FOUNTAIN HILLS, Ariz. (AP) — A Phoenix suburb has been labeled a dark sky community, the latest in Arizona to be acclaimed for efforts to combat light pollution.
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FOUNTAIN HILLS, Ariz. (AP) — A Phoenix suburb has been labeled a dark sky community, the latest in Arizona to be acclaimed for efforts to combat light pollution.

Residents of Fountain Hills campaigned for the designation by the International Dark-Sky Association, the Arizona Republic reported last week.

The town is one of 17 communities across the world that pledged to stop excess artificial light. It's the fourth dark sky community in Arizona, joining Flagstaff, Sedona and the village of Oak Creek.

John Barentin, association director of conservation, said the designation is about changing public perceptions and promoting not just reduced lighting levels, but better-quality lighting, too.

"Because the focus with dark sky communities is on public policy and public outreach and education, they need not have a dark sky to begin with," Barentin said.

http://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/arizona/articles/2018-01-15/phoenix-suburb-fountain-hills-becomes-dark-sky-community
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The Phoenix Suns have lost four of their last five games. Those losses have come by an average of over 19 points per game.

That stretch has also been punctuated by injurie... (more)

The Phoenix Suns have lost four of their last five games. Those losses have come by an average of over 19 points per game.

That stretch has also been punctuated by injuries to starters T.J. Warren and Marquese Chriss.

But, there are bright spots to be found. Namely, rookie forward Josh Jackson’s play.

Jackson had a career high 21 points while adding six rebounds and three assists for the Suns in a 120-97 loss to the Indiana Pacers Sunday night at Talking Stick Resort Arena.

The 20-year-old has responded quite well to being benched in a game Jan. 2 against the Atlanta Hawks. In the last four games (he missed Friday’s game vs. Houston), Jackson has averaged 15.8 points, to go along with 5.8 rebounds and three assists. He’s shooting 47 percent from the floor and a blistering 46.7 percent from 3-point range.

Jackson credits his conversation with interim coach Jay Triano for turning around his play.

“I’ve been kind of struggling a little bit all the way to this point in the season, but I think most of it comes from not having too much confidence and not knowing a lot of things, to be honest,” Jackson said Sunday night. “Every game, I’m just trying to learn something new. Like (Sunday), I learned a couple new things and I think we’ll be ready the next time we play the Pacers.”

In the three games prior to his one-game benching, Jackson played just 11.5 minutes on average, scoring 4.7 points and shooting a woeful 26.3 percent from the floor.

Turnovers had also been a problem for Jackson, but less so recently. In his last four games, Jackson has dished out 12 assists against only seven turnovers.

For most of Sunday night’s contest, the rookie from Kansas showed no ill-effects of the right hip strain that kept him out of the Houston game, but he did admit it caught up with him late.

“It felt really, really good the entire game up until the end of the fourth quarter, and then I started to get a little bit of pain in it,” he said.

The Suns travel to Portland to take on the Trailblazers Tuesday night. The game tips off at 8 p.m. and can be heard on 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station with Hall-of-Famer Al McCoy and Tim Kempton on the call. Pregame coverage starts at 7:30.

http://arizonasports.com/story/1379071/josh-jackson/
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PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) -
A new shelter open in central Phoenix is giving some of the Valley's homeless a safe place to live.

More than 22,000 people in Maricopa... (more)

PHOENIX (3TV/CBS 5) -
A new shelter open in central Phoenix is giving some of the Valley's homeless a safe place to live.

More than 22,000 people in Maricopa County are homeless. That's according to data from the Arizona Department of Economic Security. On any given night in Jan., more than 4000 homeless people are using shelters in Phoenix. More than 1600 sleep on the streets.

"It’s very rare for any of us who are commuting to and from work everyday, to drive by any intersection and not see someone on the corner panhandling," said Stefanie Smith, Camelback Pointe housing supervisor.

Thanks to non-profits Native American Connections and Mercy Maricopa Integrated Care, some of those less fortunate now have a real home.

http://www.azfamily.com/story/37269749/new-phoenix-shelter-provides-space-for-homeless
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Arizona can no longer be considered an “up-and-coming” technology hub. We have firmly solidified ourselves as a serious contender among the nation’s elite technology... (more)

Arizona can no longer be considered an “up-and-coming” technology hub. We have firmly solidified ourselves as a serious contender among the nation’s elite technology centers. In order to continue our community’s growth, we have prioritized investment capital as a key challenge to tackle. Through our legislative efforts, we feel that we are on track in this area as well.

The Arizona Technology Council has worked hard to accelerate investment in the technology community by advocating for important pro-investment legislation such as the Angel Investment Tax Credit, which gives a 30-35 percent tax credit to investors. Convincing our lawmakers to pass legislation that promotes investment is the final frontier to reaching peak technology output.

Overall, there are a number of sectors on the rise filled with companies deserving of investor dollars. And while I don’t want to make any specific recommendations on companies deserving of investment, I have broken down the 10 hottest sectors to explore if you’re interested in investing in our state’s technology community.

http://azbigmedia.com/10-hottest-sectors-in-arizonas-tech-community-for-2018/
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