Your Community - Achieving Buy-In
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Getting Local Buy-In For Your Project
In general, you can attract more support with positive,
inclusive approaches than with negative, divisive ones.
While some project opponents will never be swayed to your
side, many people will come along more easily.
One important element in securing "buy-in"
by local officials is to praise efforts already underway.
Even minor improvements are steps in the right direction.
Consider giving out awards for bicycle- or pedestrian-friendly
efforts. Remember that public officials get plenty of
heat in the course of doing their jobs, so an occasional
pat on the back will be welcome relief!
Years ago, a national survey found that most Americans
have positive feelings toward bicycling. The survey authors
pointed out that bicycling was in a good position for
widespread success. This, no doubt, has been a factor
in the successes of bicycle-related efforts in many places
– including places where one would not expect support.
So, start with the expectation of success and a belief
that others will want to help once they understand what
you're after.
Cast Projects as Mainstream
Another ingredient for success is to show that you aren't
asking for things that are "way out there" in
the forefront. While many public officials like to see
their communities as progressive, in terms of solving
problems and adopting new approaches, they seldom want
to be at the very front of a movement. It's more comforting
to be a few tiers back. In that position, officials can
see themselves as moving ahead but not going so fast that
they will spend a lot of constituents' money on novel
and radical changes that may fail.
It always helps to show mayors, council people, city engineers,
and others that what you're asking is reasonable and popular
in many other communities. Check our Networking area and
the links to the Active Living Stories, a collection of
success stories from around the nation. Here you'll find
many examples of success stories that you can use to convince
leaders in your community that your project deserves consideration.
Friends In Many Places
A value of "having friends in MANY places" (not
just "high places") is that you will never know
who can offer the one word in a key public official's
ear that will lead to success. For example, in one statewide
effort to improve bicycling laws, there was one last legislative
opponent who kept the bill from passing. By checking around
among those who supported the change, proponents came
upon the lawmaker's personal lawyer, who happened to be
an ardent bicyclist. This person made the key phone call
that led to the bill's passage.
Resources
- Smart Talk for Growing Communities -- Using study circles to meet the challenges of growth and development. From the Congressional Exchange.
Download it here. | 178KB
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