June 2020 - This Month in Public Policy (Payday Loans, Jaywalking, and More)

Photo by Holger Link

Here’s the best of what we’ve read over the last month.

“In 2018, after more than a decade of groundwork at the United Nations, negotiations officially began for a new treaty focused on conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in the waters beyond national jurisdiction.”
— New High Seas Treaty Could Be a Gamechanger for the Ocean (The Revelator)

“‘I feel taken advantage of—they know that if you’re in a bind and see a way of getting out, you leap at the chance,’ Ms. Ferguson said. ‘Lord have mercy on anyone contemplating using this company.’”
— How Payday Lenders Target Consumers Hurt by Coronavirus (Wall Street Journal)

“Ultimately, whether the pandemic spurs a transition from cars to more sustainable urban transportation depends on the decisions cities make coming out of the crisis.”
— The Pandemic Has Taken Cars Off Urban Streets. Will It Last? (Yale Environment 360)

“Jaywalking laws are not evenly applied: enforcement disproportionally targets people of colour. In 2019, for example, 90% of illegal-walking tickets issued by New York police were to black and Hispanic people.”
— The US’s jaywalking laws target people of colour. They should be abolished (The Guardian)

“Coronavirus shutdowns have cut pollution, and that’s opened the door to a ‘giant, global environmental experiment’ with potentially far-reaching consequences.”
— Pandemic’s Cleaner Air Could Reshape What We Know About the Atmosphere (The New York Times)