Month: January 2013

 
We don’t often send mail to all of our friends and followers (in fact, never before).  But in honor of the new year and several exciting announcements, we thought we’d provide this factsheet and the attached photo(s), explained below.
Our Facebook page is at http://www.facebook.com/rochestercyclingalliance.  it’s the usual Facebook “moshpit”, and a good way to communicate with the community
You can subscribe to our email list by writing to info@rochestercyclingalliance.org This is how our active activists communicate with each other.
Our website is at http://www.rochestercyclingalliance.org.  It includes

• lots of announcements (including this one)
• a list of our some of our signal achievements for 2012.  http://goo.gl/Zafd9
• a paypal link (in case you want to support our activities)
• a calendar of RCA meetings and events

Among our signal achievements in 2012  was a “bike corral” at the Rochester Greentopia festival which benefitted  hundreds of cyclists who got to park their bikes and learn about the RCA

• We have another bike corral planned for the Fairport Canal Days festival http://finditinfairport.com/fairport-canal-days.html , and we are seeking volunteers (2 hours to help check bikes in and out).  Email RCA VP Bill Collins,  alameda@frontiernet.net
• The attached photo(s) are from the Greentopia Bike Corral.  If you participated, you may find a picture of yourself!

Among our signal achievements in 2013, will be the Second Bi-Annual Greater Rochester Active Transportation Summit (GRATS)  on April 30.  Mark your calendars!  The first GRATS was a watershed event, and most of the presentations (but none of the hallway conversation) can be found at at http://www.rochestercyclingalliance.org/?page_id=129.   This year, you, too can help shape the future of Active Transportation in Rochester, and meet  our keynote speaker,  (…get ready…)  US. Representative Earl Blumenauer of Oregon.  Please keep April 30 free, and share this message with other interested parties.
Finally, please add your voice to the City’s Master Plan Survey!  It will make our job so much easier, and will make your city so much better!  http://www.cityofrochester.gov/centercitysurvey/
Best wishes from the Rochester Cycling Alliance!

It is a great pleasure to announce that Elizabeth Murphy has joined our Healthi Kids Team – effective Monday, January 28th. Elizabeth assumes the position of Active Transportation Specialist funded by our community’s H.E.A.R.T. Grant (CDC Community Transformation Grant).
This position focuses on engaging, organizing, and educating the community to achieve public-policy and practice changes that promote active transportation in Monroe County. Ms. Murphy will serve as project manager, focusing on four key areas to best attain systems changes:
1. Increase decision-maker’s awareness of the benefits of active transportation by facilitating educational and informational public workshops, meetings, including an Active Transportation Symposium;
2. Offer technical support and assistance to communities that wish to develop and implement active transportation plans;
3. Give technical support and assistance to schools to develop and implement Safe Routes to School programs and practices; and
4. Provide support to businesses, organizations and municipalities in planning and executing events, to increase community awareness of and support for active transportation.
We are really pleased to have Elizabeth join us – Here’s a little bit more about her:
· Elizabeth is a Rochester native and a graduate of the City School District. Elizabeth completed her undergraduate studies at Bard College with a major in Economics and her Masters in City and Regional Planning from Cornell University.
· Elizabeth started her career in Sacramento, California co-managing a joint project with the California Department of Health Services to conduct “walkability workshops,” with a focus on Safe Routes to School and “Safe Routes to Transit.” Elizabeth organized, trained, and certified California-based “walkability experts” to lead future workshops and build internal capacity on walkability issues statewide.
· For the past five years, Elizabeth worked with US Department of Transportation/Volpe Center, Policy and Planning in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Strategic planning, project management and implementation of the FHWA-FTA’s jointly funded Transportation Planning Capacity Building (TPCB) program were key elements of the position. The TPCB Program provided education, professional development, information dissemination, and exploratory research on issues of primary concern for transportation planning agencies nationwide (state, regional, local, tribal).
· Elizabeth brings a wealth of experience in project management and budget development; peer exchange workshop coordination; research, analysis, and report writing; meeting facilitation; communication and outreach.
Rachel A. Pickering
Associate Director of Community Engagement
Finger Lakes Health Systems Agency
www.flhsa.org