January 2022 E-News

1. New Safe Routes to Parks Podcast: Park Access Starts with Safety: Two Safe Routes to Parks Efforts in Illinois
2. Webinar: Working Together to Make Meaningful Change: A Toolkit for Engaging Communities Across Colorado
3. New Resource: Let’s Get Together: A Guide for Engaging Communities and Creating Change
4. New Year, New Infrastructure Law –Tips to Kick of 2022
5. Webinar: Child and Youth Pedestrian Crashes Deserve another Look: Why and How To Do It

1. New Safe Routes to Parks Podcast: Park Access Starts with Safety: Two Safe Routes to Parks Efforts in Illinois

In this podcast, Safe Routes to Parks worked with Greg Saville of SafeGrowth to highlight two change-makers from Illinois who are creating safer spaces in their respective cities, all thanks to the power of community. Listen to the podcast to hear how Rochelle Jackson of the North Lawndale Community Coordinating Council in Chicago, IL and Belinda McAllister of the Friends of McAllister Park in Lebanon, IL used safety audits and walk audits to improve the safety of their parks and improve connections to the community.

2. Webinar: Working Together to Make Meaningful Change: A Toolkit for Engaging Communities Across Colorado

Engagement is an essential part of Safe Routes to School programs. Join us, on January 11 from 11 am to 12 pm Mountain, as we explore Colorado’s new community engagement resource, “Working Together to Make Meaningful Change: A Toolkit for Engaging Communities across Colorado.” Learn how to use a basic framework to boost engagement in Safe Routes to School and advance equitable outcomes. We will also share community engagement highlights from the guide and ideas for kicking off engagement in the New Year. This webinar is part of a series of free webinars provided by the Colorado Department of Transportation and presented by the Safe Routes Partnership. Register at here.

3. New Resource: Let’s Get Together: A Guide for Engaging Communities and Creating Change

This guide offers tips and strategies for engaging communities as you work together to make meaningful change. We’ve developed an engagement framework centering community members at the heart of the process. The guide walks through each step of the engagement framework in detail. We begin by reflecting on how your role as a community partner impacts community members. Then we discuss how you can build your understanding of the community by conducting community research. Next, we explore how to leverage partnerships in your community engagement strategy. We round out the guide with creative ideas for engagement activities and strategies for sustaining community engagement long-term. Each section links to additional resources and a series of guiding questions to help you improve your practice. It features specific tips around engaging communities in Safe Routes to School. Explore the guide here.

4. New Year, New Infrastructure Law –Tips to Kick of 2022

We at the Safe Routes Partnership hope 2022 is off to a happy, healthy start for you and your communities. We celebrated the passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) late in 2021, and now we are here to help you take advantage of the positive policy changes and new money included in the law. To learn more about the details of what’s in the law for walking, bicycling, and Safe Routes to School, we have an explanatory blog post and a webinar. We are here to help you understand what is in this new law and how it can support you to start, strengthen, and grow Safe Routes to School programs and walking and bicycling generally. Read our tips in our newest federal policy blog.

 5.  Webinar: Child and Youth Pedestrian Crashes Deserve another Look: Why and How To Do It

In most cities children don’t comprise a large share of pedestrian crashes yet there are good reasons and real benefits for a deliberate approach to give this age group the special protection they need. The Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center will host a webinar addressing child pedestrian safety, “Child and Youth Pedestrian Crashes Deserve another Look: Why and How To Do It,” on January 27 from 1 pm to 2 pm ET. Starting with a focus on youth also can build momentum to address road safety for all. Presenters will offer an overview of Vision Zero for Youth and the results of a two-year demonstration project with the city of Philadelphia using policy change and testing a systemic process to identify high risk roads for children and youth in combination with an equity analysis. Register here.