Jay Walljasper

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

The Library will welcome Jay Walljasper during its fifth anniversary in June. This award-winning writer chronicles stories from around the world that point toward a better quality of life and social progress. He specializes in community and urban issues, travel, current events and sustainability. Walljasper has served as editor at the Utne Reader and Ode magazine. He is the author of “The Great Neighborhood Book” and “Visionaries: People and Ideas to Change Your Life.”

BIOGRAPHY

An award-winning writer and popular speaker, Jay Walljasper chronicles stories from around the world that point us toward a better quality of life and social progress. He covers a wide variety of topics, with particular specialties in community and urban issues, travel, current events, sustainability, media and the commons.

He is the author of “The Great Neighborhood Book” (2007) and “Visionaries: People and Ideas to Change Your Life” (2001), both published by New Society Publishers. His articles have been published in National Geographic Traveler, Chicago Tribune, The Nation, Preservation, Huffington Post, Toronto Star, The New Statesman, Philadelphia Inquirer, Australian Financial Review, Resurgence, Mother Jones, L.A. Weekly, Planning and other publications.

His experience includes editor of Utne Reader for l5 years, executive editor of Ode magazine, and a travel editor at Better Homes & Gardens. Utne Reader was nominated for the National Magazine Award for general excellence three times while he was editor. He was awarded the Robert S. Abbott Award for Meritorious Service in Mass Communications from Savannah State University and won a Minnesota Magazine Award for Best Feature Article.

Walljasper has been quoted on contemporary issues in the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street, Los Angeles Times and NPR. He has been a speaker at a UNESCO international conference on Tourism in Santa Fe, a Chicago Architectural Foundation lecture series, the State of Iowa's Great Places Conference, The Tom McCall Society Lecture on land use planning in Portland, the endowed Meredith Lecture on Communications at Drake University, and the Trinity Cathedral Lecture Series on urban issues in Cleveland.

Walljasper directs message, publicity, media and publishing efforts for On The Commons, Project for Public Spaces and other organizations.

(From www.jaywalljasper.com)