When a raindrop falls in the continental United States, it’s primarily headed for one of two places – the Atlantic or the Pacific. This watershed line is known as the Continental Divide. For 100 days in the summer of 2023, it was my home as I rode my bicycle more than 2,500 miles from the … Read more
At January Advisors, our passions run deep. On the surface, we are data nerds, but at our core, we are apple nerds. Whenever we get together, we conduct elaborate blind taste tests of different apple varieties. After slicing the apples, we slice the data, identifying the group’s favorite, least favorite, and most contentious apples. Want … Read more
Sprinkles or M&Ms? One scoop or two? Cup or cone? These are tough questions, and even though we’ve got global problems on our minds these days, dessert is still important. Good ice cream can make the world a little more manageable. Here in Houston, we’re lucky to have ice cream weather year-round, and we’ve got … Read more
How much of sprawling diverse Houston can you fit in two days? With enough iced lattes and Topo Chico, quite a lot. After two years of remote work and nearly doubling in size, it was time for our team to get together at our home base of Houston, Texas. In late March, our out-of-town team … Read more
The Chevron Marathon is this weekend, bringing 27,000 runners from around the world to Houston. Each runner carries with them unique reasons that keep them moving through busy weeks and bad weather. Some common motivators are improving cardiovascular health, getting to know your city, socializing with a running community, and the satisfaction of setting and … Read more
About a year ago, when the Covid-19 pandemic forced us out of our office, the January Advisors team adopted some new practices to adjust to remote work. We now start and end the day with a team check-in. The primary objective of these meetings (called “standup” and “sitdown”) is to update everyone on our work … Read more
Public art can bring a neighborhood together. Murals especially can help create a stronger sense of place. They can also be used to raise awareness about important social issues facing a community. If you’ve ventured outside onto the streets of Houston lately, you might have seen a few new bright yellow murals urging residents to … Read more
It takes a lot of guts to take a good thing, and try to make it better. Back in 2017, El Paso was already on the right track to ending homelessness. They had a nearly complete list of everyone experiencing homelessness in the community. They had partners in the community who reported information, but it … Read more
There’s a new spin on hackathons, and it doesn’t involve technology. In the last month alone, Houston hosted two policy hackathons. They got people thinking creatively about our government and the laws they write. On March 5-6, Polithon and Young Invincibles held a policy hackathon about student debt. They brought together a few dozen people between … Read more
Last night, I attended the KPRC Houston mayoral debate between Bill King and Sylvester Turner. This has been a long, grueling campaign season, and it comes to an end next week. One of these men will be Houston’s next mayor. The League of Women Voters, KPRC, and Telemundo Houston produced this debate. They selected questions that address … Read more