Active Towns

In this episode, I connect with the Bike League's Executive Director, Bill Nesper, to learn what's new in the quest to create a more bicycle-friendly nation. Since 1880 the League of American Bicyclists has been advocating for better, safer places to ride.  THE LEAGUE represents bicyclists in the movement to create safer roads, stronger communities, and a Bicycle Friendly America. Through educatio...

In this episode, I reconnect with Charles Brown of Rutgers University for a dive deep into the inequities inherent in our transportation networks and how we can collectively make a difference in our communities. Systemic racism permeates through so many facets of our daily lives that we often are blinded to its very presence as well as its historical relevance in how our cities have been shaped. T...

In this episode, Mike Christensen of Salt Lake City, Utah tells us about his new venture the Utah Rail Passengers Association and describes how he's able to lead a car-light lifestyle in a car-centric western city. Once upon a time, traveling from one city to the next was primarily done by rail, if Mike Christensen, Founder and Executive Director of the Utah Rail Passengers Association , has his w...

In this episode, I catch up with the Director, Kyle, and Sara, Deputy Director , of the Local Innovations initiative to see how the cities they are working with have been progressing in general, as well as how they've been responding to the Covid-19 pandemic and black lives matters movement. The PeopleForBikes Foundation strives to get more people on bikes more often and through the Local Innovati...

In this episode, I reconnect with Todd Litman of the Victoria Transport Policy Institute (VTPI) for an in-depth discussion about the exciting connection between land use and transportation.     Additional Helpful Links: Todd's Planetizen Blog CNU - Active Town Bike Tour Video of Victoria, BC Donald Shoup - The High Cost of Free Parking Cargo bikes: Bakfiets and Urban Arrow Four Easy Steps to Suppo...

In this episode, I catch up with Susanne Menge, a dear friend from Boulder, CO, who helps people live their best lives.   Susanne helps people discover their passions and learn how to achieve their goals and a sense of joy or as she likes to say " Live Your Gold Medal Life". From her website: I am a passionate lover of humans. I am naturally kind, compassionate and caring and bring that to all of...

In this episode, I connect with Janelle Naess of Laguna Beach, CA, one of our podcast listeners who just happens to have an inspiring story to tell about her 2020 New Year's resolution. Janelle had a wonderful idea for the new year, walk, and document every street in her hometown. She was already a passionate explorer of her beach city and had been profiling cool stuff to see in her blog LagunaBea...

In this episode, I connect with Bryan Jones, City Manager of Eastvale, CA. Eastvale, CA is the second-youngest city in the state of California and as you'll learn from this conversation with its City Manager, Bryan Jones it's also a city without a downtown, but that will hopefully change soon as they have identified 162 acres that they hope to develop soon. You'll also learn that Bryan is a passio...

In this episode, I connect with Curtis Rogers, Co-Founder & COO of Parkade, for a discussion about innovative ways that communities can flip the concept of induced demand on its head to encourage active mobility and more vibrant business districts. Curtis also shares a bit about his background in shared mobility and how his epiphany about the high cost of free parking came about while working...

In this episode, I reconnect with Nicole DeBoom , a former professional triathlete, Ironman Triathlon champion, founder of Skirt Sports and the non-profit Running Start, and host of the fabulous Run This World Podcast. Nicole is truly a force of nature, and she is clearly passionate about empowering people, especially women live the best lives possible. As a former accomplished professional athlet...

In this episode, I reconnect with Graham Hill, Founder & Executive Director of Shared Paths in Boulder, CO, an innovative stewardship initiative that supports over 90 miles of paved urban pathways. Shared Paths Boulder central focus is the creation of shared community on the paths. Founded in 2016, this program provides stewardship support through a network of passionate volunteers. Graham tal...

In this episode, I reconnect with Roshun Austin , Executive Director of The Works, Inc ., a nonprofit community development corporation serving South Memphis, TN. As you'll quickly learn from this conversation, Roshun and her fabulous team of dedicated professionals are involved in so many efforts and initiatives to Rebuild, Restore, and Renew the communities they serve. Below are links to a few o...

In this episode, I connect with Jill Locantore, Executive Director of the Denver Streets Partnership, for a discussion about the progress the city is making to create safer, more inviting streets for everyone. Previously with Walk Denver, Jill Locantore recently became Denver Streets Partnership 's first Executive Director. City of Denver Shared Streets PARK(ing) Day Boulder 20 is Plenty Kyle Clar...

In this episode, we're joined by Jennifer Baird, a veteran Startup CEO and serial entrepreneur. Jen shares her strategies for bringing movement into her personal and professional lives and the benefits she'd documented over the years.  Jennifer Baird is the Founder & CEO of FifthEye of Ann Arbor, MI and as a serial entrepreneur with nearly two decades of experience founding and leading high po...

In this episode, I connect with Kevin Shepherd, Founder and CEO of Verdunity a firm dedicated to fiscally-informed planning, engineering, and community engagement services that help city leaders align their vision, policies, and investments with what citizens are willing and able to pay for. He and his team also host the fabulous Go Cultivate Podcast .  Four Easy Steps to Support My Efforts: 1. Be...

In this episode, I connect with Holly Bennett, a world traveler, endurance athlete, and remote worker extraordinaire. She shares her story of personal transformation, commitment to active living, and some of the amusing things that happen to her when she’s out running and riding. Holly also shares how a four-month-long bicycle trip changed her life trajectory and inspired a passion for movement Ad...

In this episode, I catch up with the Boulder-based Follow Our Footprints dynamic duo Dom Nozzi and Maggie Waddoups of Boulder, Colorado. Dom and Maggie, as a couple, are enthusiastic supporters of the Active Towns Initiative, which we sincerely appreciate, and cheerleaders for all things associated with creating more livable, walkable, bikeable, and lovable places.  Dom is a veteran urbanist and a...

In this episode, I connect with Alissa Walker with Curbed for a virtual stroll in Los Angeles.  Alisa lives in Los Angeles, where she is a co-host of LA Podcast , a contributor to the KCRW show Greater LA , and a mom to the city's two most enthusiastic public transit riders. From her bio at Curbed... " Alissa Walker connects people with where they live through writing, speaking, and walking. As th...

In this episode, I connect with Jeff Wood, founder of The Overhead Wire , a sustainable transportation and urbanism consulting firm and weekly news curation service. Jeff is also the founder and primary host of the Talking Headways Podcast , which is associated with Streetsblog USA Jeff gives us some background about the firm, its name, and a view into the current situation in San Francisco. Addit...

In this episode, I reconnect with Amanda Popken, principal owner of Amanda Popken Development , for an inspiring conversation about her placemaking & community engagement activities, which have an emphasis on building resilient neighborhoods and cities. And as you'll quickly learn she sees active mobility playing a critical role in achieving these goals. Additional and Helpful Links: Strong To...

In this episode, I reconnect with Lynn Richards, President & CEO of CNU (the Congress for the New Urbanism ), a membership-based organization dedicated to building places people love. New urbanists are a diverse, multidisciplinary, action-oriented group working to build places people love. As head of CNU, Richards has launched the organization’s Project for Code Reform , which helps meet local...

In this episode, I talk with Peter Norton, author of Fighting Traffic about some of the parallels of the dawn of the motor age with our current pandemic and the push for more people-oriented space on our streets. We are in the midst of truly extraordinary times, there's no doubt about it, but with the current push to reclaim our streets from the motor vehicle to facilitate a bit of physical distan...

In this episode, I catch up with Kea Wilson, Senior Editor with Streetsblog As a writer of novels and a journalist, Kea is constantly constructing compelling narratives that move people. We caught up with her last week as she was sheltering in place at her home in St. Louis, MO. In her role with Streetsblog she produces and publishes a healthy amount of content that we frequently share on the Acti...

In this episode, I reconnect with Mark Nickita of Archive DS for some city-building banter. We cover a lot of ground in this episode as we catch up with Mark Nickita, mainly because he is one very busy guy. He's a city commissioner and former mayor of Birmingham, MI , an architect and founder of the firm, Archive DS (short for Design Studio: he explains the name in detail in the episode), splits h...

In this episode, I reconnect with Chuck Marohn, President of Strong Towns , for a discussion about how he came to experience and understand how our shifting human habitat patterns have contributed to the financial insolvency of our cities and compromised our health and well-being and most importantly how we can turn things around, even in the midst of a global pandemic. Helpful Links: Strong Towns...