Bicycling Supports Community Resiliency

by Lester Limón Built Capital Financial Capital Human Capital Social Capital

In the Winter 2015 edition of American Bicyclist magazine, a publication of the League of American Bicyclists, an interview with Harriet Tregoning, Director of the Office of Economic Resilience, says linking housing development and bicycling infrastructure creates community resilience. She makes three salient points: bicycling as a transportation alternative can be a lifelong activity, bicycle infrastructure makes neighborhoods more attractive for residents, and bicycling helps create car-light households. How do these three points create community economic resilience?

The first consideration is creating a community of lifelong exercisers. The prevalence of obesity in all adults over age 20 in 2012 was 34.9% (2013, Center of Disease Control). That number gets higher each year. A healthy workforce is a resilient workforce. Without a healthy labor pool, business and industry lose money. By becoming more bicycle friendly, communities can build economic sustainability through the creation of a healthy workforce.

Secondly, studies continue to show that choices in transportation opportunities for neighborhoods make them more valuable to people, when choosing where to live. In fact, a report published on January 29, 2015 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) claims that commuting in America is behind us. While the reasons for this decline are subject to debate, the statistics show a decline by demographics, and will continue to show a decline for the next 20 years. The resiliency created here is the stability of housing in communities nationwide. Economic stability is only partly created by providing opportunities for stable, equitable employment; it’s equally about providing good quality, equitable, and affordable housing opportunities for a healthy workforce. Making housing opportunities attractive in your community makes your community economically sustainable.

And finally, by creating an opportunity for car-light (or in some cases, no-car) households, we reduce the monthly cost of transportation for families. More financial capital is available for use in the community economy. Families can also afford to save money, making the individual family unit more resilient in the face of personal losses and gains.

Community resiliency should always be the goal of development efforts and strategies. And as said by Megan Odett, founder of Kidical Mass DC, “Don’t just settle for safe routes to school – build safe routes to everywhere” (2015, American Bicyclist). Well said, Megan. Well said.

Go ride your bike (and take the kids)!

 

Entrepreneurial Skills

Entrepreneurial Skills

by Lester Limón Financial Capital Human Capital Social Capital

Lichtenstein and Lyon (2001), working with their own research and that of Gerber (1995), developed four essential skills for the entrepreneur, of both the  social and business variety. They are:

  • Technical Skills: ability to perform the key operations of that business;
  • Managerial Skills: ability to organize and efficiently manage the operations;
  • Entrepreneurial skills: ability to identify market opportunities and create solutions that capture those opportunities; and
  • Personal maturity: self-awareness, willingness, and ability to accept responsibility, emotional development, and creative ability.

The first three in this set are the most obvious, and I imagine anyone attempting an entrepreneurial enterprise would focus on these continually throughout their careers. These skills are also the ones most likely to be learned either through education, experience, or mentorship. But what about the fourth? How many entrepreneurs, experienced or inexperienced, hone the skills involved with personal maturity? Entrepreneurs aren’t only start-ups and first time business owners. They are independent business people who are engaged in their communities and regions, pursuing all manner of opportunities for the sake of wealth generation, creativity, personal fulfillment, and a desire to fill a void in the marketplace. It is just as important to hone the fourth as this is the basis for reputation and reputation is just as important in the business community as it is in the social community. Each of these capitals are cornerstones to a solid entrepreneurial foundation.

Be a well-rounded and continually trained and educated entrepreneur and encourage others to do the same. It builds the stability, sustainability, and prosperity of your community!

References

Lyons, T., & Wyckoff, B. (2014). Facilitating community wealth building: Understanding the roles played and capacities needed by coordinating institutions. Journal of the Community Development Society, 45(5), 443-457.

Attributions

Photo by Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce, NoDerivs 2.0 Generic, No alterations.

Plains, Kansas and Kanstarter

by Lester Limón Built Capital Financial Capital Human Capital Social Capital Uncategorized

Plains, Kansas isn’t a town you read about in the New York Times very often. In fact, I’d be surprised to find it mentioned anywhere in the newspaper’s 163 year history. But yesterday was the exception. This rural community in southwest Kansas is striving to reconnect fresh, healthy food with their residents. The article mentions other critical bits of infrastructure needed to not only keep a community alive and vital, but give it a sense of longevity and identity. Those listed were a post office, library, and school. Others, I assert, are a medical clinic or hospital, church, police/fire services, and a gas station. Typically, in rural communities, a convenience store/gas station fills the void for food items, but at the risk of lower quality and less fresh options, and the overall health of the community suffers as a result. Plains is making the effort to preserve the community by making choices that are move than just economic development, but will provide sustainability in the future.

Another wonderful revelation in the article was the Kanstarter.com crowd funding program recently  started by Marci Penner and Phil Anderson of Newton, Kansas. Granted money by the Kansas Department of Commerce to facilitate the start of the program, these two people, who are themselves leaders in their own community, are using a popular form of entrepreneurial online funding but scaled to the city level. What a wonderful opportunity for rural communities and community development activities! Good job!

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/30/us/a-kansas-town-rallies-for-a-lifeline-in-supermarket-form.html?smid=tw-share&_r=0