the remarkable potential of an underrated region.
Can Going Big on Eco-Friendly Practices Really Pay Off?
How does green affect companies' operating performance?
How We Shop Differently on Our Phones
The device you use changes what you buy.
Who Benefits from Airline Baggage Fees?
Customers hate them. Maybe they shouldn't.
The Second-Mover Advantage
How late-entering companies can compete with pioneers.
Marketing Goes Off Script
Strategies for the digital era.
About nonprofits
Discovery and Loss
Documenting Monticello.
Making the Grade
A small intervention in the first year of a student's college career can make a big difference in outcomes.
Foundation Assesses Community Needs with SAVI
Using a social indicators tool to make funding decisions.
WTTW fundraising campaign brochure
Copywriter (pdf).
About people
"Daddy Bill"
Foster parenting to more than 30 children over the past 12 years.
Start Me Up: Peter Simmie '75
On building a successful business in your 60s.
Nesting
An award-winning design inspired by bird dwellings.
Conversation with Steven Durlauf
A University of Wisconsin economist talks inequality.
A Puritan's Dilemma
Religion, politics, and the agony of David Foster Wallace.
About politics
Why We Should Believe Campaign Promises
The case for pragmatism in choosing a candidate.
How Do Activists Create Change?
It's not always obvious.
The Left is Already Winning the 2020 Presidential Race
On the issues that will shape the coming Democratic presidential primaries.
Move Over, Corporate Democrats
A wave of left populism is on the rise.
The Right-Wing Machine Behind the Curtain
The Heritage Foundations influence on our politics. (Via the New York Times.)
Inequality Is Off the Charts. Can Local Policies Make a Difference?
Portland, Oregon, tries to make a dent.
Trump and the Fear of Evil in America
Why Donald Trump appeals to conservative Christians.
Donald Trump's Unlikely Support Among White Evangelicals