Dear ME: Low tech tool for changing my world

Just this past Monday I used a wonderful audience engagement tool introduced to me by Peter Kenyon. 

Peter is founder and Director of Bank of I.D.E.A.S. and an amazingly talented story teller.  He has worked with over 1000 communities throughout Australia and around the world working on Asset Based Community Development.  

While I am often promoting the use of technology in Planning work, often the best strategies are simple, personal, and more meaningful.  This particular tool is the "100 day letter to yourself".  I have used it a number of times, and this occasion was at the Toronto Complete Streets Forum.  (template of letter pictured) 

The way it works is simple.  The audience is asked to write a short note to themselves (a reminder, a commitment, whatever); then sign it; write their mailing address on it; and then hand it to the facilitator/presenter.  As the facilitator, you make the commitment to them to mail the notes back at the end of 100 days.  It's that simple, but surprisingly powerful.

At the Forum it went over well and I look forward to sending people their letters back.  The letters that were handed to me were written by people who really opened up (to themselves) with incredibly personal messages.  They set all pretense aside, and wrote with open, ambitious, and sincere voices.  

Upon receiving the letters and "hearing" themselves speak through their own words written from a personal place, and time of inspiration, will be more than just a reminder of things to do and far more moving than reviewing any notes they may have taken during my presentation.  

This tool can help people realize who they want to be, and how they want to change their world.  I know this, because I have experienced it as a facilitator and as a participant.  Every time I use this tool it is as inspiring and energizing for me as I suspect it is for the letter writers.  I suggest you try it with your next workshop, public meeting, or town hall meeting.  

Good luck.  

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Where Do You Think You're Going? Building Complete Streets

Yesterday I had the incredible privilege to share the stage with Dan Burden (Executive Director and co-founder of the Walkable and Livable Communities Institute) at the TCAT Complete Streets Forum in Toronto.  

Our session, "Where do you think you're going? Building Complete Streets + Livable Communities" discussed placemaking within the context of complete streets, active transportation and community livability.  It was also an opportunity to unveil the first paper craft animated video I have created for OPPI's Community Planning 101 series.  TCAT and all its partners should be commended for a great learning event; as should all those that participated and shared.  


Below is a copy of my presentation.

Where do you think you're going? on Prezi

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Relax, it isn't rocket surgery. Social Media ABC's

Here is a presentation I was recently asked to do on the use of social media for the Ontario Professional Planners Institute (OPPI).  I based it on the ABCs of Social Media by David Horne (Adjunct Professor of Digital Marketing & Social Media Greensboro College).

If the medium is the message; and we choose not to “read” the medium, what message are we sending?

Social Media for OPPI on Prezi

A: Authenticity

Social media in a professional context is not about advertising

They are powerful tools for communication & creation

B: Brevity

There is a shift in mindset, focusing on smaller more succinct pieces of information - a 140 character state of mind

Communication is refined for very specific topics or areas of interest

C: Community

In a professional context the "social" aspect is communities of interest, as opposed to “personal” connections.

Added opportunities for:

• self-selecting involvement;
• word-of-mouth recommendations;
• discovery by others;
• dialog; and,
• integrating print, audio, and video media.

D: Discovery

Through social media OPPI will be able to expand its “reach”


E: Engagement 

Social media affords opportunities to interact with members in an entirely new way, facilitating the flow of information in many directions (as opposed to the oneway path of traditional media)


F: Fun

Relax, it isn't rocket surgery

Using these tools can change one’s perspective and practice in positive and enjoyable ways 

G: Grow

With greater access online, OPPI should expect to have growth in: 

• numbers of younger members; 
• interactions with members; 
• interactions with the general public; 
• interactions with news media; and, 
• amount of content attributable to OPPI and its membership

H: Habitat 

If OPPI is not going to inhabit the social media area for professional Planning in Ontario, who will? 

I: Influence  

There is no reason OPPI should not be influencing people’s understanding of the Institute and the Planning profession, with a presence on social media platforms. 

J: Jabberwocky 

Should the online discussions about Planning in Ontario be filled with nonsensical information or should OPPI play an active role?  

Social media allows OPPI to have a stronger voice in these discussions

K: Knowledge 

Why not use these tools to express the expertise and knowledge of OPPI online? 

L: Listen and learn  

Social media goes beyond publishing

It is equally about the pollination of ideas from other people

The capacity of OPPI and its members can significantly grow by integrating social media into its communication strategy

M: Member services 

OPPI will be able to provide better access to services with a social media strategy

N: New members 

By engaging Planners with these tools OPPI will be better able to attract new younger members 

Most current and future members of OPPI use these tools in a variety of personal and professional contexts

O: Observe 

Since the information flow with social media is in all directions, with multiple creators of content, OPPI will be able to “learn” through its participation in social media

Trends, challenges, interests & innovations in Planning will be discussed in real time by the many people that are providing content and context

P: Public   

Outreach work can be more direct and engaging

Education can be more widely dispersed and specific

Dialog between Planners and the public can be facilitated 

Q: Quality

Social media will allow for the showcasing of the work and value of true professional Planners in an open and accessible forum

R: Real-Time

The immediacy of social media can benefit OPPI in terms of the information that it produces, as well as, through information “coming in” 

S: Stories 

Social media platforms are well suited to telling stories

OPPI can use these characteristics to tell “Planning” stories that connect with people beyond just professional reports

T: Televise

Through social media video sites, opportunities are created for presenting information in ways that are better understood by people 

They can also act as a library of presentations from conferences or other events

U: Ubiquity 

You can connect everywhere 24/7  

By providing ways of sharing ideas and information at times and locations that are convenient to a wider range of audiences, social media can expand the reach of OPPI significantly

V: Value 

The content that would be produced by OPPI would exhibit value in terms of: 

• membership;
• hiring professional Planners; and, 
• as an information resource for the public, elected officials, other professions, and students

W: Work 

This is going to take more time than anybody is honestly going to tell you  

BUT, the value proposition makes using social media extremely worthwhile

X: Xtra Services

A social media strategy could include initiatives that provide: 

• extra services for members;
• learning systems; 
• facilitation and engagement tools; and,
• creative events

Y: You 

Through social media the individuals’ participation is critical and one of its defining characteristics 

By using these tools, OPPI could connect better with people, while also drawing out their insights and creative energies for the collective benefit of all participants

Z: Zoetic 

Social media is the living web 

The changing nature of social media should not discourage its use 

As Planners we are inherently future focused, yet every day we are increasingly falling behind many other professional groups and citizens in terms of using this ubiquitous communication medium

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Video Crash Course

Along with developing my own videos, I have recommended their use for Planning projects for some time now.

Below is a two page short course giving 10 tips for creating your own videos.

Video Crash Course

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Built Environment and Public Health

As a Registered Professional Planner I have worked with public health, urban design, Engineering, and Planning professionals for over 15 years in numerous municipal and private contexts; often with the expressed focus of improving community well-being.  Therefore, I was pleased to have the opportunity to review The Built Environment and Public Health, written by Russell P. Lopez.   

My hope was to find a useful resource to aid my work.  What I found upon reading The Built Environment and Public Health, was something entirely on a grander scale.  Mr. Lopez has written an exceptional book for professionals and students alike. 

Although The Built Environment and Public Health is based on a model curriculum, the preface describes what in the end is the broader intent that Mr. Lopez easily achieves with this book: “it is meant to be used by public health practitioners, urban planners, and others who may need a quick reference text on issues that often arise regarding health and the environment”.  

Both broad and details planning, community health, and design issues are nested in well structured sections.  The author does an incredibly good job documenting the sources of both historical and contemporary aspects of such a wide ranging subject matter. 

Another helpful characteristic of this book is that Mr. Lopez is able to present information relating to cultural/social conditions created by the built environment and environmental design, that go beyond physical health impacts on individuals.  This surely will be useful for those working outside of design/development specializations, for whom much of the contemporary writing on the built environment is focused.  Social, economic, cultural, design, and policy implications associated with the built environment are all addressed with an equal attention to detail; with the concluding section “Tools and Applications” being a helpful strategy resource for professionals.  

Finally, even on their own, the 70 pages of references included in The Built Environment and Public Health, make it worth purchasing.  My copy has a new permanent perch alongside other favourites.  I suggest any Planner, Health Practitioner, or designer do the same and make room on their bookshelf for Mr. Lopez’s excellent work.  

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What is AASHTO thinking?

What is AASHTO thinking?

"Now, a transportation research group known as TRIP has teamed up with AASHTO to produce a new report on how to keep baby boomers mobile as they age. Their solution: brighter signs and wider lanes."  Read more HERE

My reaction to the results of this ridiculous approach ranges from the joking about a future with seniors wearing helmets and bubble wrap suits driving in cities designed for bumper cars, to the more sombre reaction of how disturbing this kind of world view is for our communities' livability.  

Human scaled and pedestrian oriented urban design and development is part of the answer.  Mixed-use complete communities is part of the answer.  Designing and building networks of complete streets is part of the answer.  Getting people on bikes and walking is part of the answer.  The answer does not rest in finding ways of ensuring that people with reduced eyesight and reflexes can stay behind the wheel indefinitely.  

Is AASHTO really pushing us to go through another phase of "over-engineering" our communities for our machines, instead of designing them for people?  What a waste of resources and the creativity of Engineers. 

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Designing Healthy Communities

As a Registered Professional Planner who has worked in both the USA and Canada my practice has been rather diverse, including urban design, active transportation, and healthy community development; so I was excited to review the new book by Dr. Richard Jackson, Designing Healthy Communities.

What people understand and care for, is what they create and defend; community development is no different.  Therefore, to influence positive change, we need to effectively communicate the needs and desires associated with healthy community design.  Throughout his book, Dr. Jackson addresses his readers in a way that does just that.  

While written as a companion to a public television documentary (see DesigningHealthyCommunities.org), Designing Healthy Communities stands well on its own; and citizens, professionals, and elected officials alike can benefit from this work.  Its particular value comes from the way Dr. Jackson frames the statistics and information within a witty “narrative”; in this way the Dr. connects well with readers’ intellect and emotions.  This is very important if you are seeking to influence change, because getting people to understand your subject takes the former, while getting them to care and take action, requires the later (a far more difficulty task).  

The book’s references are brought forward in a conversational manner; not at all clinical or off-putting for an average reader.  Also, the interconnectivity of this complex subject is seamlessly illustrated with examples that move from descriptions of harmful environmental features/toxins, to their impacts on health, to the overall economic costs to society.  In this way the Dr. leaves few openings for arguments against the importance of building healthy communities.  Although these local to global trajectories can sometimes become disorienting for the reader I believe they generally work well given the broad audience for this important subject.

Speaking of the highlighted case studies in the book, Dr. Jackson states “it is likely you will see pieces of your community in the stories...”.  He is correct.  The reader is drawn in and puts themselves “inside” the examples, and connections are made to things one already understands at deep and intuitive levels.  

The result is that it is an easy mental leap to adapt the Dr's positive solutions for one’s own context.  What better outcome than to present ideas in such a way that the reader effortlessly understands what is being taught while also seeing ways of integrating them into their own circumstance.

The shift in focus that happens in the third section of Designing Healthy Communities, “Be the Change You Want to See in the World”, is particularly important for the potential of Dr. Jackson’s work to influence real change in our communities.  This is a shift in focus to responsibility and action.  

The reader is given tools and strategies they can use to direct change for their communities.  These aren’t just insightful for “activists” or type-A personality citizens, these work for everyone.  In fact, I believe that the way this section is laid out and by what is presented, even well experienced professionals can learn, or at the very least, be reminded of community building, engagement, and analysis approaches that can drive positive change toward building healthier communities.  

Overall Designing Healthy Communities is a different kind of reference book, one that goes beyond informing readers; it is the kind of book that can help inspire action by illustrating tangible ways of achieving a better future for those who want to make it real.  

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Active Transportation Article

The March/April issue of the Ontario Planning Journal has an article written by Landscape Architect John McMullen, that features some of the work we are doing in Collingwood.

OPJ Active Trans Article

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