HoustonB

I propose the introduction of:

The Annual BikeForums.Net Advocacy Initiative

Conducted for and by the membership of BikeForums.Net with minimal work required from the forum moderators.

Initiatives whenever possible should have far reaching application in both geographic and temporal contexts i.e. they should not necessarily (but could) be restricted to U.S. issues.

The details and purpose of each initiative to be determined by suggestions from BikeForums.Net members and polls conducted within BikeForums.Net during the year, culminating in a final poll to select the annual initiative.

Only those members who have agreed to be solicited for the annual initiative would be contacted – this agreement to be requested during the member sign on process for new members and by a one-time-only unsolicited e-mail sent to all existing members. The one time-only unsolicited e-mail should also serve the purpose of the first initiative.

Initiatives do not need to have predictable concrete measurable outcomes. For example, a letter campaign to the United Nations may seek something as simple and innocuous as a declaration that a year be designated the year of the bicycle – success may result in no tangible benefits other than a small feel-good factor, or success could result in a sea change.

Initiatives, once decided upon, do not need to be a single big bang affair but could be designed to span the entire year to which they apply.

Does anyone second this proposal?

On a lighter note: Initiators of initiatives that are highly successful can be nominated to win the Noble Golden Spoke award – does anyone have any gold paint?

LittleBigMan

What? Suggest that members of BikeForums could actually do something?

Ridiculous.

ken cummings

There are enough advocacy groups out there, some strident others not. I belong to one. I read the A and S forum for the S. Gold paint has no gold. Consider electroplating if you do not mind the toxic chemicals involved.

San Rensho 

Sounds like a good idea, but I think because of the nationwide (and worldwide) participation on this site, it would have to be limited to national or worldwide cycling issues.

And I think, unfortunately, a consensus of posters here would be extremely difficult given the inflexible views some of us have. It would degenerate into the scene from Monty Python's the life of Brian where Judeans are plotting against the Romans and during a meeting, a member of the Judean Peoples Front asks another what group he is from and he says "The Peoples Front of Judea." "Splinter !" Yells the Judean People's front member and pandemonium breaks out.

oilfreeandhappy

I like the UN petition for the "Year of the Bicycle". They'd probably go for it too. Unless somebody is out there starting wars.

slagjumper

What if everyone who wanted to, posted an advocacy action plan for a specific thing. Then there was a vote poll. Everyone would get behind the winning plan and push it through. Sounds interesting. If nothing else there would be a list of needed projects for the advocacy professionals to peruse. Seems like someone needs to consider some sort of guidlines/scope first. Like, is this limited to a particular state, city or is it national. Is the plan doable? The "winner" would have to cordinate the effort.

HoustonB

Yes. This is pretty much what I was thinking. I see two sides to advocacy:

1. The issues, where consensus seems impossible on two of the hot issues - bike lanes and vehicular cycling (VC). Suggestions from members here and polls can help narrow things down.

2. Providing mechanisms that assist the people who are prepared to join in advocacy initiatives – at the very minimum this would be a database of e-mail addresses of people that for an acceptable initiative would be prepared to (say) write a letter once a year. A more sophisticated system could also record the extent to which people are prepared to advocate, can they assist with finance, when are they available, their preferred issues, etc. As a database developer this is an area where I can help considerably.