Norte! is a Traverse City-based organization working to build a stronger, better-connected community. This year, they were awarded funding to help with their Grand Traverse Advocate Academy. Thank you to Gary Howe, for telling their story.
“The Grand Traverse Advocate Academy is a call to community action. It’s aimed at fellow citizens who see missing sidewalks and say, “we can do better than this and I’m going to do something about it.”
We’re all familiar with similar stories because they are everywhere. A mom sees a need for a better crosswalk. A group of downtown office workers wants a bike lane. A family wants safe access to a park. Hopes and dreams are part of the community and it takes work to realize them. The Advocate Academy helps citizen dreamers become citizen advocates.
This past spring, 12 of these citizen advocates completed Norte’s second offering of the course. The graduates joined the 12 graduates from the 2018 academy in a growing coalition committed to a happy, healthy, strong Grand Traverse.
This year’s 5-week session began like last year with the crafting of a personal narrative. We do this because the values driving our personal narratives are powerful tools for persuasion. When we articulate them as individuals and then as a coalition, our advocacy becomes shared. Those shared stories become the foundation to goals we work to put in place.
In the first week, we borrowed from the author Daniel Pink and used the Pixar Pitch from his book, To Sell is Human. The framing activates our brain’s natural inclination to story–it draws us in. Read the following example from our class and see how you nod in agreement.
‘Once upon a time, there was a mom and her young son. Every day, the mom drove across town with her son to drop him off at preschool and then go to work. Summer traffic was terrible and the 3-mile trip could sometimes take up to 45 minutes! Because of that, the mom became fed up and decided to ride her bike with a bike trailer instead. Because of that, the two had to cross several unsafe intersections and/or risk their safety using bike lanes on busy streets. Until finally, a group of spirited and passionate citizens (GTAA) got together and made changes to improve bike and pedestrian safety in the city.’
Besides narratives, the academy explored what you would expect to see in an advocacy course on public infrastructure. We tackled policy, planning, goal setting, strategy, tactics, communication, leadership, and teamwork. Integrated into those lessons were case studies of local projects. One case study was the planning and advocating for Traverse City’s first off-leash dog park. A relatively uncomplicated success story. Another case study aimed to explain why Division St., a state trunkline running through the city, remains such a hostile corridor for people on foot or bike, in addition to being dangerous to drive. Division Street is frustratingly one of those wicked problems still in search of success.
The academy is a lot to process. But, as an introduction to local advocacy, we hope three broad lessons come across.
- That advocating for something larger than yourself is empowering. speaking up for a better community creates opportunities that can help your cause.
- That team building is a powerful tool. Joining forces shows wide support and diversifies your coalition’s skillset.
- That there are tools and organizations within your reach to help you achieve your goal. Norte’s Neighborhood Pro-walk/Pro-Bike Advocacy program is one such resource.
We will wrap up this year’s academy with a graduation ceremony on May 9. And evaluation for improving next year’s academy is already underway. The feedback from participants was positive and packed with useful suggestions. For 2020, the key questions to examine include the length of each session and the course itself. There is a wide agreement for more time to process information and to work with each other on a real project. We will look to refine the course material and presentation. Evaluations suggest that more time learning tactics, strategy, and planning concepts will help build confidence. And finally, we will include more opportunities to learn from one another and practice advocating. This will help build a practical understanding of the concepts and show how a few Citizen Advocates can indeed effect change.
The 2019 Grand Traverse Advocate Academy was co-sponsored by Groundwork Center. This year’s academy also received a micro-grant from the League of Michigan Bicyclists. Norte says thank you to both of these awesome partners.”
Categorised in: Micro-Grants, Uncategorized