Allied Organizations

Everyone has an interest in the outcomes of good planning, so look around your community for partners to co-sponsor events during National Community Planning Month. Whether it's with a small grassroots nonprofit in your city, a chapter of a large national organization, or a government agency, reach out. And don't forget to look for partners in new and unexpected places. Here are some suggestions:

Celebrate Complete and Healthy Streets
Join the growing movement to "complete the streets" in your area and turn your community into an active, healthy, and safe place to live, work, and play. Reach out to a variety of stakeholder groups, such as bicyclists, disability services, public safety advocates, transit agencies, parents, education institutions, community organizations, and local businesses. For a great resource on how to get complete streets in your city and town, visit the national Complete Streets Coalition homepage. APA is on the coalition's steering committee, which was formed in 2005 to promote a change in the way that streets and roads are designed across the U.S. We also suggest you check out our audio/web conference on complete streets, which was attended by more than 1,300 listeners this spring.

Create a Green Coalition
Help your area grow greener by hosting lectures, exhibits, street festivals, or public awareness campaigns. Suggest concrete ways that your community can green its streets and neighborhoods. Tailor your message to the audience, whether it's local residents, business owners, banks, or community groups. Create your own local green coalition of interested partners to help you. We've compiled a list of some of our national allies to get you started — many of them have local and state chapters you can contact.

Celebrate Local Food
Celebrate the importance of local food systems by organizing a "Local Food Day" with your local farmer's market or agriculture groups. Reach out to national organizations, such as American Farmland Trust, Cooperative Extension, the Farm Bureau, 4-H, Future Farmers of America, for help and support. Use this event to raise awareness about the importance of regional food systems and how they have improved your community, such as preserving open land, providing access to healthy foods, and strengthening your community and the regional economy. Urge your local officials to get involved. For more information, take a look at our Policy Guide on Community and Regional Food Planning. You'll find a number of roles planners and citizens can play.

Recognize Leadership in Planning
Ask another local organization to help you recognize a prominent citizen who has contributed to good planning. Host the celebration at a local museum or art society, at a prominent outdoor space such as a waterfront or urban park, or at a local government building, such as your city hall. Put an announcement in a local newspaper or magazine featuring the citizen's accomplishments. Use this as an opportunity to celebrate past achievements and build future partnerships with this special citizen and the allied organization.

Celebrate Diversity
Celebrate the diversity of your community by organizing parades and street festivals. Use this as an opportunity to highlight important planning milestones that helped promote social equity, diversity, and minority participation in your area. For a listing of potential diversity partners, click here. You'll also find information about our APA and Diversity program, including publications, and research activities. These programs offer you opportunity to share your experiences as well as learn from your peers about important diversity issues.

Contact a Local Museum
Sponsor an event or exhibit at a local gathering spot, such as a children's or science museum. You can capitalize on the museum's diverse attendance, and they may welcome new ideas. Partner with other organizations interested in good planning and pool resources to increase publicity for your event. Click here to read how APA's Oregon Chapter partnered with the Oregon Museum and Science and Industry to show visitors how planning and planning technology have made Portland and its surrounding neighborhoods great places to live.

APA works with numerous organizations on planning issues ranging from sprawl to transportation. For more information on our partners and coalitions, visit www.planning.org/coalitions.

Photos: 1. Shared-use path in Honolulu. Photo by Dan Burden, courtesy of www.pedbikeimages.org; 2. Outdoor market in Portland, Oregon. Photo courtesy of the City of Portland Bureau of Planning; 3. Lewis and Clark Riverfront Park in Atchison, Kansas. Photo courtesy of Atchison Daily Globe.