America Walks Inc

AMERICA WALKS, A 501(C)(3) NONPROFIT NATIONAL ORGANIZATION, IS BUILDING A DIVERSE AND POWERFUL COALITION TO BE A STRONG VOICE TO ADVANCE AND PROTECT WALKING AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL, SERVING AS A COORDINATOR, INFORMATION CLEARINGHOUSE, AND RESOURCE PROVIDER. AMERICA WALKS ADVANCES GAME-CHANGING CAMPAIGNS WITH NATIONAL AND LOCAL PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS.

PUBLIC EDUCATION - AMERICA WALKS EDUCATES THE PUBLIC ABOUT WALKING AND WALKABILITY. WE SERVE AS A PUBLIC VOICE FOR WALKING AND WALKABILITY IN THE MEDIA, BY PROVIDING INFORMATION AND RESOURCES TO INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANIZATIONS THAT SIGN UP FOR OUR PUBLICATIONS AND SOCIAL MEDIA.THE INTERSECTIONS INITIATIVE BEGAN IN 2022 AND WAS A YEAR-LONG, CDC-FUNDED PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN AMERICA WALKS, THE LEAGUE OF AMERICAN BICYCLISTS, AND THE SAFE ROUTES PARTNERSHIP TO MAKE FEDERAL PROGRAMS FOR WALKING AND BIKING INFRASTRUCTURE IN THE BIPARTISAN INFRASTRUCTURE LAW MORE APPROACHABLE FOR COMMUNITY LEADERS AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.

WALKING COLLEGE - WE GRADUATED 16 FELLOWS FROM OUR 2022 NATIONAL WALKING COLLEGE CLASS, AND THEY JOIN 200+ PEOPLE BEFORE THEM. THIS LEADERSHIP PROGRAM IS OPEN ANNUALLY TO ANYONE IN NORTH AMERICA LOOKING TO HONE THEIR SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE AROUND CREATING VIBRANT, SAFE, ACCESSIBLE COMMUNITIES FOR ALL PEOPLE, REGARDLESS OF AGE, RACE, INCOME LEVEL OR PHYSICAL ABILITY.PARTICIPANTS, PAIRED WITH EXPERIENCED LEADERS IN THE FIELD AND PEERS WORKING IN SIMILAR CAPACITIES ACROSS NORTH AMERICA, LEARN ABOUT THE HISTORICAL UNDERPINNINGS OF THE CAR-CENTRIC TRANSPORTATION LANDSCAPE (CONTINUED ON SCHEDULE O) AND THE BASICS OF DESIGN AND POLICY THAT FOSTER SAFE, INCLUSIVE, ACCESSIBLE DESIGN FOR NON-MOTORIZED TRANSPORTATION WHILE DEVELOPING ESSENTIAL LEADERSHIP SKILLS. OVER THE COURSE OF THE PROGRAM, THEY ALSO CREATE A BLUEPRINT FOR TAKING ACTION ON A PARTICULAR PROBLEM IN THEIR COMMUNITY.AARP STATE WALKING COLLEGES - IN EARLY 2021, AARP LIVABLE COMMUNITIES ENGAGED AMERICA WALKS TO DELIVER STATE-LEVEL VERSIONS OF ITS NATIONAL WALKING COLLEGE PROGRAM. IN 2022, AMERICA WALKS STAFF WORKED WITH AARP LIVABLE COMMUNITIES AND THE AARP STATE OFFICES IN ALABAMA, CENTRAL REGION, COLORADO, GEORGIA, MAINE, AND TEXAS. EACH STATE WALKING COLLEGE PROGRAM WOULD CONSISTED OF AT LEAST 15 FELLOWS AND A SMALL TEAM OF EXPERIENCED MENTORS FROM THE STATE. FELLOWSHIPS WERE OFFERED PREFERENTIALLY TO AARP STAFF AND VOLUNTEERS, SUCH AS AGE-FRIENDLY NETWORK COMMUNITY COORDINATORS, AS WELL AS AN OPEN APPLICATION PROCESS. THE SIX LEARNING MODULES (THREE WEEKS PER MODULE) WERE DELIVERED OVER AN EIGHTEEN-WEEK PERIOD STARTING MAY 1ST, 2022, WITH SUBMISSION OF WALKING ACTION PLANS IN OCTOBER 2022. AS A RESULT OF THE 2022 AARP STATE WALKING COLLEGE, A TOTAL OF 66 LOCAL ADVOCATES FROM 9 STATES GRADUATED FROM THE PROGRAM AND WROTE PERSONAL WALKING ACTION PLANS FOCUSED ON ORGANIZING FOR POLICY CHANGE TO CREATE LIVABLE COMMUNITIES. MINI-GRANTS WERE AWARDED TO 48 OF THESE FELLOWS TO PAY FOR SPECIFIC EXPENSES RELATED TO INITIAL IMPLEMENTATION, AND LARGER GRANTS WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE. ACCORDING TO SURVEYS, THESE FELLOWS HAD A HIGH LEVEL OF SATISFACTION WITH THE COURSE, ACHIEVED THE LEARNING OBJECTIVES OF THE MODULES, AND SUBSTANTIALLY INCREASED THEIR KNOWLEDGE/SKILLS AND CONFIDENCE TO ACCOMPLISH KEY TASKS. IN THIS WAY, THEIR CAPACITY TO INCREASE WALKING AND IMPROVE WALKABILITY IN THEIR COMMUNITIES HAS EXPANDED (THE GOAL OF THE WALKING COLLEGE).ARKANSAS STATE WALKING COLLEGE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE ARKANSAS DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH (ADH) AND THE ARKANSAS COALITION FOR OBESITY PREVENTION (ARCOP), AMERICA WALKS PROPOSED TO DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT AN ARKANSAS STATE WALKING COLLEGE BASED ON OUR NATIONAL WALKING COLLEGE MODEL. UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF THE ARKANSAS DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH (ADH), THE STATE HAS BEEN WORKING TO ADDRESS OBESITY FOR MORE THAN TWO DECADES. THE ARKANSAS STATE WALKING COLLEGE CONSISTED OF 18 FELLOWS FROM ACROSS THE STATE AND 2 EXPERIENCED MENTORS. THE SIX LEARNING MODULES (THREE WEEKS PER MODULE) WERE DELIVERED OVER AN EIGHTEEN-WEEK PERIOD STARTING JANUARY 3, 2022, WITH SUBMISSION OF WALKING ACTION PLANS IN MAY 2022. THIS PROGRAM WAS UNIQUE AS IT INCLUDED AN IN-PERSON WORKSHOP AT THE END OF THE CURRICULUM. AS A RESULT OF THE 2022 ARKANSAS STATE WALKING COLLEGE, A TOTAL OF 15 LOCAL ADVOCATES GRADUATED FROM THE PROGRAM AND WROTE PERSONAL WALKING ACTION PLANS FOCUSED ON ORGANIZING FOR POLICY CHANGE TO CREATE LIVABLE COMMUNITIES.

TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE - AMERICA WALKS PROVIDES TRAINING AND TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO LOCAL AND STATE ADVOCATES THROUGH WEBINARS, DISCUSSION FORUMS, AND WORKSHOPS. DURING 2022, WE PROVIDED ONLINE TRAINING AND WORKSHOPS TO ABOUT 6,500 INDIVIDUALS. WE MAINTAIN AN ACTIVE PRESENCE ON SOCIAL MEDIA PROVIDING INFORMATION TO LOCAL WALKING CHAMPIONS AND COMMUNITY ACTIVIST FOCUSED ON CREATING SAFE, ACCESSIBLE, EQUITABLE PLACES TO WALK AND MOVE. WE ANSWER TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE QUESTIONS WEEKLY FROM OUR NETWORK OF OVER 40,000 INDIVIDUALS AND ORGANIZATIONS (CONTINUED ON SCHEDULE O).COMMUNITY CHANGE GRANTS - AMERICA WALKS AWARDED 38 GRANTS THROUGH OUR 2022 COMMUNITY CHANGE GRANT PROGRAM. THIS PROGRAM SUPPORTS LOCAL, GRASSROOTS EFFORTS TO CREATE SAFE, ACCESSIBLE, AND ENJOYABLE PLACES TO WALK AND BE PHYSICALLY ACTIVE FOR ALL COMMUNITY MEMBERS. SINCE ITS BEGINNING IN 2015, THIS GRANT PROGRAM HAS PROVIDED FUNDS FOR MORE THAN A HUNDRED PROJECTS DEMONSTRATING THE CREATIVITY AND PASSION OF WALKING AND MOVING CHAMPIONS ACROSS THE US. OF THE 38 GRANTEES, 15 WERE AWARDED THOROUGH FUNDING FROM OUR PARTNERSHIP WITH GENERAL MOTORS FOR PROJECTS TO BE COMPLETED IN COMMUNITIES WITH GM FACILITIES, AND 5 WERE IN PARTNERSHIP WITH SAFE ROADS ALLIANCE IN MASSACHUSETTS. 2022 GRANTEES WERE SELECTED FROM OVER 200 APPLICATIONS BECAUSE THEY DEMONSTRATE A CLEAR DRIVE TO CREATE HEALTHY, ACTIVE, AND ENGAGED COMMUNITIES THAT SUPPORT WALKING AND MOVING FOR TRANSPORTATION, HEALTH, AND RECREATION WITH A FOUNDATION OF EQUITY AND AUTHENTIC ENGAGEMENT OF THE WHOLE COMMUNITY. AWARDEES WILL WORK WITH THE AMERICA WALKS TEAM TO SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETE THEIR PROJECTS AND SHARE THEIR LESSONS WITH OTHER COMMUNITY CHANGE AGENTS. WHILE THE PROJECTS AND PROGRAMS WORK TO PROVIDE STRONG WALKABLE COMMUNITY STANDARDS AND ELEMENTS, THE RESULTS OF EACH GRANT WILL HAVE A POSITIVE CHANGE ON MANY AREAS OF THAT COMMUNITY. THE 2022 COMMUNITY CHANGE GRANTEES/PROJECTS: HTTPS://AMERICAWALKS.ORG/PROGRAMS/COMMUNITY-CHANGE-GRANTS/