A Million Local Heroes
(Source: Unsplash, with edits.)
Our strategy as an organization has changed in subtle, but important, ways this year. With the adoption of a new strategic plan, we have shifted our focus from growing a movement to mobilizing the Strong Towns movement for change. As one of my friends, long-time member Andy Malone, recently remarked, “Strong Towns is an overnight success…14 years in the making.”
Buckle up, because things are accelerating.
I’ve been on the road a lot this year, giving talks, meeting people, and experiencing the Strong Towns movement on the ground. The enthusiasm has never been anywhere near this strong before. Strong Towns ideas have now permeated much of society, and so we’re watching our members walk into places where the conversation has already been primed. It makes a huge difference when you can hit the ground running.
Yes, this little movement taking on the leviathan of the North American development pattern is no longer walking. We’re running!
This is Member Week, and we are inviting you to help us grow this effort by becoming a member of Strong Towns.
Strong Towns is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. Your support—in any amount—changes the conversation. It shifts the way we talk about cities. You and your donation support the thousands of local heroes out there working to build stronger cities, towns, and neighborhoods.
Maybe the next hero is someone in your community. Maybe it’s you.
I was recently asked to explain the impact of the Strong Towns movement. How does our media work change the conversation and why is that so important? As one example, before Strong Towns there were stroads everywhere, but there was no name for them. Now we all see clearly what was always right there in front of us.
Giving something a name is powerful. It shifts the way we perceive our cities, and that shift makes real change possible. We’re seeing that play out, and we have a strategy to accelerate it.
This year, we shifted our overall media strategy to emphasize five priority campaigns. The campaigns focus on soft spots in the Suburban Experiment, topics where a little bit of extra pushing has oversized results. If you’ve been with us for any amount of time, these campaigns will be familiar to you.
Transparent Local Accounting. End Highway Expansion. Safe and Productive Streets. Incremental Housing. End Parking Mandates and Subsidies.
These are topics the Strong Towns movement has redefined, moving beyond partisan bickering and urbanist tropes to something real and actionable. Strong Towns advocates are taking these insights and ideas and putting them to work in their communities. Things are starting to accelerate.
The Strong Towns strategy relies on members. It takes a million local heroes to change the multitrillion-dollar development machine. We’re getting closer, but we need your support.
Take a moment this Member Week to make a donation to Strong Towns—become a member—and put the Strong Towns message in the middle of the conversation in every city hall in North America.
Charles Marohn (known as “Chuck” to friends and colleagues) is the founder and president of Strong Towns and the bestselling author of “Escaping the Housing Trap: The Strong Towns Response to the Housing Crisis.” With decades of experience as a land use planner and civil engineer, Marohn is on a mission to help cities and towns become stronger and more prosperous. He spreads the Strong Towns message through in-person presentations, the Strong Towns Podcast, and his books and articles. In recognition of his efforts and impact, Planetizen named him one of the 15 Most Influential Urbanists of all time in 2017 and 2023.