Sign up here to get the weekly roundup in your inbox each and every Friday.

Giddyup! Please share this to spread the word about biking and walking advocacy. 
 

Share on Facebook

 

Organizing, Leadership and Digital Strategy for a Stronger Movement

Your Roundup wrangler is delighted to be here in Milwaukee this week for the Alliance's National Training, and, in a departure from the typical herd of member news, has culled a few photos and insights from the training thus far. Follow us on Twitter at #bikeped15 as we continue the drive today. Back to a regularly scheduled Roundup next week!

An amazing group of leaders from organizations across the U.S. attended the training, from Santa Barbara to Boston, Seattle to South Carolina.

Great #storytelling is a linchpin of effective campaigns and online organizing — and "values trump data" every time.

"Love that the #BlackLivesMatter campaign is a teaching tool for #bikeped15 this week" -Jordan Amaker, board member from Charleston Moves

Inclusive storytelling can propel a culture shift — as we saw with Forward Together's work to redefine the sterile Hallmark perception of Mothers' Day.

To put our new strategies to work, we created hypothetic campaigns for National Bike Month or National Walking Day... 

... And spent time in small groups delving into the key components of our theoretical efforts to engage off-peak commuters, inspire new riders and bridge gaps in infrastructure...

... including steps like identifying "audience personas" to better tailor our messaging.

The most important time of all, though: connecting with other leaders over lunch. 

Trainer Hemly Ordonez chatted with Kristen Jeffers of BikeWalkKC.

While these two EDs — Liz Cornish of Bikemore in Baltimore and Ren Barger of Tulsa Hub in Oklahoma — didn't just talk bikes, but reminsced about the high school they both attended.

The biggest contingent of all? The Wisconsin Bike Fed, of course, which not only attended but co-hosted the training.

During the training, we considered how to take an online ladder of engagement and translate it to real world support and action...

And discussed how white-dominant nonprofit organizations often interact with communities of color: Are you viewing diverse communities as objects, recipients, partners or leaders?

We also got schooled on open-source tools that make everyone a graphic designer, including Liz Cornish who made the above logo in Canva.

Yep, we even used digital strategies to direct us to the after party.

And enjoyed a keg from New Belgium Brewing Company at Milwaukee's own Fyxation bikes.

Sure, Twitter's great... but nothing beats hanging out IRL.

Thanks again to all of our sponsors — Dero, QBP, CamelBak, PrimalWear, Susie Stephens Memorial Fund, PeopleForBikes, Kaiser Permanente, Everybody Walk Collaborative, REI, VBT, Trek and Bike Law — for making this training possible.

And stay tuned for more from the training in coming weeks!