Class of 2008 Civic Projects

1) Alicia Miller's team started out talking about the working homeless in our valley. As they dug into the subject, they determined that making a difference in this area would be difficult. Their focus then shifted to affordable housing. The team launched the Yes, in My Backyard or YIMBY campaign the week of May 12th. A media blitz for the project was designed to increase public awareness that important community members are served by affordable housing. It also encouraged the public to learn more and to take action to support affordable housing. The YIMBY website was built on information that an RFL project team had first assembled in 2000. This year's team is working to make the website a lasting contribution to the community. Through their campaign the group distributed over 1,000 YIMBY bumper stickers around the valley and realized more than 390 visitors to their website. As the spokesperson for her team, Alicia noted that "we all struggled at first to find our place within the group, but feel that we have really come together and have learned to trust and rely on each other to move this project forward."

2) A second group worked to raise awareness of local watershed issues. Their project grew out of one team member's past involvement with the development of the Roaring Fork Watershed Plan. The group decided that their target audience would be 5th through 8th grade students in the valley, and they designed a poster contest for students. Students around the valley submitted more than 30 posters for review by a panel of volunteer judges. The top three posters were awarded prizes donated by local businesses. The winning poster clearly displays how the parts of Roaring Fork Watershed are connected to one another. Team representative Albert Slap noted that "one of the most exciting outcomes of this project is that one of our team members arranged for the winning poster to be displayed inside all RFTA buses." The team also printed copies of the first place poster to be displayed at local businesses, so the winning poster will reach many in our community and continue to raise awareness for many months.

3) The Green Team wanted to reduce the environmental impact of the many events and parties that take place every year in our valley. The group wound through several environmental topics before settling on the footprint of events. They teamed up with Sarah Laverty from the City of Aspen to hold a seminar for local event planners at the Given Institute. Attendees brainstormed ideas in small groups and discussed ways to reduce consumables at events as well as recycling and composting waste. Most importantly, the day's event created a networking opportunity for planners to discuss their ideas and come up with new solutions to their challenges. Brian Harris, a team member, has already taken the ideas back to his position at the Given Institute.

4) Another team began their project by discussing and researching a variety of different projects. They chose their task by a group vote, and creating a website for the Thrift Shop in Aspen won the election. As part of the project, the team also created an Ebay account and began helping the volunteers from the Thrift Shop sell several items through the account. Part of the way through the year, they determined that this was actually distracting the group from their main mission. Team spokesperson Ashley Harder Connolly notes that "We needed to remember that our original commitment was to get them a website," so they refocused and divided into mini-teams, each with a different goal. At the end of the year, the Thrift Shop will have both a function website, an Ebay account, and the ability to fulfill and process orders. "Overall the process has been rewarding and we hope to make a lasting difference to the Thrift Shop, which is an extraordinary all-volunteer group of woman who do some much for our community," Ashley concludes.

5) The fifth project team sought a way to offer community members from diverse backgrounds a creative opportunity to bridge some of their differences. They modeled their project on a Community Story Swap, which was developed by Anderson Ranch and the Aspen Writers' Foundation. The initial project paired high school students, one a native English speaker and the other a non-native speaker, to tell each other their "stories" and then rewrite their partner's story in their own words. This time, the team focused on local adults. Pairs of strangers shared dinner at Dos Gringos one evening in March, and then reunited a month later at Town Center Booksellers to tell each others' stories. Team member Morley McBride stated that "the project culminated in a touching reception and public sharing of the stories that were created from the initial swap." Some participants completed a survey, all of whom reported that they learned something about a person they wouldn't have otherwise and would recommend that their friends participate in future swaps. Morley concluded that, "The project was meaningful to our group in many ways, not least of which was learning how easy it was to do something for your community." The Aspen Writers' Foundation has already planned two future swaps, and the participants' stories are available on the AWF website as well as on the Community Integration Initiative website.

All of the teams noted that the group projects were excellent learning experiences for their time in RF Leadership. They walked away not only learning how to use their new skills, but also an understanding of how to create change in our community.