WOSU 7/15/2008

http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wosu/news.newsmain?action=section&SECTION_ID=4

The other night my wife and I hosted friends for dinner. They live a couple miles from us and arrived via bicycles. My family and most of my friends are avid cyclists, not just for environmental or economic reasons but because it is a very social form of transportation and a bit romantic.

During dinner Dan made an observation about a recent trip to a craft store. Why do so many people purchase model villages, complete with pedestrians and quaint shops but not an SUV or Wal-Mart in site? There is some sort of desire in them to reminisce about a time when we were much more social and community focused; when we lived locally.

As we face the energy and banking crisis – not to mention poisonous vegetables from our broken food system – isn’t it time that we stop fantasizing about those days?

My family spends a lot of time bicycling and walking around our community, taking advantage of everything it offers. The exercise hasn’t hurt us any either.

We don’t worry much about the bacteria in our food because we grow much of it and buy the rest from local farmers. At one time we had to justify the local organic produce; remind ourselves how it is cheaper in the bigger picture. Now, thanks to the current economy, the local organic farmer is actually dollar for dollar cheaper than the salmonella roulette megastore bio-food.

Getting around by foot, bike and bus allows us to stop and talk to neighbors and explore things we might otherwise have just driven right by. When you slow down like this you have a chance to appreciate what is available to you right outside your door. We also don’t worry much about the gas prices.

So what do we do with all of the extra money we’re saving? Well like most American’s we don’t actually save enough of it, but we do invest it. When it was time to get my daughter a new life jacket for canoeing we went to the local outfitter instead of Target; it may have cost a few more dollars but having local businesses stay in business is a bargain to us. Local merchants generally invest 50% back into the local economy while national chains barely scratch 15%.

For entertainment we find that there is no lack of community activities to take part in. When there isn’t an activity then we have been known to take it upon ourselves to create one. This has allowed us to get to know more of our fellow residents – at least the ones who are also taking advantage of living locally.

The silver lining of the economy and energy crisis is the way it is forcing more people to stay close to home. The more people that participate in living local the better your locale will become. Put away your miniature village and take advantage of what living local can do for your wallet, your waist-line and your social life.

WOSU 06/10/2008

http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wosu/news.newsmain?action=section&SECTION_ID=4

We all take for granted that libraries are full of books, audio and video materials; all of which we can borrow and review. When I consider what I use the library for most it is to borrow these types of items. But as digital media and the internet grow at an exponential rate how will libraries remain relevant?

Imagine a time when no new information is being kept physically; no new books, no new CD’s or DVD’s. I believe we will eventually live in a fully digital world. There may always be some niche publishing going on; even today some musicians press vinyl records, but eventually we’ll be close to 100% digital. In such a world what becomes the important literacies? According to author Daniel Pink, the 21st century set of literacies are to know how to find information, how to validate it, how to leverage it, how to communicate it, how to collaborate and problem solve with it. With such a focus on information shouldn’t libraries be a natural fit?

Libraries have historically served as a place to find and validate information. Many people argue against using only internet research due to the issue of validation. Over time a person can learn how to validate, which is what Daniel Pink promotes. It requires the full set of those 21st century literacies to move learning forward.

Our libraries act as a place that people can come together, to discuss what is important to them and their community; and they act as a place to share information equally and freely to people of all stature and background. The library affords people the opportunity to pursue their interests to the benefit of the community. In effect the library has been a beta version of web 2.0, acting as an information repository as well as a gathering place for social networking. It is this history and set of values that I believe will help libraries succeed.

Having a physical space to share information important to the community is what keeps us connected to each other and is a core building block of society. This space doesn’t need to be separate from the online spaces; in fact the library can facilitate this connection. This connection of physical and virtual, of local community and online community is the key to learning and using collaboration and communication of information. Likewise libraries can teach leveraging relevant information to affect positive local change. Libraries are already a wealth of information about the community they serve and should remain a resource for this. The library connects the final literacy to meet the needs of patrons in the 21st century.

Obviously libraries have taken on many other roles as well. Libraries are as much about information and knowledge as they are about entertainment and relaxation. I don’t expect that aspect to change. My family enjoys a wide range of programming at our local library; from story time to concerts the library is as important to us as the grocer. One is food for the stomach and the other is food for the mind and soul.

WOSU 05/08/2008

http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wosu/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=1274100&sectionID=4

Much is being made about the cost of driving today. Whether you drive to the store, to work or drive to get to your vacation spot; the question remains, what effect is driving having on you and others? Are there other options?

I bicycle year round- not just on weekends but nearly every day – to work. Yes, I’m one of those crazies bike commuting in January.

I’m often asked how I do it. How do I avoid being run over and clean up for my professional job? After responding, I always hear the same thing; Oh I could never make that work. Obviously not everybody can. Truck Drivers can’t – but most people aren’t truckers. Riding your bicycle is only one alternative to your personal car. There’s the bus or carpooling or even walking. All of these require something very difficult – a change of mind.

Driving to work offers you with one thing, the ability to carry loads of baggage. That’s great if you’re going to the lumber yard but what about all of the baggage we don’t realize we’re carrying? The amount of money we have to earn to pay nearly $4 a gallon for gas, the pollution created by emissions and the manufacture of our vehicles. There’s the road rage and stress, the loss of green-space to parking lots and expanding highways, the fat that hangs off our bodies; the list goes on and on.

Debate continues over whether Columbus should build a downtown streetcar line. Columbus resident Walker Evans points out that the $103M project could break out to $59 for each of the 1.7M residents in Central Ohio. At current prices this would buy you one tank of gas for your car which, on average, will last you a week, plus a bag of chips and a soda to help with your weight gain. On the other hand the streetcars would provide tourists and us the opportunity to enjoy High Street, spend money at locally owned businesses, and create hundreds of jobs that don’t exist today but will remain long after the project is completed.

Resident Jeff Johnson started what he calls the COTA Challenge back in January where he traveled almost solely by COTA bus for a month. He found that his car was costing him almost 4 times what riding COTA cost him. That’s just in the real out-of-pocket expenses without factoring in the social savings. He also found he had more time for relaxing and didn’t really miss out on anything

Petroleum and Biofuel costs are raising the cost of Milk and Bread. Of course this may be the only way people will lose weight since we are getting much better at feeding our cars than ourselves. But instead of wasting all of that fuel why not change your mind and try something new? Take the COTA Challenge or take part in next weeks National Bike to Work week. If nothing else give us cyclists and pedestrians a little extra room and a wave as you go by.

WOSU 04/14/2008

http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wosu/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=1260085&sectionID=4

Our world shrinks with each and every new technology. As I commentate to you I have a flow of twitter on my cell phone, incoming feedback on my video, audio, photo and text blogs all while I’m linking up coworkers, past employers, and friends. So many voices are longing to be heard, to share; hoping to build the type of community online that we are losing in our physical communities.

What makes these voices speak online when they don’t speak face to face?

In an expanding population with growing time requirements we all have a limited capacity for meeting up face to face. The chance of meeting people who share interests with you becomes slimmer still, yet we all have a desire to make that connection with others. These online communities are building out of our social needs as humans and our shared interests, be they ideas, places or objects.

A primary component of this online community building is the fact that everyone has an equal voice. Even in a great democracy our voices are often stifled by bureaucracy and physical limitations. The internet takes those out of the equation, even going one step further allowing your voice to take on any form you want it to; audio, video or text – amplified accordingly.

With all of these conversations happening online how do we start affecting our local community and have more face to face interaction? This is a question many cities, organizations and businesses are, or should be, asking.

Offering people the opportunity to interact online in their time, in their way, with the community is certainly part of building local community. Columbusunderground.com is a popular resource doing just that, unfortunately it is the exception and not the rule. That site provides for a variety of conversation about local issues but does not hold any official decision making power the way conversations Columbus.gov could.

This is the leap of faith; that you invite anyone who wants to have a voice in your local community to be heard at your location. Creating the virtual space for these conversations to occur is simple enough. The difficult next step is for the community and its leaders to converse in that space.

Following up online conversations with a physical meeting allows for the same type of interaction and is crucial for inclusion and making the local community connection. Open Space and other meeting formats which replace the facilitator with an interactive host are extremely well suited to this. Every participant’s ideas are equal to every other ones, regardless of position in the traditional power structure. Everyone who participates is the right person.

Since the birth of our nation we’ve desired greater and greater say in our destiny. The tools are now available, the desire for open and honest conversation is on the table, let’s embrace a future full of diverse voices and ideas and let’s build the community we all yearn for.

WOSU – 3/18/2008

http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/wosu/news.newsmain?action=article&ARTICLE_ID=1245294

My daughter’s curiosity is insatiable. Seeing her interact with the world is amazing. At her young age family is almost the only influence she has but soon enough school and peers will enter the picture. This made me consider my own childhood, and the influences that were important to my growth.

As a child I was fortunate enough to be surrounded by woods and fields. I spent countless hours having adventures today’s kids would think were reserved for storybooks. I loved school and organized activities but found this opportunity to explore, uninhibited by adults, learning about my world and myself, has remained my fondest and most important memory of childhood.

Recently I had a discussion with school leaders about getting kids out on their own more, interacting with the physical world instead of just textbooks. Countries that regularly outperform the US do just that. “Last Child in the Woods” author Richard Louv provides substantial research that the disconnect with nature results in increased attention deficit, socialization issues and obesity. Finland is often sited for what is now considered unconventional education; outperforming every other country despite spending thousands less per student, not starting students until 7 years of age and assigning significantly less homework than other educational systems.

The response the educators gave was that we can’t compare apples and oranges; that Finland’s society is so different from ours there is no comparison. I don’t disagree outright but I must ask, in this global marketplace don’t we all have the same aspirations for our kids – health, happiness, and success?

When asked about hands on outdoor classes such as science, or unstructured time outdoors, the response was that mandatory testing meant there isn’t time to deviate from textbook studies. How about encouraging kids to walk or bicycle to school? Surely this would give the children some time to enjoy nature and connect with their community. I heard disturbing arguments.

First was the fear of abduction. Regardless of the evening news’ insistence otherwise, children are as unlikely to be abducted today as they were when we were kids. Next was the issue of busy roads. If kids walk instead of being driven you would see a significant decrease in traffic while raising a generation not bound to automobiles. Finally I was told students haul too many books, instruments and sports equipment, and all that weight just isn’t manageable. Why are we loading our kids down with such baggage? Why not structure our school time to allow these items to remain at school, why rush children through their childhood?

What about childhood obesity, this is surely a reason for greater outdoor activity and exploration. With great excitement these educators told me about a circuit training course being implemented which uses videogames for motivation. Phys-ed class apparently is teaching kids to keep their physical activity limited to gyms or organized athletics.

Sadly this highlights our misunderstanding of a healthy life. In our attempt to solve problems we often look at such a microscopic level that we don’t see the forest for the trees. Obesity is as much about exercise and diet as it is about motivation and self discovery. Let’s put these kids back into nature, back into an environment where they are free to let their curiosity run wild. This source of self motivation and inspiration provides the most productive exercise, exploration, and learning, eventually leading to physical well being, emotional growth and confidence. These are attributes we should all seek in ourselves and our children.

As for my daughter; I hope she never misses an opportunity to experience the world around her and that she continues to chase her curiosity throughout life. So far that plan hasn’t let me down.