Your monthly update from Futurewise Executive Director, Hilary Franz

January 2012

New Year’s Resolutions
It is the beginning of the year again – the time most of us consider our new year’s resolutions and how we can change long-standing patterns to improve our lives --from drinking less coffee to running a marathon to starting a new career.  There is something strangely compelling about the idea that once a year at a certain time, we all quietly look at ourselves, reflect on our dreams, and choose to end the year in a better place than we started. 

What if this year our resolutions were larger than ourselves?  What if this year we looked bigger, not just at change in our personal lives, but instead at how our world should work and how we can be part of making it happen? 

Last year we witnessed small and large scale demands for change.  From the quiet streets of foreclosed neighborhoods to the loud streets of Occupy Wall Street, around the world and in each of our communities we heard people calling for a change in how our economy works.  It was a call for a New Economic Resolution. 

2012 needs to be about answering that call.  It needs to be about building a new economy that works for all of us – rich and poor, rural and urban.  It needs to be about building a new economy focused on innovation, infrastructure and sustainability. And it needs to be something we can all work on together. 

Unfortunately, what we are witnessing in Olympia so far this year is a focus on the failed premise that economic recovery will come from deferring innovation and gutting our environmental protections.  It's a failed premise that weakening our Growth Management Act and our State Environmental Policy Act will create jobs.  It’s a failed premise that delaying local requirements to address Puget Sound’s top water pollutant – toxic runoff - is necessary to achieve either short or long term economic recovery.

Instead, the reverse is true.  Investments in our failing stormwater system yield economic benefits from the retrofit jobs to the cost savings from reduced property damage and lower energy costs.  Smart land use planning creates more desirable communities to live and work – with open space, reduced pollution, safer roads and reduced traffic, attracting talented workers and innovative employers to grow our economy.   This in addition to getting a higher return on public investment so that we get maximum, efficient use of existing infrastructure. 

Across the country and in our own state, we see examples of this connection between repairing our broken infrastructure, cleaning up our environment, and creating jobs.  Take Seattle’s Barton Basin.  This project will install low impact development solutions including bio swales to approximately 32 blocks in Seattle.  As a result of these solutions, the City will reduce the amount of water flowing into the piped sewer system, create jobs, filter polluted stormwater runoff, reduce overall energy devoted to pumping and treatment, and increase walkability in the community.   The communities that are making these investments are the same ones we all want to live in - Portland, Austin, Bellingham and Bellevue - because they are engaging places that have open space and natural areas, efficient transit, jobs, and neighborhoods where you can walk or bike to shops, schools, and local services.  

We need a resolution that we can all get behind.  A resolution that changes decision-making in environmental and economic spheres and recognizes they go hand in hand.  A commitment to environmental sustainability means a drive to more efficiency and innovation.  We should reject the argument that gutting our environmental laws will make our communities healthier and our economy stronger.  We should not sell out a long-term economic recovery for a short term pick me up.  We need a resolution that we can all get behind: a renewed commitment to a strong economic and environmental future not a compromised one.

That’s our resolution at Futurewise.

December 2011

Roads to Recovery

As we near the end of the year, we’re starting to see small signs of an improving economy. Yet, despite signs of good news, for most of Washington’s communities and citizens, economic recovery has not yet occurred.

Our local and state governments continue to struggle to keep up with the long-term investments that make our communities better. Infrastructure across the state is ailing. And we’re now another year farther behind in repairing failing infrastructure and in providing adequate transit for people to get to their jobs and work. Without something changing, there is limited funding on the horizon to address the long-standing maintenance and repair needs for roads and transit.

Putting off this repair work has costly implications for the future – by not making investments today to maintain our roads, local jurisdictions and the state are setting themselves up for much more significant reconstruction costs in the future. In addition to the escalated costs, there are the costs in lost productivity and income that comes when our citizens cannot rely on efficient roads and transit. The conversations in Olympia this coming session will evolve around trying to address all three issues – fixing infrastructure, stimulating the economy, and JOBS, JOBS, JOBS. Injecting money into transportation projects is viewed as an effective tool that can address all three by not only putting construction workers and contractors to work quickly but also laying the groundwork for future economic growth as well as improving the safety and health of our communities.

We at Futurewise agree. We believe that addressing our failing transportation infrastructure and providing greater transit solutions can stimulate the economy and provide critical jobs. We believe that a focus on building new roads and neglecting the ones we already have will not solve our transportation crisis. Moreover to do so, will only compound the problem, by encouraging sprawl, increasing congestion, and further harming public health. We also know how important it is to focus those investments so that we advance other state policy objectives like restoring Puget Sound, reducing global warming pollution, and conserving working farms and forests.

We believe we can get a win for our economy and environment as long as new investments in transportation are focused on three key principles:

● Fix it first; Save lives. We need to prioritize our state transportation dollars to fix the crumbling bridges and roads we have first, and then ensure that new investments we make will create jobs, spur economic growth and improve the safety and health of our communities.

● More transit. Establishing a state funding source to expand our transit choices will reduce traffic congestion, improve freight mobility, decrease pollution, spur economic development, and connect our rural communities.

● Build great, healthy communities. Development and transportation go hand-in-hand. We need a more efficient transportation system that supports affordable and healthy neighborhoods -- that connects Washingtonians to jobs, their community and each other.

In our work with communities around the state, citizens are saying the same thing. And so last year, we launched our big campaign, Transportation for Washington, to focus the conversation in Olympia and at the local level around jobs, economic recovery, and our need to fix our failing roads and bridges, provide more transit, and create more livable neighborhoods where people can easily connect to jobs, services and community with more efficient transportation. Through this campaign, we have built a coalition of supporters from housing, social equity, environment, labor, business, and local government.

The results of the most recent federal stimulus package support our approach. A recent report analyzes by state the recent investment from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA) in infrastructure to show the best use of transportation spending based on job creation numbers. Based on data the states sent to Congress, the states that created the most jobs were the ones that invested in public transportation projects and projects that maintained and repaired existing roads and bridges.¹

Those states that spent their funds on building new roads and bridges created fewer jobs. For those states that put their funding towards public transportation, each dollar used on transit was 75% more effective at putting people to work than a dollar used for highway work. Repair and maintenance projects create jobs more quickly than building new roads because they employ more kinds of workers, spend less money on land and more on wages, and spend less time on plans and permits.²  These results should guide our state legislature in revitalizing our state’s transportation system, maximizing job creation from transportation dollars and rebuilding the economy.

Well-utilized transportation funding can stimulate the economy, create jobs, fix failing infrastructure, and build great, healthy communities. This last year, we were part of a number of transportation successes from protecting transit funding in counties around the state to helping adopt complete streets policies. This coming year, as the focus turns to creating a state transportation revenue package, we will be working hard for you in Olympia and around the state to make sure that your dollars are spent on what is important to you – fixing our failing transportation infrastructure, ensuring increased transit and multi-modal opportunities, and creating jobs and a true economic recovery.

Your voice on this issue matters. Around the country, we see people mobilizing on issues like the Keystone XL pipeline and off shore oil drilling. It's not as easy to get people as excited about long-term solutions like better transit options and smart urban planning. But if we don't reduce demand for oil and make jobs and services more accessible to residents through solutions like strong fuel-efficiency standards, better transit options, and smart urban planning, we find ourselves dependent on development projects like the Keystone XL and deep sea oil drilling. It is how we can be part of the larger solution right here in our home state.

We hope you will join us in mobilizing and speaking out for a cleaner, brigher future where our state's economy is growing again not based on the old way but based on a clean, safe, and secure transportation system, with well-maintained roadways, reduced commute times, convenient transit and healthy walkable communities.

*1 Smart Growth America Report. The States and Stimulus Spending: Are they using it to create jobs and 21st century transportation. June 2009.

*2 Arthur C. Nelson et al., The Best Stimulus for the Money: Briefing Papers on the Economics of Transportation Spending, University of Utah's Metropolitan Research Center and Smart Growth America, April 2009

November 2011

If we knew we could make a difference, we would.  If we knew we could do something that mattered; something that really changed things for the better, of course we would.  If any one of us knew that we could do something, anything, to create a healthier environment, to build stronger communities, and to ensure a better future, well, we'd do it.  I really believe that.  We want to have an impact.  We want to make it better.

And, together WE ARE.  Honestly.  The gifts you give to Futurewise, your financial support and the time and talents you share, really do matter.  They even change the world around us, for the better.  I can say this without hesitation.  I see it all around me -- everyday. 

In this season of giving and of being thankful, let me share some examples with you.  This year we won a decision that will help protect over 46,000 acres in one of our state’s most beautiful forests, the Upper Teanaway.   The area spent the last month ablaze with color and life with its abundance of rich foliage and plenty of water, and it is now preparing for a long hibernation.  It is a place where birds and wildlife frequent often, along with hikers, recreationists, and naturalists.   We did not hesitate in protecting this one – the stakes were too high – the benefits too great.  There is more to this simple story.  The community who lives around the Upper Teanaway could call on Futurewise because members like you were willing to give of themselves – frankly, to give money to support the work we do.  Thanks to your support we had the resources available and the need was met.  

A similar story plays out in our work this year in Whatcom, Pierce, and Ferry counties, where in total more than 400,000 acres of farmland were at risk.   Local citizens, farmers, and agricultural organizations from these communities came together, to ask for Futurewise’s help to protect healthy soils, ensure local food supplies, and support their rural economies.   And because of you, Tim was there, helping conserve much of our state’s diminishing prime agricultural resource lands.  Later this week, we will sit down together at a table with our friends and family and be reminded of the true value of the land, local foods, farmers, and community – and we will be thankful.

While we were in the rural areas of our state, we were also in our most urban communities, making a direct difference in thousands of people’s lives by protecting public transit and developing policies to make our cities more walkable and bikeable.  Public transit helps achieve various public health and equity goals by reducing air pollution emissions, increasing physical fitness, improving non-drivers’ access to goods, services, and jobs, and reducing financial burdens on low-income households.  It serves as a catalyst for more compact, walkable communities.  Because you gave, Brock helped mobilize over 15,000 transit riders to speak out about the importance of local transit in order to access basic essential services, education, and employment.   Further, we saved over 1.2 million rides on public transit in Pierce County alone.  Also because of you,  Kitty in Spokane, Kristin in Snohomish County, and Cathy in Bellingham have been working with citizens and policy makers in these communities to make them models in affordable housing, low impact, compact development, with complete streets for walkers, cyclists, and transit.  Through your giving, we are making our communities healthy for the environment and for people.

And there’s more.  Because we get that it’s our state government who ultimately decides whether we build healthy, compact communities with adequate multi-modal infrastructure, we’re focused there too,  Brock and the rest of our team through our Transportation For Washington campaign, has built a coalition of over 63 organizations and nearly 100 public officials to reframe the focus of transportation funding and policy at the state level to focus on three simple principles:  fix it first, expand transit choices, and build great, healthy communities.  April, our state policy director is preventing rollbacks in Olympia on our key environmental laws and last year won adoption of two significant clean water protections.  Next week, she’ll be back in Olympia for special session, helping make sure our leaders understand that trading our natural resources and pushing sprawl will not generate jobs  – that keeping Washington a great place to live and do business, with healthy livable cities, improved efficient infrastructure, and innovative industries will form the foundation of our recovery.  

Yes, it all matters.  Futurewise makes a difference.  You make a difference.   No one person can solve the significant challenges we face.  Nor should they.  In a world where life sometimes seems to hinge on performance and productivity and the impact of a single individual, we are still about so much more.  Community matters.  Place matters.  You matter.  Futurewise matters.  Futurewise has a role and purpose.  And without your generous support, that would not be the case.  So in this season of giving and of thanks, let me say thank you for giving and for helping Futurewise make a real, lasting difference in our communities and in the larger world.

Please consider Futurewise in your year-end giving. Futurewise is an extremely trim organization and your money is spent only where it is absolutely necessary. It takes contributions from partners like you to keep our organization running day-to-day, as well as to have the financial resources to fund our programs and protections across the state. Futurewise is a 501c3 nonprofit organization which means your contribution is fully tax-deductible. Click here for options to make your year-end gift.

October 2011

I just finished my second week as Futurewise’s new executive director.  It has been two weeks of much activity and great work.  I am inspired and honored to be part of such an effective organization, with committed, knowledgeable staff and engaged, active members. 

I joined Futurewise because I believe Futurewise is the organization that has and will continue to make a big impact and create transformative change in the things that matter most to Washington residents.  From protecting millions of acres of working farmland to shaping policies that ensure reliable transit and healthy liveable communities, Futurewise has played a pivotal role in many of the most important environmental victories over the past 20 years. 

As effective as the organization has been over the past 20 years, we need to do our best work in the years ahead.  The challenges, as well as the opportunities, are too great.

Given this moment in time, with all the social, economic and environmental challenges our communities face, unprecedented collaboration is needed among nonprofit, private and public sectors.  Futurewise recognizes the power of partnerships and collaboration for creating change and is working hard to develop more innovative solutions to our age old challenges.  We believe that transforming long-broken systems is imperative and the opportunity to make enduring change is now. 

Looking forward here are a few big impact projects we want to complete through collaborative partnerships and innovative solutions:
 
Creating Sustainable, Livable Communities -- We have made a firm commitment to be a solutions-oriented organization.  For example, we cannot just work to stop bad state and local policies from being adopted.  We will work with communities to develop solutions that will fix their failing infrastructure, protect their open space and natural areas, strengthen their local economies, create diverse affordable housing, and clean their waterways.   We must be as effective in our advocacy for tangible and pragmatic solutions as we are in our opposition to bad ideas.  In essence, we will not just advocate for local governments to do the right thing; we will help them get there. 

Protecting our natural resource lands – What’s your favorite natural place in Washington state? Places like the great forests in Upper Teanaway Valley, the rich farmlands in Skagit Valley, or the Olympics over the Puget Sound have become iconic images of Washington State.  For each of these great places, Futurewise has been there protecting it.  As the earth warms and our population grows, our work becomes even more critical -- we will need to make our large open spaces, forests, farmlands, wetlands and streams more resilient to climate change and urban sprawl.  We will be here working on creative solutions to protect our large parks and wilderness areas, to restore wetlands and shorelines, and to protect our soils, forests, and prairies to soak up more carbon and ensure viable natural resource areas for future generations.    This is because our work is critical not just for protecting these great places for our generation to enjoy but for future generations to enjoy as well. 

Improve Transportation Options – Futurewise is one of the few statewide environmental organizations that is engaged at the local as well as state level in shaping critical policies that will help solve our transportation challenges.  In the next year, we will increase our leadership at the state level to secure new, dedicated funding options for our local communities to fix broken infrastructure, save and improve transit, and build great, healthy communities with a comprehensive and integrated multi-modal transportation network.  We are also working closely with communities in King, Pierce, Snohomish, Whatcom, and Spokane Counties, advocating for better transit, safer streets, low impact development, and complete streets policies.

Today, we have the chance to work together differently, to make changes that have too long been delayed, and to innovate for the good of local communities, our citizens, and our environment.  Come join us. And if you have any advice for me in my new job or want to meet with me, let me know!