Michele Archie’s Post

🌟 Trail Towns Opportunities! Join Us for our Trail Towns 101 Course & a Free Webinar with American Trails 🌟 Passionate about trails and community building? 🌿 Amy Camp (trail towns guru and CYCLE FORWARD founder) and I have two great opportunities coming right up! Links for more info and to register are in the comments below. OPPORTUNITY #1 🚀 Free Webinar: Building a Trail-Friendly Community – Three Things You Can Start Today Hosted by American Trails, this webinar offers a sneak peek into our Trail Towns 101 course. 📅 Webinar Date: November 14, 2024 🎓 What You'll Learn: Join us, the creators of the new online course, Trail Towns 101: Strategies, Tools and Inspiration to Make Trails Work for Your Community, to learn about what it means to be a trail town (hint: you don’t have to be part of an established program) and how your community can benefit from building stronger connections with trails and trail users. This webinar introduces you to three simple, concrete strategies to engage your community, entice locals and visitors, and take the next steps toward making the most of outdoor recreation and trails. OPPORTUNITY #2 🔖 Trail Towns 101: Strategies, Tools, and Inspiration to Make Trails Work for Your Community Our comprehensive course starting in February 2025, designed to help you transform your community by leveraging the power of trails. 📆 Important Dates: Course Sessions: Tuesdays, Feb. 4-18, 2025 (3 weekly 2-hour live video sessions) Optional Pre-Course Accelerator: Three interactive sessions from September 2024 to January 2025. Notice! The last day to register for the optional pre-course accelerator is September 27. 🚀 About the Pre-Course Accelerator: An exclusive, small-group experience designed to jumpstart your journey toward building successful trail towns. 3 interactive sessions to dive deep into trail town strategies and hands-on tools. Learn by doing, using a proven Trail Town Assessment to chart a course for your own community/ies Bonus: Enroll in the accelerator and receive a free copy of Deciding On Trails: 7 Practices of Healthy Trail Towns by Amy Camp! #TrailTowns #CommunityBuilding #OutdoorRecreation #SustainableCommunities #EconomicDevelopment #Leadership #TrailTownAssessment #EnvironmentalStewardship #LocalLeaders #ActiveTravel #SustainableTourism #CommunityEngagement #TrailAdvocacy #UrbanPlanning #RuralDevelopment

The latest Harbinger newsletter is out, with the usual course announcements and collection of opportunities and resources for rural communities—many of which speak to more populated places, too. The big news is that we just announced a new creative placemaking “deep dive” seminar! Creative Placemaking Deep Dive: Moving from Ideas to Community Impact is now open for registration. (Link in chat below.) Four 90-minute sessions, Tuesdays, Oct. 29, Nov. 12 & 19, Dec. 3, 2024. Professional learning credits available. The kind of collegiality we see in our Outdoor Recreation Roadmap and Creative Placemaking courses—along with some experiments in peer learning here and elsewhere in our work, and conversations with Creative Placemaking course alumni—inspired our new Creative Placemaking Deep Dive. The Deep Dive is built on four 90-minute seminars to engage participants with people doing Creative Placemaking in communities across the country, case studies, thought-provoking exercises and short "homework" assignments to keep the learning momentum going. The sessions focus on four topics that have emerged from past Creative Placemaking courses: 1) Small Steps, Big Change — This is a big question in nearly any kind of on-the-ground community work: how to build and sustain momentum and allow projects to unfold organically by taking small steps. What really works? And how can we sustain our own passion and energy for this work? 2) Creative Placemaking for Climate Resilience — A focus on climate resilience and disaster preparedness is motivating a lot of community-building work these days. How can Creative Placemaking contribute? How can we leverage this emerging focus to support other community priorities? 3) Pathways for Navigating Municipal Processes and Rules — Local governments have a lot of say over what happens in community spaces where Creative Placemaking happens. What works to build cooperative relationships and support? What kinds of challenges should we anticipate? How can local governments go beyond typical community engagement models to support community-led change? 4) Creative Placemaking and Placekeeping as Forces for Equity — Must revitalization and renewal be in tension with cultural preservation? How can Creative Placemaking help reveal, maintain and sustain cultural, historical, and social identity? Can we avoid consequences like gentrification and displacement? How does a commit to inclusivity play out in practice, and how should we define and measure success? Intrigued? Would love to have you on board for our inaugural run! Please share with folks who might find this useful, or inspiring or both! Use the code FRIENDS when you register for a 10% discount, on top of the discounted early registration fees. Darya Pilram Lorie Higgins Erik Kingston, PCED

Two of my favorite big thinkers and change agents working together! I'll be signing up for this and encourage others to come to the virtual table. Community Crowdfunding is about more than money (it's about money, to be sure), but don't overlook the 'Community' dividend. When your friends, neighbors, and other locals invest in your project, they become ambassadors and promoters. Here's how that works for me. As a founding community shareholder in Boise Brewing, it's always my first recommendation for anyone looking for award-winning local beer magic and great food prepared by creative geniuses. See what I did there? I'm particularly interested in supporting companies focused on #inclusiverecreation that welcomes clients of all abilities, for three big reasons: 1. Because everyone benefits from time in nature and the freedom to explore our shared world, 2. Travelers with disabilities have families, friends, and colleagues who like to travel and recreate together, and 3. #AccessMeansBusiness * *In 2019, adult Travelers With Disabilities (TWDs) made 81 million trips and spent $58.7 BILLION in communities throughout the U.S. And that doesn't reflect the money spent by those 'families, friends and colleagues' in their entourages. Source. 2020 Market Study on Adult Travelers w Disabilities (Harris Poll) Dana Gover, MPA Amy Cortese Idaho Conference on Recreation and Tourism Idaho Department of Commerce Idaho Veterans Chamber of Commerce Nikeela Abrams (Black) Idaho River Sports Mystic River @Watershed Association Association Of Idaho Cities Access Trax Disability Action Center NW Teton Adaptive Challenged Athletes Foundation Boise Parks Association

A community engagement toolkit that's powerful, versatile, and people-first, yet grounded in the realities of your firm's budget, staff skills, and client needs – is it just a dream? 🙏 If it is, then MIG's world-class suite of engagement platforms must be a dream come true! ☀️ In our recent chat with Ryan Mottau, MIG's Director of Digital Engagement, he shared how they've been strategically assembling their digital engagement toolkit. They select the highest-quality, most flexible digital platforms that complement MIG's in-person methods and adapt to their wide variety of projects. Planning projects especially tend to revolve around places. "Where"-questions come up in many of MIG's project types, such as: 👉 Parks and recreation planning 👉 Transit planning, such as street corridors, street design, and pedestrian crossings 👉 General and comprehensive planning, citywide visioning, and land use planning 👉 Campus planning 👉 Historic landscape surveys 👉 Environmental planning, like urban forestry and green infrastructure planning 👉 Inclusion-driven projects, such as youth surveys and accessibility surveys That's why they always keep Maptionnaire - a powerful, flexible platform for map-based community engagement - on hand. ⬇️ Check out the full story and get tips for integrating map-based engagement in a variety of projects. https://lnkd.in/gf2Y-CEF

In 2019, Truro was one of four towns in Cornwall, out of 101 nationally, selected to work towards a Town Deal. Truro also received accelerated funding last year for investment in capital projects that would have an immediate impact and help places “build back better” in the wake of COVID-19 🚀 🏗️ The Challenge: Selected for accelerated funding in the wake of COVID-19, Truro had a mission: Develop a Town Investment Plan, a vision for economic regeneration, and engage the community in shaping the future. A Town Deal was born! 🛠️ The Solution: Agile stepped up to the challenge! In a whirlwind of sprints, we crafted a brand identity, launched a website, and initiated a dynamic community engagement campaign. Despite unexpected twists, we pivoted seamlessly to a digital and print media approach. 🌐 The Results: ✨ Truro secured a remarkable Town Deal of up to £23.6 million in April 2021! ✨ 3,771 users engaged with the Truro Town Deal website during the community campaign. ✨ Social media buzz reached around 30,000 impressions on Twitter and 31,600 on Facebook. ✨ An email newsletter, boasting a whopping 73.7% open rate and 27% click-through rate, kept the community in the loop. ✨ 455 valuable pieces of feedback were received via online and offline channels. ✨ Over 92% of feedback supported the vision outlined in the Town Investment Plan. 👏 The Journey Continues: But wait, there's more! Agile retains the honour of supporting Truro Town Deal as projects transition from plans to reality. 🚀 Do you need to hit the ground running with a full kit of brand, socials and website to kick start your communications project? Contact us for the sprint-iest and most pivoty of approaches! https://lnkd.in/ezNshz3u

Exciting News! Our independent evaluation, conducted by Sarah Frost, unveils the impactful outcomes of The Friendly Bench CIC community infrastructure project. Launched in 2018, The Friendly BenchⓇ is an innovative, outdoor social space building connections between people, places, and nature. Key findings from the evaluation: ✨ Three-Fold Purpose: The Friendly BenchⓇ serves as a connecting hub, linking people, places, and nature, contributing to community well-being. 🌟 Benefits: Individuals experience improved well-being, increased social interaction, and reduced isolation. Communities gain improved spaces, social hubs, and access to funding. 🌳 Connecting with nature: The Friendly BenchⓇ engages people in gardening, nature-based activities and participation with other environmental focussed groups. 🤝 Connections: Over 150 network connections made, creating partnerships with local and national organisations, enhancing community resources. 🔑 Enablers: Success factors include attractive and accessible outdoor safe space, collaboration with local organisations, and active community involvement. Ready to explore the full impact? Click on the link below and read the comprehensive evaluation by Sarah E. Frost. Discover how The Friendly Bench is transforming communities and building connections across the UK. https://lnkd.in/eq7BAqzK #TheFriendlyBench #TheFriendlyBenchNetwork #CommunityImpact #Evaluation #Connectingcommunities

Exciting News! Our independent evaluation, conducted by Sarah Frost, unveils the impactful outcomes of The Friendly Bench CIC community infrastructure project. Launched in 2018, The Friendly BenchⓇ is an innovative, outdoor social space building connections between people, places, and nature. Key findings from the evaluation: ✨ Three-Fold Purpose: The Friendly BenchⓇ serves as a connecting hub, linking people, places, and nature, contributing to community well-being. 🌟 Benefits: Individuals experience improved well-being, increased social interaction, and reduced isolation. Communities gain improved spaces, social hubs, and access to funding. 🌳 Connecting with nature: The Friendly BenchⓇ engages people in gardening, nature-based activities and participation with other environmental focussed groups. 🤝 Connections: Over 150 network connections made, creating partnerships with local and national organisations, enhancing community resources. 🔑 Enablers: Success factors include attractive and accessible outdoor safe space, collaboration with local organisations, and active community involvement. Ready to explore the full impact? Click on the link below and read the comprehensive evaluation by Sarah E. Frost. Discover how The Friendly Bench is transforming communities and building connections across the UK. https://lnkd.in/eq7BAqzK #TheFriendlyBench #TheFriendlyBenchNetwork #CommunityImpact #Evaluation #Connectingcommunities

I started working with The Friendly Bench CIC (TFB) back in Jan 2020 when I was mega chuffed to be approached to be their evaluation partner. I confess I’d never heard of a TFB but I soon saw their ethos and purpose was right up my street (they’re all about building community, making connections, using green space and local assets, and creating social change). I was initially a bit sceptical about how I’d go about evaluating what is essentially a block of wood (albeit a very well designed and attractive block of wood). But through the following steps, I soon found plenty of relevant data. 👩💻: ✅ Working with The Friendly Bench CIC to develop a theory of change (and related mind map) to understand the purpose, intended outcomes, and the thinking behind how the activities will lead to these being achieved. ✅ Reviewing existing relevant evidence around community places and spaces, community infrastructure, well-being, social networks and loneliness. ✅ Facilitating peer learning sessions for TFB network members to share successes and challenges. ✅ Talking to partner groups, people who use TFB and other key stakeholders to better understand the role and value of TFB in 12 communities across England. Upshot is, the places where we live 🏡influence our social connections and sense of wellbeing. Having a TFB in communities helps enable the day-to-day interactions which help to boost social relations and wellbeing. TFB helps provide a sense of belonging and create the conditions for people to feel connected and do things they enjoy - helping address loneliness and social isolation. Want to know more? Take a look 👀 at the full report below…👇 #evaluation #loneliness #community

🗣🖍 There are about 60 parks within half a mile of the highway. This is the third park that we program and steward. It’s so noisy, and it recently got some funding for some renovations because we were like, “Hey, it’s just an asphalt-top triangle, we can do something better here.” When I was growing up, it was predominantly Italian and Irish. Peter, who owned the blue house, would share these wonderful stories of how it was growing up in this neighborhood. Right now, there’s a big Mexican population around here. It’s intergenerational: you see the grandmothers tending to the toddlers and the infants, the parents play with the teenage kids and the younger kids, and sometimes they all play volleyball. We’re excited to see what’s going to happen here. It’s great that these changes are coming and that they’re making these investments, but we’ve also got to worry about the highway. When we host events in Virginia Park, it gives us the opportunity to talk to folks about changes that could potentially come to this area. It really is grassroots, building relationships. We show up everywhere. We go to schools, we go to meetings, big events. When our partners have meetings, we show up to their meetings. We’re very mindful that other organizations are working on other projects, so we definitely support and advocate for the work that they’re doing, but then it also provides us an opportunity to talk to people and be like, “Hey, do you know about like this other project to cap the Cross Bronx?” One of the hardest things about organizing is that you meet people who are like, “I can’t pay my rent, I can’t find a job, my lights are gonna be cut off, I’m having challenges with my kid in school.” It’s having to meet all these needs even before you can ask someone, “Hey, we have this really ambitious project, are you interested in learning about it?” I spend a lot of time just helping people navigate their own challenges to really gain that trust so that later on, I can say, “We’re having this meeting, can you come out and support?” That’s what organizing is about; it’s not a transactional relationship. https://lnkd.in/dRVpqV2m

Want to make a change in your community but don't know where to start? Five Trailblazers tell you how https://ab.co/48DbYpt In a broader context, the stories from the Heywire Trailblazers highlight the power of individual initiative and community engagement in driving change, which can be inspirational for those involved in Landcare or agricultural initiatives. These young leaders demonstrate how targeted, grassroots projects can address specific community needs, potentially offering valuable insights or models for Landcare NSW to consider in our own projects. By identifying local needs, leveraging unique solutions, and engaging with the community, these trailblazers show that impactful changes can begin with individual actions and grow to influence broader sectors, including agriculture and environmental management.