Fresh Start Plan
Observations and Contributions
by Jim Embry, Sustainable Communities Network, January 4 2011
I was asked to spend a few minutes talking with Mayor Gray’s
Transition Team to share my thoughts about the Fresh Start Plan. This
commentary is a summary of my presentation to the Quality of Life committee
which was my attempt at enumerating idea for fresh solutions. I share these thoughts
in hopes that these words might inspire even greater community dialogue about
how we can once again mold Lexington into a renaissance city that Mayor Gray
invoked at his inauguration. When politicians try to motivate organizational
change, they often resort to clever sloganeering which is evident in the Fresh
Start Plan. One of the most commonly used slogans is a definition of insanity
that Mayor Jim Gray like many others inaccurately attributes to Albert
Einstein. However for my purpose of offering input on the Gray roadmap I will
stretch the meaning of “insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and
expecting different results” as a statement that says we need to think radically
differently. Now is Mayor Gray by using this quote also suggesting that we need
a new of thinking? If so he does not describe what that new way of thinking is
nor does he describe the old way. So how do we know if this roadmap is truly a
Fresh Start.
The Fresh Start Plan should place its beacon of light on quantum
or systems thinking. In my mind the old way of thinking is the Newtonian or Industrial
Age mentality that created so many of today’s problems and doesn’t hesitate to
leave problems for our children. And the new way of thinking is quantum or integrated
systems thinking. So my Fresh
Solution #1 is teach quantum or systems thinking to all LFUCG employees
and make resources available so all citizens of Lexington can also learn how to
make this paradigm shift in our way of looking at the world. Even though
scientists like Einstein gifted us with quantum science thinking more than 60
years ago our institutions of higher education like UK and Transy and our K-12
schools did not change their mission, curriculum or physical structures based
upon this new science. Thus higher education institutions which shape the
leaders of government, business, education and religion are still teaching
archaic science and graduating leaders that show over and over again that they do
not know how to collaborate, use systems thinking or solve problems without
creating new ones. Our institutional and business leaders are quite good at silo,
linear, either/or, us-vs-them thinking that plays havoc with the present while creating
additional problems for future generations. This way of thinking and leadership
style is truly a manifestation of insanity. That is why the Kellogg Foundation
says “ the problems that plague American society are problems of leadership”.
Fresh Solution #2
is Mayor Gray call a series of meetings over the next four years with all the
presidents, superintendents and leaders of education in the Lexington region to
read and study together such books as “Leadership Reconsidered: Engaging Higher
Education in Social Change” by the Kellogg Foundation with the intent
of transforming the curricula, teaching practices, reward system, values and
beliefs that can then allow them to teach systems thinking and transformative
leadership models. This is not a farfetched notion because 8 years ago when I
lived in Detroit we had such a meeting with the presidents of five universities
and educational leaders in the region facilitated by Kellogg to foster a
radical shift in the mission of higher ed that could then produce transformative
leaders who could devise effective solutions to our now profoundly challenging
problems. Another important book is Planet U-Sustaining the World, Reinventing
the University which also challenges universities to transform themselves
in the direction that the Earth mattered and then to invigorate the cultural
and ecological fabric of our society that creates diverse models of local and
global innovation. The Fresh Start Plan which describes the acting-like-silos
mentality within the government needs to recognize that this insane mental condition
is a function of higher education which needs to be challenged to transform
itself much deeper than a typical Top 20 Plan.
Fresh Solutions #
3 is adopt Local Agenda 21 as the guiding framework for our strategic
development towards sustainability.
Local Agenda 21 along with the Earth Charter is a local-government-led,
community-wide, and participatory effort to establish a comprehensive action
strategy for environmental protection, economic prosperity and community
well-being that was adopted by the United Nations in 1992. We have signed on to
the Kyoto Protocol, joined ICLEI to support our local initiatives but far more
needs to be done in the integration of planning and action across economic,
social and environmental spheres and ensuring full community participation. We must act more rapidly and collaboratively and strive for more radical
solutions to our huge ecological footprint.
I have been saying for years that
the foundation of a sustainable community is its local food system. But most
local governments like Lexington have not defined food security as an important
function. Since LFUCG strives to create programs to reduce social inequity and
increase the quality of life for citizens, I contend that food security is a
local government function. Access to healthy, low-cost food helps assure the
health, safety, and welfare of citizens every bit as much as other services
that city governments provide, such as parks and recreation, protection from
crime and catastrophe, sewage treatment, garbage collection, shelters and
low-income housing programs, fallen-tree disposal, and pothole-free streets. Fresh Solutions # 4 is create a Food
and Agriculture division within our government that coordinates all the aspects
of our food system. But in the meantime since funds are so low, the Mayor and
City Council should establish a GROW Lexington Food Policy Council that would work
to strengthen the local food system by connecting all of its various sectors
from production to disposal for greater collaboration on projects and programs
related to food issues and far-reaching
problem solving. Every Lexington city park should have a demonstration edible garden
like Grant Park in Chicago while also allowing plots for neighborhood
residents. We need to re-train the LFUCG Parks Department grounds crew from
mowers to growers so they work less in carbon hungry grass cutting and become a
resource for community gardening. Local food production, processing, education
and composting can be and will become an important contribution to job creation
and economic development. In October I was one of 15 Kentucky delegates to
Terra Madre in Italy which is the international Slow Food gathering that
included 5,000 delegates from all over the world. Slow Food which is about
preserving the health of people, the integrity of environment, the vibrancy of
the economy and the value of traditional culture is another international affiliation
that supports a Fresh Start. A City Council resolution and Mayoral proclamation
supporting and encouraging our local involvement with the Slow Food movement would
be a grand way to begin the new year.
Fresh Solutions #5 create a Commission on Youth
patterned after the Hampton VA Youth
Commission that can provide an opportunity for youth to have a formal role
in the City’s decision making through a representative commission that
addresses all youth issues. This commission by employing youth would work to make
sure all LFUCG departments are youth friendly. As Hampton has done add a Youth Component
to the LFUCG Comprehensive Plan that lays out our understanding that our future
lies in the hands of youth and describes the methods of involving our youth in creating
this future. Create on Lexington.gov an informational presence that goes beyond
the focus on services for troubled youth
but also invites all youth to participate and become involved in the Fresh Start
Plan.
Fresh Solution # 6
establish an affiliate of Manchester Craftmen’s Guild in Lexington. Four years
ago after a trip to Pittsburgh we spent 2 years trying to convince Mayor
Newberry, Superintendent Stu Silberman, President Lee Todd and many other local
leaders and organizations that the transformative work by Bill Strickland to
provide training and job skills for youth and adults at risk was a worthy model
for Lexington. Even though that effort was not successful, Bill’s presence at
last April’s Idea Festival created another movement of interest. This program
complements the Fresh Start Plan in building a local economy and creation of
new jobs but it would also serve to help reduce our high incarceration rate in
Kentucky and provide employment skills for youth and adults at risk.
Fresh Solution # 6 is incorporate the Catherine Ferguson Academy
model into our educational programs for teen mothers. This past April we hosted
Asenath Andrews, the principal at the Catherine Ferguson Academy and Grown In Detroit, a documentary film
about her school. Catherine Ferguson Academy, a public school in Detroit for
teen mothers and their children which has a 99% rate of graduation, a 90% rate of
students going all to post secondary and an 80% rate of no second pregnancy is
a model program that we need to emulate here in Lexington to ensure the quality
of life for single mothers and their children. Catherine Ferguson Academy with many
unique features integrates a working farm with horses, goats, chickens, sheep, bees,
fruit trees, a barn and a thriving urban agriculture business into its high
school curriculum. There is no other high school program for teen moms like it
in the country.
Fresh Solution # 7
create a Youth Green Corps in every council district. Three years ago
we created the Youth GreenCorps as a way to get young people involved in what
we called green-ifying their neighborhoods by planting trees, supporting garden
plots, creating art installations from recycled objects, organizing the annual
garden tour and learning environmental literacy. Using the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program
and other training resources we encourage the Mayor and City Council to find
the resources and structures to set up a Youth Green Corps in every council
district.
Fresh Solution # 8 is create a Sustainable Cities Commission that would
include such people as UK professor Richard Levine who has consulted with countries
such as China to design entirely new cities.
This would be an opportunity to apply this systems view of our entire
city with someone who is doing this for many other countries around the world.
We desperately need a systems view of all of our human made systems integrated
with our eco-system.
Fresh solutions #
9 create a Lexington Ecumenical Sustainability Council as a structure composed
of representatives of all religious denominations that would articulate ways
that the faith community can support our community direction toward sustainable
development. While there are many faith community coalitions such as BUILD, Interfaith
Alliance, Black Church Coalition and others, none of these groups connect
directly with environmental sustainability initiatives.
Fresh Solutions #10
create an Arts and Sustainable Development Council as a structure
composed of representatives of all arts organizations which would find ways to
utilize all of the arts to make our efforts towards sustainable development and
a less consumptive lifestyle irresistible for our citizens.
Fresh Solutions #
11 appoint a Diversity in
Skilled Trades Commission to study the allocation of skilled trades work in
Lexington. When you look around
Lexington at all the recent construction sites such as the University Hospital,
Limestone, new schools, Lyric Theatre, Newtown extension and other construction
projects we see very few if any of African American or Latino men or women
working on these construction sites. Why is that? When I came to Lexington forty years ago
almost all of the concrete finishers, bricklayer and laborers were African
American. During the seventies I worked
at the recruitment and training program which was a Labor Department funded
program to get people of color both men and women into a skilled construction
trades. We were successful in getting African
Americans into the various apprenticeship programs such as electricians,
elevator operators, heavy equipment operators and so for. Why in 2011 doesn’t the University of
Kentucky in its diversity commitment make sure that the construction companies
working on all of these new buildings includes workers that are African
American and Latino men and women? We
should be ashamed of this mark. This
lack of people color in the skilled trades is also an important measure of the
quality of life for all citizens in this community. When Progress Lexington raised the question
of the design of the Rite Aid on Midland Ave it did not think that the
diversity of the workforce was as important as the design. When my friend Graham Pohl raised the
question of the power lines for the Newtown Pike Extension he did not raise the
question of the diversity of the worker force who would install those power
lines underground. These considerations
of the social aspect of sustainability and diversity of employment are as
important as the aesthetic values of sustainability
Fresh Solutions #12
create a Commission on Women. I attend
lots of meetings and conferences on sustainable development which looks at our
future but hardly ever is there any mention of women in these discussions. When I last checked- and if I’m wrong I hope
you all will correct me-we all come through women. Our future is dependent on women. We must now
regard as an indicator of our quality of life and sustainable development how
we treat women. We must now regard the treatment of women as a fundamental
principle of sustainable development. This means that a sustainable future is
predicated on how well we love, educate,
nurture, protect and empower women. Our
concern for women is a concern for all of us.
We need to especially apply our systems thinking to improving the
quality of life for all women and in particular those who are at risk. This commission would include representatives
from all of the various organizations that provide any type of support services
for women. The mission of the Women's Commission would be to provide technical
assistance to individuals and organizations on issues concerning women and to
advocate for increased attention to public policy initiatives that affect
women's equal participation, economic security, family commitments, health, and
safety. The Commission would also provide advocacy and educational programs and
opportunities for girls to experience a full range of life options.
Such programs as Vermont Works for Women that helps women and girls recognize their potential and
explore, pursue and excel in work that leads to
economic independence should be studied as a model for our similar efforts in
Lexington. http://www.vtworksforwomen.org/
Fresh Solutions
#12 provide machine language translation services of the LFUCG website
as is done on the Boston website, www.cityofboston.gov.
We need to make sure that all citizens of Lexington have access to the
information on the LFUCG website. `
Fresh Solutions #13
use the Dudley Street
Neighborhood Initiative as a model for Lexington’s East End. Five years ago we
sought through the efforts of North East Lexington Initiative(NELI) to develop
a model of community development and empowerment based upon the Dudley Street
Neighborhood Initiative(DSNI) in Boston. The Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative
(DSNI) is a nonprofit community-based planning and organizing entity rooted in
the Roxbury/North Dorchester neighborhoods of Boston. DSNI is an innovative,
high performing holistic community change effort that began in 1988 and
continues to thrive where residents lead a community collaboration with the
shared goal of creating a vibrant, high quality diverse urban village. DSNI
works to ensure that local residents are the primary beneficiaries of the
community economic growth, and that human development and environmental issues
are addressed. The Hope VI project, the new William Wells Brown School, the
Lyric Theater, the Legacy Trail and the Murphy Art Garden are improvements in
the physical infrastructure but they all have been lacking in providing
economic benefit to community residents. A case in point is the Lyric Theatre
renovation where Black businesses earned a mere $154,000 from this $6 million
project but actual East End residents probably earned less than $1,000. This
exclusion of East end residents from the economic gain from so many
construction projects located in the neighborhood is shameful and exemplifies
the value of a neighborhood initiative like DSNI.
Fresh Solutions #14
create a Lexington Interagency Council on Homelessness that would
enhance the existing links to the national USICH and our Kentucky KYICH and create more effective partnerships among city, state and federal agencies,
service providers and advocacy groups to enable our community to achieve local
solutions to ending homelessness. This Council would include individuals who are in a homeless condition.
Fresh Solutions #15 invite the Mondragon worker
cooperative from Spain (as Cleveland OH and Richmond, CA have done) to
Lexington. From Spain’s Basque Country,
the Mondragon, which is
the world’s largest and most complex system of worker ownership has grown into
an industrial group that is among the largest in Europe. It includes
a bank, medical and educational systems, social security, and much more. It
employs more than 100,000 people, and has consistently outperformed the rest of
the Spanish economy. It weathered Spain’s severe recession in the 1980s without resorting to layoffs.
Right now Cleveland is engaged in
the biggest experimental project around for building a relocalized cooperative
economy. An alliance between the micromanufacturing movement and the
Cleveland model would seem to be the opportunity of a century. The Evergreen Cooperative
Laundry was the first of some twenty cooperative enterprises on the drawing
board, followed by Ohio
Cooperative Solar (which carries out large-scale installation of solar
power generating equipment on the roofs of local government and non-profit
buildings). A third and fourth enterprise, a cooperative
greenhouse and the Neighborhood
Voice newspaper, are slated to open in the near future.
Worker's co-ops are one of the most transformative
things communities can undertake. The Mayor of Richmond, California, Gayle
McLaughlin, is about to launch an extraordinary working relationship with the
world's largest worker co-op movement.
Fresh Solutions #16
institute a Meatless Monday campaign in
Lexington patterned after the effort instituted by John Hopkins Hospital.
A Fresh Start Plan is
a springboard to dynamic activity. We have to inspire people on their deepest
level to change their behavior and their collective actions. To succeed we must
involve all sectors of our community, and draw from our traditions and new
technologies, from our hearts, our minds, and our spirits.
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