2021 is the “Year of Action.” This new resource will help.
Image via Unsplash.
Several months ago I was talking on the phone with one of our Strong Towns members, and he said something like this: “I love Strong Towns content—the articles are great. But there’s just so much of it. Sometimes I just want to share a 101-level article with a friend or city councilperson, but I don’t even know where to start.”
This feedback wasn’t unusual. In fact, it was a recurring theme during our recent focus groups: with so much content available—about 5,500 articles published in the last 12 years, and more than 670 podcasts—how can Strong Towns advocates find the actionable resources they need now?
As you’ve heard Strong Towns founder and president Chuck Marohn say over the last two weeks, 2021 is the “Year of Action” at Strong Towns. From the beginning, our message has been that the suburban development pattern is making North American communities poorer and more fragile...and that there is a better way—one that leads to lasting prosperity and greater resilience. This year, our highest priority as an organization is to help people who are convinced of that message do something about it where they live.
On Monday, Chuck introduced you to a new platform: the Strong Towns Action Lab. I wanted to take a few minutes to unpack a few sections of the Action Lab: Connect to Resources, Connect to Examples, and Explore by Topic. I’ll look at other sections on Friday.
Connect to Resources
In this section, you’ll be able to access a growing directory of in-depth materials. This includes free ebooks (seven so far, with more to be added soon), webcasts (ten and counting), six how-to guides, reading recommendations, and much more. This will become our one-stop shop for resources like this going forward.
Connect to Examples
Another question we get all the time is, “Who has already [slowed the cars in their neighborhood, pushed back on a highway expansion, grown the entrepreneurial ecosystem in their town, etc.]?” As we recently learned in the story of Edmonton, Alberta, city leaders interested in making reforms—in this case, ending parking minimums—want to be able to point to communities that have already done it. In the Connect to Examples section of the Action Lab, we are steadily building a list of success stories and case studies. These examples are meant to inspire and educate you, and help you take concrete action yourself.
Explore by Topic
Had the Action Lab been around when I talked to that Strong Towns member last fall, I would have sent him here: the Explore by Topic section. For a growing list of topics—the Growth Ponzi Scheme, Incremental Development, Parking, and more—we are laying out our top content, as well as topic-specific examples and case studies. We’re also summarizing the Strong Towns core insights in short articles, most of which have been written by Chuck. (One of my favorite subsections so far is on “Strong Towns lingo.” Stroads, anyone?)
We want this Action Lab to be eminently practical and useful. It’s a work-in-progress, though. In true Strong Towns-style, we’re seeing how people use it, gathering data and feedback, and incrementally improving it. We’re also adding new content all the time. If you have suggestions, send me an email directly...or just use the Action Lab (!), clicking on “Submit a Request” in the top right-hand corner.
John Pattison is the Community Builder for Strong Towns. In this role, he works with advocates in hundreds of communities as they start and lead local Strong Towns groups called Local Conversations. John is the author of two books, most recently Slow Church (IVP), which takes inspiration from Slow Food and the other Slow movements to help faith communities reimagine how they live life together in the neighborhood. He also co-hosts The Membership, a podcast inspired by the life and work of Wendell Berry, the Kentucky farmer, writer, and activist. John and his family live in Silverton, Oregon. You can connect with him on Twitter at @johnepattison.
Want to start a Local Conversation, or implement the Strong Towns approach in your community? Email John.