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title: Congressional bill tackles pets and housing | Michelson Philanthropies Newsletter
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| View in browser November 2021 Together with co-chairs Alya & Gary Michelson, we are pleased to share news and updates from across the Michelson Philanthropies network of foundations, highlighting developments in medical research, animal welfare, education, equity, intellectual property, immigration, and more.   In this issue: Members of Congress introduce legislation based on Michelson Found Animals Foundation research to make it easier for public housing tenants to keep their pets, California’s Governor Gavin Newsom signs landmark legislation sponsored by the Michelson Center for Public Policy to expand access to college instruction for incarcerated students, introducing a new partnership to promote HBCUs, entrepreneurship, and intellectual property knowledge, and much more.   We welcome your feedback and look forward to collaborating on these and other issues in the months ahead.   Sincerely, Geoffrey Baum, Executive Director Dr. Gary K. Michelson writes in USA Today that any pet microchip can be registered with one of the free registries for life and calls on municipal animal services and veterinarians to advise their clients that there are high-quality services providing free lifelong pet registrations. Microchipping Your Pets Doesn't Have to Be Expensive (USA Today)   Nanofabrication Laboratory Opens at USC Michelson Center for Convergent Bioscience   The new, state-of-the-art John O'Brien Nanofabrication Lab is an innovation hub for research projects ranging from basic science to applied technology. Read more→ MRI Machine, One of Only Three in the World, Installed in the USC Michelson Center   The state-of-the-art magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine that was recently installed in the USC Michelson Center for Convergent Bioscience allows researchers and students to produce better, faster, and less expensive images of the human body, thus improving the capability of diagnostic imaging to detect diseases. Read more→   Michelson Prize Winner's New Nature Study Explores High Risk of Severe Influenza Disease in Indigenous Populations   Dr. Patricia Therese Illing of Monash University, who was awarded a 2018 Michelson Prize for Human Immunology and Vaccine Research for her work involving an innovative new approach for identifying influenza-specific peptide antigens, published a new paper in Nature that finds Indigenous people worldwide are at high risk of developing severe influenza disease. Read more→   Bipartisan Leaders in Congress Cite MFA's Pet-Inclusive Housing Initiative Report in Introducing the 'Pets Belong with Families Act' Congressional representatives Adam Schiff, Brian Fitzpatrick, Lauren Underwood, and Cori Bush cited Michelson Found Animals Foundation’s recent Pet-Inclusive Housing Initiative report when introducing H.R. 5828, which would allow families to keep their pets in the home by prohibiting vague and sweeping restrictions against dogs based on breed or size. Read more→   Better Neighbor Project Provides Pet Food and Services to Hundreds of Watts Residents   Michelson Found Animals Foundation’s Better Neighbor Project hosted a free Pet Wellness Day on October 23 in Watts, California, to provide much needed food and wellness services to help families and their pets in the community stay together. Read more→ ‘Generosity Breeds Joy’: No Place Like Home Challenge Reunited More Than 10,000 Pets With Their Families   Animal shelters and other organizations completed 10,366 reunions of pets with their families through the No Place Like Home Challenge, a partnership between Michelson Found Animals Foundation and Maddie’s Fund.  Read more→   New Michelson HBCU Initiative Promotes Equitable Access to Intellectual Property Education   Michelson Institute for Intellectual Property is partnering with Historically Black Colleges and Universities to bring intellectual property education to a new generation of creators, innovators, and entrepreneurs. Read more→ Corrections and Education Unite to Create High-Quality College Programming in Prison   Michelson 20MM Foundation and the RAND Corporation recently hosted a panel of diverse experts in the field of college programming in prison who discussed RAND’s guide and shared the experience of government, corrections officials, higher education professionals, and researchers. Read more→   Achieving Digital Equity for California's Students   Michelson 20MM supported a Public Policy Institute of California study that explores investments in improving internet connectivity for students during the pandemic, the key barriers to universal broadband access, and innovations to close the remaining gaps and achieve digital equity. Read more→ Governor Newsom Signs Legislation Ensuring Access to Higher Ed for Incarcerated Students   Following advocacy by Michelson 20MM and Michelson Center for Public Policy, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed SB 416, which requires that only nonprofit, regionally accredited institutions are allowed to provide higher education in California prisons and amends the state’s Penal Code to recognize the full-time college enrollment of an incarcerated student as full-time work or a training assignment. Read more→   Michelson Philanthropies \| FirstGen Why Everyone Should Care About the African Rainforest   Alya Michelson wrote an op-ed for The Independent on why it’s time to look to Africa to lead future climate conversations. Read more→ Announcing New Staff Members — Michelson Philanthropies is Growing   Michelson Philanthropies is pleased to announce new staff members Ross Barker, Pet-Inclusive Housing Program Director at Michelson Found Animals;  Vania Campos, Marketing Administrative Assistant at Michelson Philanthropies; Justin Chapman, Digital Content Writer & Editor at Michelson Philanthropies; Michele Morris, Project Manager at Michelson Medical Research Foundation; and Cailyn Nagle, Open Education Resources Program Manager at Michelson 20MM. Read more→   'Making an Impact with Michelson Philanthropies': A New Podcast Series   Jerry Sullivan of SullivanSays SoCal interviews key members of the Michelson Philanthropies' network of foundations to examine their work in animal welfare, the emerging pet care industry, pet-inclusive housing policies, impact investing, textbook affordability, philanthropic philosophy, supporting early-career scientists, medical research, entrepreneurship, and supporting immigrant women. Listen to all six episodes today. Read more→   Read Our 2021 Impact Report   In case you missed it, check out the inaugural Michelson Philanthropies Impact Report. Learn about our unique approach that deploys catalytic grant-making, social enterprises, impact investments, and energetic public advocacy for maximum impact. Stay tuned for the 2022 Impact Report in the coming months. Read more→ Check out this round-up of news coverage of Michelson Philanthropies and our network of foundations over the past few months. Read more→   This email newsletter has been compiled and edited by Justin Chapman, Digital Content Writer & Editor at Michelson Philanthropies. Contact Justin at j.chapman@michelsonphilanthropies.org. Michelson Philanthropies, 3000 S Robertson Blvd, Suite 105, Los Angeles, CA 90034, United States, (310) 806 - 9700 Unsubscribe Manage preferences |
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