This text was initially revealed on BikePGH.

Right here’s how Seth is transferring abilities to assist make Pittsburgh higher for strolling!

It’s our closing interview! We’ve been sitting down with BikePGH’s Advocacy Supervisor, Seth Bush, to listen to all about his experiences with the 2023 Pennsylvania State Strolling School Fellowship Program via America Walks and AARP. As a closing venture to shut out this 6-month fellowship, Seth not too long ago submitted his Strolling Motion Plan, which makes use of the whole lot he’s realized on this fellowship comparable to stroll audits, marketing campaign methods, assessing coverage, growing relationships with key companions, and extra.  

Congratulations in your new certification, Seth! We’re excited to see you are taking your new abilities into the group to coach advocates, seek the advice of with decision-makers, and have an effect on actual change in our communities. After in the present day’s interview, this weblog collection will come to a detailed. When you missed it, try our blogs from (Month 1) (Month 2) (Month 3) & (Month 4)  to get a recap of Seth’s expertise, and proceed studying beneath to study why it is best to join with Seth and/or stage up your advocacy and enhance your group in 2024!

Q:   Hello, Seth. Congratulations on finishing your 6-month fellowship with PA Strolling School. All of us are very to listen to concerning the main takeaways and any significant insights you gained via the expertise… Are you able to enlighten us?

I believe it’s actually fascinating that I began this Strolling School journey once I was model new on the BikePGH workers. I really feel the expertise supercharged my studying of the technical components of how and why we do what we do on this group. Previous to becoming a member of the BikePGH crew and beginning at Strolling School, I already had an understanding of group organizing and expertise making grassroots change. However via this program I used to be in a position to actually put all of it into the context of city design and what it actually takes to make “Streets for Folks.”

One other fascinating and funky factor about this program that I didn’t initially count on is that out of the course’s six modules, the city engineering portion was simply one module of six whole modules. In the meantime, it was the historical past and affect that have been the extra substantial subjects within the total course –as an example, Mobility Justice, the historical past of racism on metropolis design, and studying concerning the insurance policies that create our constructed atmosphere. I didn’t understand simply how substantial these subjects have been going to be all through the course of the fellowship, whereas only a sliver of the puzzle was the engineering portion. That takeaway is important as a result of I understand now that with the intention to have the best and equitable change on our streets, we actually should be intentional about having a deep understanding of the folks these modifications are going to affect: what are their lived experiences, wants, and desires?

Q: How else does this tie into your work at BikePGH?

Effectively, to start out, our identify is BikePGH however we’re engaged on advocacy for a lot extra than simply individuals who bike. We’re actually making a tradition shift to affect accessible streets for all folks, whether or not biking, strolling, or rolling. Intuitively, I understood that upon beginning this job as BikePGH Advocacy Supervisor, however now with Strolling School I’ve been in a position to join that understanding with consultants throughout the nation and thru exploring numerous supplies and sources. This all helped to coach me on the technical stuff that goes into this work, and now I really feel higher geared up to help our BikePGH advocates. Particularly, transferring a number of the information and sources I’ve realized and compiled with the intention to lead trainings, stroll audits, give recommendation, and level to priceless sources I could not have in any other case been linked to. I’ve really grow to be more practical at supporting advocates via this program.

I really feel like I’ve leveled up my advocacy! 

-Seth Bush

I’d prefer to share an anecdote of one thing that has already made me really feel actually good concerning the affect of this work. Just a few weeks in the past, I had the chance to sit down down with one of many advocates I’ve beforehand met and supported from a close-by municipality. He had beforehand attended a few of BikePGH’s advocacy trainings however I realized he was feeling actually caught on easy methods to interact folks in his group. Particularly, he was in search of an engagement technique for a really busy road that runs via their enterprise district. So I sat down with him 1-on-1 to speak about subsequent steps. Their municipality already has a Full Streets coverage and they’re an Energetic Transportation Plan, however they’ve an extended strategy to go to really remodel the walkability of their downtown. So, we talked a couple of good technique to maneuver ahead, and I shared a few of what I realized at Strolling School. After that assembly, he instructed me every time we’ve sat down to speak collectively, he feels he has rather more readability and a a lot clearer path ahead on account of our conversations. That’s what I would like for folks, and it feels actually good to listen to it’s taking place.

Strolling School gave me so lots of these instruments and sources to help these conversations, and I’m really trying ahead to having many extra fruitful interactions with bike/ped advocates throughout Pittsburgh to assist folks be efficient advocates of their neighborhoods. 

Q:  What’s subsequent and what can we count on when it comes to your subsequent initiatives?

First, extra Stroll Audits! A Stroll Audit entails strolling via an space or observing a stretch of highway to determine what challenges there are to individuals who stroll via the realm. The thought is to start out interested by options to make it safer and extra fulfilling for folks to stroll in that space. If you wish to do a Stroll Audit in your neighborhood, attain out to me! Take a look at Weblog 3 for more information on what a Stroll Audit can do for the security of your neighborhood. 

Subsequent, relating to getting my Strolling Motion Plan in movement, I’ve began so many conversations related to this plan. As for on-the-ground implementation, I’m going to be engaged on getting some visitors calming put in on Woodstock Ave in Swissvale someday subsequent yr. 

I’ve additionally been in a position to higher perceive varied funding alternatives obtainable, and I now know which of them are related to my neighborhood and others. I’m in a position to present up in locations and communicate with choice makers intelligibly and get them to consider initiatives and areas of want related to such a advocacy. 

Extra so, I’m going to be taking what I’ve realized from this in bringing it to communities everywhere in the metropolis. At a current capital price range assembly, as an example, I listened to the parents talking up for visitors calming & pedestrian security – and I struck up dialog and began constructing relationships with these people. I now have the information to assist communities that perhaps wouldn’t have considered Bike Pittsburgh as a means to assist them get their pedestrian security wants met. I’m able to reveal abilities and supply sources that present BikePGH as a corporation can help their group – not only a group the place folks trip their bikes– however their group the place the youngsters play, the place folks stroll, and the place folks trip the bus.

Placing collectively the Strolling Motion Plan for Woodstock Ave, I now have a toolkit to drag from that enables me to create a imaginative and prescient of safer streets that exceeds what I’ve carried out earlier than. I now have a larger sense of chance. It has modified the lens by which I view components of our group. I discover inspiration in issues I could not have in any other case discovered inspiration in. 

THE VISION: “[In 2028] The as soon as damaged sidewalks have been repaired and widened with new road bushes to supply shade. Intersections have been redesigned with shorter crossing distances, raised crosswalks, and correctly graded curb cuts with tactile surfaces… Avenue murals showcase the inventive spirit of the group whereas signaling to drivers that our road is for folks to stay, not for automobiles to go quick. Bus stops alongside the road all characteristic a trash can, a close-by road mild, and a close-by road tree…”

– The “Imaginative and prescient” part of Seth’s Strolling School Motion Plan

Q: Thanks, Seth! Is there anything you need to share as we wrap up this weblog collection?

Only a honest thanks to my group– I had the privilege of being part of an AWESOME mentor group throughout the cohort. It was only a actual privilege to have the ability to collaborate with my group and provides one another suggestions and assist one another out. And to our Mentor, Daniel Worth, thanks a lot, you have been nice. The suggestions and help I acquired from this group alone made Strolling School worthwhile, amongst so many different components of this system. I extremely advocate it!

Congrats once more to Seth on finishing this fellowship, and thanks to everybody studying this weblog collection and following together with us! If you wish to learn to advocate for safer strolling in your group, you’ll be able to join with Seth at seth@bikepgh.org. If you wish to take that further step, keep tuned on the AmericaWalks web site for different alternatives.