Re: [TheThinkTank] Partnership with the Alliance for Walking and Biking

5 Apr 2012

      Here's what I wrote privately to Mike Samuelson from the Alliance recently
on the topic:
"I'm curious to see how this whole Alliance conversation goes. Mostly, what
occurs to be as potential improvements for local non-profit bike
organizations like CBPO in this discussion is better leveraging the power
of large numbers on things that we all need. Things like:

Could we lower our insurance costs if we could buy into some kind of

national group plan?

Could we set up a discounted pricing structure for nonprofit shops on a

limited range of items? (We try hard not to compete with local commercial
bike shops, but still sell a very stripped-down list of basic and
hard-to-find items. It would be great if we could get some kind of reduced
group pricing on those kinds of items.)

Could we set up discounted fee structures for financial vendors (e.g.,

PayPal/Square), beyond what they currently offer?
And just to mention it, I think that most top-down planning and structural
ideas will be extraordinarily difficult to implement across any significant
number of nonprofit shops, e.g., best practices for Open Shop,
standardizing Earn-a-Bike programs, etc."
Hoping to make it to Bike! Bike! this year!
Matt

Matt Martin
Executive Director
Community Bike Project Omaha
Manager
Omaha B-cycle
525 North 33rd Street
Omaha, NE 68131
402-957-2454
www.communitybikeproject.org
On Thu, Mar 29, 2012 at 5:36 PM, DancesWithCars danceswithcars@gmail.comwrote:
...
I've traveled around the Washington DC area
(few times to Baltimore) to different Coops,
Community Bike Shops and
Youth Programs volunteering when I can,
and I'd like to see what ABW (I think I met or saw
Jonathan at the BikeFilmFestival one or more
of the three years in Washington DC)
thinks of the grass roots work by Critical Mass
and other similar Kidical Mass, etc...
Something like the Democratic National Committee/
Republican National Committee or forming
a Bike National Committee and declaring the party line
is something many would be cautious about for the reasons
others have already stated plus Gridlock in
large organizations (not unlike Congress/Parliament, eh?),
funding over people, and non profit vs. profit models.
If as large member organization, ABW wants
more members, (AFL + CIO comes to mind)
what are the rates that small and individuals
can and would pay to participate/ join?
What are the volunteer rates that people
participate to become members?
How many Coops and other places have
people who can not pay memberships?
But may have some time to help,
and learn even if they don't have money
to donate or contribute?  Limited Income/
Senior and Student Rates are common
methods for this in many non profits
member run organizations.
Can everyone afford to go to Bike!Bike! or
Bike Summit?  No.  I live here and can't
but for disabled reasons.  According to the League,
there were only two main events open to the public,
a ride with Congress and a meeting.
The summit held the non open meeting
and now it's reported out and decided?
What is the memorandum of understanding?
Who are the authorities that speak for all?
I certainly don't, even for the organizations
I go to, some of which aren't even really coops
anymore, the collective methods were too slow
and painful for many, that top down is
what is becoming the default, instead of what
I spent over a year volunteering to help
create, as some were starting,
much less all the customers who come in
the doors looking for help with bikes, clubs,
riding groups or roads or other infrastructure
on up to Advocacy (usually means write your
Congress  / Government person,
a free action item, BTW...
I can see that WABA (Washington Area Bicycle
Association and other regional organizations
around the country and world are probably
good places to start MORE community organizing,
if say we have a transportation bill that is going
to kill us financially and / or otherwise practically
with construction, detours, train/ trolley tracks on roads,
etc...
But a top down approach probably isn't going to work,
IMO, in the long run.  Both bottom up and top down,
and middle around probably are necessary,
and There Will Be Rebels, CM or otherwise,
that aren't going to want to do what others
are going to do,  following other leaders,
(or we would be driving cars/trucks/ SUV's, no?)
so I look forward to  hearing what others think
on this list and elsewhere, even when we
aren't on the chopping block from Congress..
(yeah, more Abbie Hoffman than Exec Dir material)
On Thu, Mar 29, 2012 at 12:17 PM, Joshua Hoffman
joshua@healthykidsinitiative.org wrote:
...
There are two wonderful things about community bike shops that will
ensure
...
their continued existence. The first is that they are like weeds (pioneer
plant species). They can grow anywhere, don't need much water, and are
essential to restructuring (healing) the soil. The second great thing
about
...
community bike shops is that they are like infectious diseases. They
have no
...
regard for income, skill level, skin tone or creed and will make anyone
and
...
everyone lovesick for bikes. As long as ABW and the
bicycle advocacy machine
...
don't begin to think of themselves as a landscapers or doctors trying to
tidy everything up, and instead considers themselves coauthors and
biographers helping to write/tell the unfolding story of bicycling, we'll
all be okay.
On Wed, Mar 28, 2012 at 2:09 PM, Wanda Pelegrina Caldas
wanda@communitycycles.org wrote:
...
I think the ABW is doing great things! We've (Community Cycles in
Boulder,
...
...
CO) used their resources/help/guidance since they were the Thunderhead
Alliance. They (and LAB and Bikes Belong) have been supportive of our
efforts.
I agree with all of Jonathan's comments especially the ones abt how we
can
...
...
benefit as collectives. CC is also an advocacy organization and we're
growing like crazy and making big differences in our community. The
support
...
...
of the Alliance absolutely gives us much higher level resource and
credibility. (FYI: CC was one of the shops that received the donations
of
...
...
fixtures, racks, etc that Jonathan mentions below. CC has a small space
and
...
...
these items have much helped us...but that's a side note)
BUT: I understand the concerns that not all of us are advocacy orgs, not
all of our goals, etc are 100% the same to AWB, but bottom line, they're
looking to put people on bikes as we are. Yes, we have different ways
to go
...
...
abt this, different philosophies, different reaches, different
community-oriented goals specific to where we're located -and that's
fine.
...
...
We all cater to our communities and that's what makes us really succeed
at
...
...
what we do.
I would love if someone from AWB could come to Bike Bike so we can
continue discussing these possibilities/concerns/questions/needs/how we
can
...
...
work together...all that good stuff. When CC started 6 yrs ago, I felt
like
...
...
orgs like the League and Bikes Belong were so up there, so out of touch
with
...
...
collectives, so inaccessible but I've seen change that Jonathan
describes.
...
...
While there's still higher level advocacy efforts that might not
pertain to
...
...
all of us, they definitely have put grassroots back into their efforts.
I don't think there's any veiled agenda or a desire to take over the
little guys. I just think they realize the work we do and that working
together -them at their level, us at ours- only makes our efforts
stronger
...
...
and our voices louder.
Wanda
Wanda Pelegrina Caldas
Community Cycles, Boulder's only non-profit bike shop
Become a member today. using the secure online donation form.
Thanks!!

Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2012 12:37:09 -0600
From: jonathan@slcbikecollective.org
To: thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org
Subject: Re: [TheThinkTank] Partnership with the Alliance for Walking
and
...
...
Biking
Godwin,
This is an open discussion, there is nothing closed.  Let's help them
keep
...
...
it open.
The Alliance wants to keep all the information free and open, on an
international level.  They want to help smaller organizations get
started,
...
...
and they want to help larger organizations grow.  In particular, they
are
...
...
experts at helping organizations get their non-profit paperwork done,
find
...
...
spaces, find people, build a sustainable organization that is able to
raise
...
...
funds -- regardless of what their goals are.  We have an opportunity to
help
...
...
the Alliance help us, which is fill in the gaps in their current
knowledge
...
...
base, specifically how Community Bike Shops and youth programs work.
Which
...
...
will enable them to help more organizations like ours get started.
What is the catch, how would the Alliance benefit?  As organizations
grow,
...
...
such as Community Cycling Center (Portland), Recycle-a-Bicycle (NYC),
and
...
...
the Bicycle Collective (Provo - Salt Lake - Ogden), we need higher level
resources to grow that we are willing to pay for -- as a result we are
paid
...
...
members of the Alliance.  Again, we weren't forced into it, their member
resources are just that good.
Here is a fun example of something the Alliance did; a little while ago
one of the largest bicycle manufacturers in the world contacted the
Alliance
...
...
and asked them which non-profit Community Bike Shops they knew of
needed a
...
...
donation of [brand new] fixtures (bike display racks, counters,
displays,
...
...
etc.,...) that they decided not to use for all of their concept stores.
 Raise your hand if your Community Bike Shop could have used a donation
like
...
...
this!
Keeping an open mind and an open heart, please read the following
redundant mission statements:
"The Alliance for Biking & Walking creates, strengthens and unites
state/province and local bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organizations."
"The mission of the Bike Collective Network is to strengthen and
encourage
...
...
communication and resource sharing between existing and future community
bike shops. Collectively we can improve a bigger wheel as opposed to
re-inventing smaller ones."
Now let's take a deeper look and put faces to the young people behind
the
...
...
Alliance for Walking and Biking ("Alliance").  This is most of the staff
(http://www.peoplepoweredmovement.org/site/index.php/site/about/C190),
which
...
...
lacks a new Communications Coordinator who ironically is from the
Bloomington Community Bike Project.
Frankly, they are a small bunch of young, idealistic, bike obsessed,
passionate people who strive to get more people riding bikes more often
and
...
...
get paid virtually nothing compared to the energy they give.  Most
republicans would call them a bunch of dirty hippies.  Sound familiar?
It
...
...
does to me, because that is how I describe the people from Community
Bike
...
...
Shops including myself.
Sincerely,
Jonathan Morrison
Executive Director
Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective
2312 S. West Temple
Salt Lake City, UT 84115
w: 801-328-2453
c: 801-688-0183
f: 801-466-3856
www.slcbikecollective.org
The mission of the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective is to promote
cycling
...
...
as an effective and sustainable form of transportation and as a
cornerstone
...
...
of a cleaner, healthier, and safer society. The Bicycle Collective
provides
...
...
refurbished bicycles and educational programs to the community,
focusing on
...
...
children and lower income households.

Personally I love this quote from Steven seagal's film, Under Seige II
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wg4trPZFUwc).  While crude, it gets to
the
...
...
point.  So let's start with identifying some assumptions.
"Representatives from 100% of all Community Bike Organizations attend
Bike!Bike!"
"Representatives from 100% of all Community Bike Organizations that
attend
...
...
Bike!Bike! represent everyone else."
"Representatives from 100% of all Community Bike Organizations attend
the
...
...
National Bike Summit"
"Representatives from 100% of all Community Bike Organizations that
attend
...
...
the National Bike Summit represent everyone else."
"Representatives from 100% of all Community Bike Organizations attend
the
...
...
Youth Bike Summit"
"Representatives from 100% of all Community Bike Organizations that
attend
...
...
the Youth Bike Summit represent everyone else."
"Representatives from 100% of all Community Bike Organizations are
members
...
...
of TheThinkTank email list"
"Representatives from 100% of all Community Bike Organizations
represented
...
...
on the TheThinkTank email list actually read their email"
All of these assumptions have a common truth hidden in them, which is
that
...
...
there is no single forum that will accurately represent all of "us."
The
...
...
only thing we can strive for is that all of "us" reach out in all
forums,
...
...
including calling people, and give enough time for information to
trickle
...
...
out to those that aren't represented in the known forums above.
On Wed, Mar 28, 2012 at 10:52 AM, Godwin ! goodgodwin@hotmail.com
wrote:
...
...
This involves all of us, why not keep the discussion open for now?
My first thoughts are that an alliance (with the alliance) would be of
interest, however a partnership may be going too far. We have similar
interests and possibly end goals, however I feel that our immediate
goals
...
...
are very different.
The mission of the Bike Collective Network is to strengthen and
encourage
...
...
communication and resource sharing between existing and future community
bike shops. Collectively we can improve a bigger wheel as opposed to
re-inventing smaller ones.
From what I have understood of the AWB is that the primary interest is
advocacy in general while to me, the BCN exists to help people start up
their own collectives and keep them going. While most of us are likely
advocates and want to promote cycling (and walking I guess), that I feel
comes second or is even a byproduct of what we do.
I'm not sure where this would go in the end but we had some initial
discussions at last year's Bike!Bike! concerning creating stronger ties
between our organizations and possibly making the organization more
formalized. There seemed to be some interest, however there was some
backlash at the thought of a having a parent organization to encompass
all
...
...
of our organizations. The consensus seemed to be that this would not be
of
...
...
interest, however creating a third party organization to help with
research
...
...
and funding may be. Perhaps this is where such a partnership could take
us.
...
...
My other concern is that the AWB is a US/Canada wide project, while it's
awesome to hear that we've been included up here, the BCN has been
helping
...
...
organizations world-wide. I'm not sure how such a partnership would
effect
...
...
these relationships.
I really like that we're talking about this! Is there any chance that
anyone from the AWB will be able to make it out to Vancouver this June?
It
...
...
would be a great opportunity to get this discussion going in person
and gauge the feelings of the general community.
.godwin

Date: Wed, 28 Mar 2012 11:47:54 -0400
From: Mike@PeoplePoweredMovement.org
To: thethinktank@bikecollectives.org
Subject: Re: [TheThinkTank] Partnership with the Alliance for Walking
and
...
...
Biking
As Jonathan mentioned, we have been in discussions about establishing a
partnership with the Bike Collective Network as part of a larger effort
by
...
...
the Alliance to work with Community Bike Shops. I encourage you to call
or
...
...
email me with your thoughts and ideas as we continue to determine how
this
...
...
partnership will look.
Best,
Mike Samuelson
Member Services and Open Streets Coordinator
Alliance for Biking & Walking
P.O. Box 65150
Washington, DC 20035
Phone: 202-449-9692 x 7
Mike@PeoplePoweredMovement.org
The Open Streets Project has just released the Open Streets Guide!  A
great resource for anyone looking to further open streets in their
community.
From: Jonathan Morrison jonathan@slcbikecollective.org
Reply-To: The Think Tank thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org
Date: Tue, 27 Mar 2012 15:43:32 -0600
To: The Think Tank thethinktank@bikecollectives.org
Subject: [TheThinkTank] Partnership with the Alliance for Walking and
Biking
We have been working with the Alliance for Walking and Biking to
establish
...
...
a partnership that will help Community Bike Shops grow and achieve their
goals, as well as help bridge the gaps in the bicycle advocacy
community at
...
...
large.
http://bikeportland.org/2012/03/26/community-bike-shops-are-changing-the-fac...
...
...
We invite you to join in the conversation.
Sincerely,
Jonathan Morrison
Executive Director
Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective
2312 S. West Temple
Salt Lake City, UT 84115
w: 801-328-2453
c: 801-688-0183
f: 801-466-3856
www.slcbikecollective.org
The mission of the Salt Lake City Bicycle Collective is to promote
cycling
...
...
as an effective and sustainable form of transportation and as a
cornerstone
...
...
of a cleaner, healthier, and safer society. The Bicycle Collective
provides
...
...
refurbished bicycles and educational programs to the community,
focusing on
...
...
children and lower income households.
_______________________________________________ Thethinktank mailing
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...
...
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--
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Safe Routes Organizer
Rosedale Development Association
Rosedale Healthy Kids Initiative
1403 S.W. Boulevard
Kansas City, KS 66103
913-645-7826

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