Dear Readers, Two years ago, Works in Progress almost came to an end after its former volunteer staff, who for years put in long hours and a lot of effort, decided to bow out. Not wanting to lose such a valuable community asset, a small group of us stepped in,…
Works in Progress
The Journal of Olympia, Lacey & Tumwater is Thurston County’s own nonprofit daily news service. It is succeeding but struggling like almost all local journalism around the country. As WIP undergoes reorganization, we encourage our readers to subscribe and financially support The JOLT, our only independent and unbiased local news…
Running on a platform of no special interests, financial transparency and environmental stewardship, Krag Unsoeld and Jerry Toompas were elected Port of Olympia Commissioners on November 4. Their election could prove to be a major turning point for the Port, how it operates, what projects it pursues and how downtown…
At recent Port of Olympia meetings the conversation has focused on how to make the waterfront “pay for itself”. Commissioners have talked about ensuring that redevelopment is “profit-based” and that land must be put to its “highest and best use.” Those phrases sound responsible. But if we look around the…
Dear Port Commissioners and Staff, The Port is planning on spending $6.5 million on a warehouse. They’ve thus far spent $500,000 on design and planning. It will cover 70,000 square feet, 150 feet × 460 feet. It will be a metal frame covered with seven layers of ripstop nylon fabric. It will be placed between…
A federal NEPA lawsuit in the District of Columbia is raising serious questions about whether Washington State agencies misled not only the public—but also the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), NOAA, and the federal court—about the true status of the Capitol Lake–Deschutes Estuary/Budd Inlet restoration project. Environmental advocate Arthur West…
A single twig breaks, but the bundle of twigs is strong” – Tecumsah The Social Movement Round Table of the South Sound held its 3rd meeting on November 15, convening more than 40 groups and organizations who are building local resistance and solidarity in the face of hostile bosses, the…
Legal Immigration Services of Olympia – LISO – began the way most community-rooted work does: with a simple, urgent truth that could no longer be ignored. For years, many families across Southwestern Washington have faced immigration detention alone, with almost no legal support organization available south of Tacoma. Folks living…
Where is Zahid Chaudrey? Zahid Chaudrey is a Pakistani emigrant, local community activist and disabled US veteran of two American-born children who was detained by ICE during a scheduled court hearing for citizenship, He has been held in the Northwest Detention Center since August. His wife and supporters have been…
See original press release here. November 20, 2025 Standing for Nature to Appeal Ruling Striking Down Everett’s Snohomish River Rights Law Grassroots organization says the fight is just beginning as it mounts a strong appeal on core legal issues. EVERETT, Washington — Standing for Nature announced today that it will…
The Ceasefire People in Gaza have experienced the evolving (or devolving) ceasefire with relief or disbelief… as its meaning morphs over time. They sift through the remains of lives and buildings, trying to imagine Gaza in recovery. The ceasefire feels tentative, vulnerable, on-again/off-again… almost a fiction to many. It is…
Sitting between four lanes of Olympia traffic during the 3rd No Kings Day since Mr. Trump’s return to The People’s House, a 75-year-old attendee held up a book entitled “America: A Patriot’s Handbook” in her left hand. Comprised of more than fifty documents that celebrate this country as the land…
This is a much-needed history of the long struggle to save one of the last unspoiled river deltas on the west coast. First, though, before engaging in this epic story, take a moment to gaze at the image of the delta that graces the book’s cover. In the hazy distance…
In recent issues, I’ve addressed the huge financial challenges facing Social Security and Medicare. This issue I’ll address the third of the big three “entitlement” programs, Medicaid. Like Social Security and Medicare, Medicaid is in trouble. Unlike the problems with Social Security and Medicare, these problems are not really driven…
The Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement began as a plain moral claim: Black lives matter, in response to systemic racism and police violence. Yet as its visibility grew, its core message was bent by selective framing, politicized counter-slogans, and a media ecosystem incentivized to polarize. The distortion is not accidental…
The brambles jumps and the ivy creeps, Through my eyes and through my dreams, I don’t want to be the sole causation of my own misery, I don’t want circumstance to be the only reason I breathe, I want my words to create a crescendo of colors in the minds…
Olympia WA: On the evening of November 10th, over 150 community members packed shoulder to shoulder into a cafe, overflowing onto the side walk, with many standing outside the doors to hear about Flock Safety Company’s AI-powered Automatic License Plate Readers (ALPRs). These cameras are tracking our community in Olympia…
See our review of this book Located eight miles northeast of Olympia, Washington, the Nisqually Delta is one of the country’s last unspoiled estuaries. Janine Gates, author of Saving the Nisqually Delta, will discuss her book and present a slide show about the historical pressures applied by ports, counties, cities, and…
The Welcome Blanket Project is a national initiative that began in 2017. Conceived by artist Jayna Sweiman, it reimagines the concept of a border wall – replacing it with 2,000 miles of handmade blankets. Since its inception, more than 7,500 blankets have been made across the United States and around…
Do you use – Google docs to keep track of your members? – Google calendar to schedule your meetings? -Instagram or X to advertise your events? We get it! These BIG TECH companies have huge teams of people working to build and maintain them (and fill them with AI sloop…
The Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund – CELDF – has published a “Democracy Playbook” A Primer on Community Action. The Primer walks you through the typical scenarios of what you can expect when a corporate project wants to come to town, like elected officials saying their hands are tied or…