STNG23: How to Start a Local Conversation

Thank you for attending "How to Start a Local Conversation", featuring Strong Towns member advocate Norm Van Eeden Petersman. 

The Strong Towns movement is committed to a premise that might sound idealistic, but which we’ve found, over and over, to be true: that people getting together to talk about challenges in their cities and towns can lead to meaningful change. Community Builder John Pattison will discuss the growing number of Strong Towns Local Conversations in North America, explain how you can find (or start) one near you, and share some examples of existing Strong Towns groups that are accomplishing bottom-up changes close to home. You can do this, and Strong Towns is here to help. 

Here are some resources related to that session. If you have any additional questions about how to start or join a Local Conversation, feel free to reach out to John Pattison, the Strong Towns community builder, at john@strongtowns.org, or to Norm at norm@strongtowns.org.

Action Guide: "5 Steps to Forming a Successful Neighborhood Group"

Download the Action Guide as a PDF

Helpful Resources for Local Conversation Leaders

Start the process of joining or starting a Local Conversation at strongtowns.org/local.

Articles

• Success Stories featuring Local Conversations
• "5 Places to Meet New People to Join the Strong Towns Conversation," by Lauren Fisher
• "7 Surprisingly Simple Ways to Start a Strong Towns Conversation Where You Live," by John Pattison
• "The Strong Towns Approach to Public Investment," by Charles Marohn
• "Vermont Activists Help Abolish Parking Minimums in Burlington," by John Pattison
• "From Fired to Fired Up: How One Strong Towns Member Turned Losing His Job Into Community Success," by John Pattison

Podcasts

• "How One Strong Towns Member is Helping His Seattle Suburb Rediscover "People-Oriented Places"
• "Could a Community Potluck Help Make Your Town Stronger?"
• "The Bottom-Up Revolution Is…Speaking Up to Build Strong Towns"

Videos

• Curbside Chat Video Series
• "Our Cities are Broken -- Now What?"
• Not Just Bikes Strong Towns Playlist

Other Resources

• Strong Towns + Not Just Bikes course and discussion guides
• Strong Towns Action Lab
• Local Conversations in the Action Lab