Background
Josh has been with MPC since 2006. His focus is on advancing MPC’s environmental and economic goals through policy research, advocacy, and community engagement. He directs MPC’s water resources programs, such as the Milwaukee Avenue Green Development Corridor and “What Our Water's Worth” campaign, and provides technical assistance through several regional partnerships, including the Northwest Water Planning Alliance. He co-authored Before the Wells Run Dry, and now works with state, regional and local leaders on strategies to sustainably manage Illinois' finite water resources. He also leads many of MPC's research projects; most recently, he led MPC's team in developing a livability-focused methodology for prioritizing Bus Rapid Transit opportunities in Chicago. He also coordinates MPC's research assistant program, of which he himself is an alumnus.
A New Hampshire native, Josh resides in Chicago’s South Loop, and spends a lot of time in Lake Michigan and on the lake shore path. He managed a small school in Japan before his graduate studies in public policy and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Chicago. His honors thesis, published in Water, Environmental Security and Sustainable Rural Development: Conflict and Cooperation in Central Eurasia, compared the political discourse of marsh restoration in southeastern Iraq with the environmental history of the region.
Josh is a Board member of Poder Learning Center, which serves adult immigrants with a mission to provide the necessary academic tools to promote human dignity, increase employment potential, and facilitate participation in the larger community.
Articles
A Fork in the River: New video explores future of our waterways-
- It's been about a year since Asian carp hit the news in a big way. Here in the Chicago region our most notorious invasive species may have slipped from the front pages, but elsewhere in the broader Great Lakes region they are still very much on people's minds. Fortunately for everyone involved,…
It’s only 2010, but today you can GO TO 2040-
- Think for a moment about what our region could be in 2040. More transit choices? Doable. Safer neighborhoods? Possible. Cleaner water? Sure, if we work at it. Whatever our goals for tomorrow and the future, we need a plan to get there. Fortunately for northeastern Illinois, we now have one –…
Charting a new course for the Chicago River-
- The Chicago River has been in the public eye in the past few weeks, a spotlight it too rarely enjoys. First, the Obama Adminstration came down on the side of disinfection; Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley subsequently reiterated his ongoing support enhanced treatment and a cleaner river. Asian carp…
New MPC and Openlands report tackles Illinois water supply concerns-
- MPC and Openlands, both longtime advocates for sustainable water supply management, have released Before the Wells Run Dry: Ensuring Sustainable Water Supplies in Illinois, a joint report with recommendations for improving local and regional water supply planning and conservation strategies across…
- Chicago Community Databook
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In coordination with the 2016 Fund for Chicago Neighborhoods, during the summer of 2008, MPC collected, analyzed and mapped data for communities that stood to be the most affected if Chicago won the bid. Despite the International Olympic Committee's decision, MPC’s Community Databook remains a useful resource for these communities, which are ripe for redevelopment.
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Areas of expertise
- Sustainable water resources management
- Water supply planning and conservation
- Transit-oriented development
- Economic development
- Energy efficiency
- Climate change
Education
M.P.P., Public Policy, University of Chicago
M.A., Middle Eastern Studies, University of Chicago
B.A., English Literature, College of William and Mary