A Neighborhood Walk: Defining Quality, Connected Places with Strategic Doing

Just in from I Will Shout Youngstown a blog "dedicated to the city of Youngstown and those who strive to create it"
- -  a forum on economic development and urban design in the city- the blogging community in Youngstown is identifying and connecting neighborhoods as quality, connected places with the help of Bloggers, social media and "Strategic Doing" - making change by doing.

Dear bloggers and buddies:

At a recent Rest Belt Bloggers event in Pittsburgh, and idea (described below) formed to show those residing both inside and outside of the mega-region what our neighborhoods look like, hoping pictures can create connectivity and community.

So Buffalo can see Butler, PA.
So Ashtabula can understand Akron, OH.
So Warren can connect to Wheeling, WV.

On this Tues Nov 11th, a bunch of bloggers across the Rust Belt will be posting their photos, videos, art, etc, to describe their town - their neighborhoods. I am helping to pass the word along.

Starting tomorrow, I will be away from electricity until after the 11th. If you are looking for more information, check out the Rust Belt Bloggers ning site. Hopefully as people post their pictures, we can create an interconnected web so you can jump from one city to the next.

Thanks for listening.

and an even BIGGER thanks if you can participate. all it takes is a few photos. We need a critical mass of participants.

Oh, and if you create a page, please reply to me with a link of the post. I would love to check them out upon returning to civilization.

defend always,

www.shoutyoungstown.com

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http://www.keystoneedge.com/blogs/bloggers/ccloskey1106.aspx

A few weeks ago, I asked some of the out-of-town speakers at PodCamp Pittsburgh 3 what they thought of the Steel City. Every one of them said they found the place varied, cultured, pretty, and just all-around nice. And every one of them was surprised about it.

The reaction is a common one. First-time visitors to Pittsburgh seem always to come expecting sooty factory-style buildings, corrosion, and unemployed steel workers wandering the streets like zombies. They find instead an intriguing skyline, a robust economy, and a lively arts and culture scene.

In Pittsburgh and throughout western Pennsylvania we spend a lot of time fretting that we're still thought to be worn out, our best days behind us--and we spend a lot of time wondering how to change perceptions. The no-fail method seems to be bringing people here to see for themselves, but until we find a way to get everyone to come in for a big old slumber party, we need an alternative.

Here it is: We're having a Neighborhood Walk. Everyone is invited. And everyone's hosting too, if they want to.

The idea came up at PodCamp, in fact. We are looking for ways to use social media to help "promote the urban frontier"--most specifically, the post-industrial cities in the rust belt of the U.S. and Canada.

This isn't just about Pittsburgh. The same concerns apply to other rust belt cities: Johnstown, Youngstown, Erie, Cleveland, Buffalo. We want everyone to get involved.

The Neighborhood Walk will happen Nov. 11. On that day, everyone is encouraged to take a walk around their neighborhood and to photograph or video or draw or sculpt or somehow to document it, and then to share the media they create online.

The idea is to show others where you live--the good and the bad of it, and maybe your hopes and plans for its future.

Anyone can join in--including you, Gentle Reader. It's easy to start a blog for the occasion, or to post to Facebook or whatever site you use to stay in touch. Or you can send an email to the Rust Belt Bloggers site and we'll post it for you.

What will happen? Will this event have any effect?

I predict that there will be a small turnout the first time, and that each time we repeat there will be more and more awareness. Maybe like other events it will grow slowly and then suddenly blossom exponentially.

Maybe it will flop--if we don't follow through or if we all get distracted by other issues and concerns.

Or maybe it will gradually but steadily build until it becomes a part of the national/international consciousness. That's an exciting prospect indeed.