Hi all: 

New to this list, and I have lurked for exactly 2 messages. 
Pardon my ignorance, but is this vision statement for this list, or for a specific org that is subscribing to the list?

Mission statements and vision statements can quickly become obtuse with big words that no-one uses in the organization and your community. And a vision statement by committee is how that happens. 

But here goes my two pence: 

Transportation and transit is routine, so further explaining it as routine is redundant. And anyways, making transportation anything but routine (fun! sexy! transformative!) is going to inspire people more than the routinized use of our transportation grid..

 
'_________ advocates safe and equitable outcomes for people on bikes as a form of everyday transportation. We are a non-profit, volunteer run community co-operative that empowers people to repair their own bikes' . 

Or something like that. 

I posted this on my Facebook page a few days ago. It's got some good suggestions for how and why language shapes the public discussion: 
http://www.peopleforbikes.org/blog/entry/how-smart-language-helped-end-seattles-paralyzing-bikelash



Tom Martin
Bike Program Coordinator
Portland Community College- Cascade
705 N Killingsworth St
Portland, OR 97217


On Mon, Feb 9, 2015 at 10:26 AM, Bob Giordano <mist@strans.org> wrote:
agree Ron.

a general suggestion:

instead of:
'We support safe cycling as a legitimate form of routine transportation'

change to:
'We support safety for people on bikes as a legitimate form of routine
transportation'

or something like that.  lots of 'talk' about the power of saying 'people
on bikes' instead of 'cyclists' nowadays, which makes sense.

--
Bob Giordano
Free Cycles Missoula
Missoula Institute for Sustainable Transportation


Ron Kellis wrote:
> Comment from the gallery: I've been, uh, subjected to these for over 20
years now. Meaning they can be really important for some folks as a
focus
> point, important for funding, and many feel the need to include every
descriptor that can be crammed into the space available. Often, in my
experience, this means few actually read it. And for others, well I
volunteer as an instructor and self-help mentor. I know that fits in our
mission statement someplace or we wouldn't be doing it.
> KISS and short:
>    - We reach-out to help others learn to maintain their own bikes - We
support safe cycling as a legitimate form of routine
> transportation
>    - We assist members of the community who need a bike to obtain a
bike.
> Expand on that as necessary in supporting statements.
> "*All great truths are simple in final analysis, and easily understood;
if
> they are not, they are not great truths."* ~ Napoleon Hill.
> Just my $.02
> Ron
> On Sun, Feb 8, 2015 at 12:19 PM, Andy Bakker
> <andy.bakker@velocitycoop.org>
> wrote:
>> Hi Donnie,
>> The mission statement that we use is:
>> Our mission is to educate, encourage, and empower a vibrant and inclusive
>>> cycling community through learning. We provide a non-profit,
>>> volunteer-run,
>>> educational do-it-yourself workshop offering training, rides, and
events to
>>> empower all levels of cyclists in building, maintaining, and embracing
the
>>> fun of bicycles.
>> I've been asked by a few volunteers about developing a real vision or
vision statement and I'd be very interested if anybody has something
they'd
>> like to share!
>> Cheers,
>> Andy Bakker
>> VéloCity Bicycle Cooperative
>> 2111 Mt. Vernon Ave, Alexandria, VA 22301
>> andy.bakker@velocitycoop.org | www.velocitycoop.org
>> On Sun, Feb 8, 2015 at 11:55 AM, Don <dontito@videotron.ca> wrote:
>>> Hi Everybody,
>>> I’ve been hit-and-miss following along on the Think Tank for the past
while so please excuse me if I missed any threads relevant to this
request.  Our collective is now in the process of redefining
ourselves,
>>> and
>>> part of the process is coming up with a Vision Statement and reworking
our
>>> Mission Statement, so I’d like to ask for examples that work for other
groups.  So far our shop has been mostly about mechanics and not so
much
>>> about advocacy, though of course that could change during this
process.
>>> All comments and suggestions will be gratefully received!
>>> Donnie
>>> SantroVélo
>>> https://www.facebook.com/SantroVelo





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