One Street News

November 2013

Vol. 6, Issue 8

  1. Blogging to Defy Poverty with Bicycles
  2. Year-end Donations to One Street
  3. Meet Our Four New Advisors
  4. Resources – Make Your Own Pedal Powered Phone Charger
  5. Hot Topics – Kids Banned from Riding Bikes

Blogging to Defy Poverty with Bicycles

By: Sue Knaup, Executive Director

We’ve launched our blog at www.defyingpovertywithbicycles.org to further the discussion about bicycles and poverty.

Blogging is a new realm for me, but I’m happy to have jumped in. This blog became necessary after our publication of Defying Poverty with Bicycles. The book is a how-to guide for setting up your own bicycle program that serves the needs of disadvantaged people in your community. It was an immediate hit as leaders of bike programs all over the world snatched up their own copies.

Then the other result began—false claims from people who had not read it, that the book:

  • is only for programs in Africa,
  • is only about volunteer-led programs,
  • discredits volunteer-led programs,
  • teaches people how to give away bikes,
  • is demeaning to people living in or near poverty, and many more.

I took this misguided buzz to mean that many diverse people are interested. But letting false claims hang was not an option especially if they block the potential of local bike programs.

It wasn’t long before a blog became the clear solution. Now all we need are folks to join in the discussion. Many of the subjects we’ll explore will build on the earlier buzz:

  • Can bike programs thrive if they are run by outsiders?
  • Is there a way to make volunteer-led programs sustainable?
  • What are the benefits and pitfalls of volunteer-led programs?
  • What are the various problems with giving away bikes?
  • How to move from giving away bikes to selling them?
  • How to realize the value and expertise of people living in or near poverty?

I’ve started with a few posts, but haven’t yet dug into the deepest topics. Blogging is a bit bizarre—you can’t get followers without content, so you have to write content without followers.

You can help! Please go to the blog, add a comment and subscribe to receive posts. Also, please forward the blog and post its link on your blog or website. The more links we get to it, the more folks will join in the discussion. And that’s when the misguided buzz will turn into real solutions for defying poverty with bicycles! Thanks in advance.

Year-end Donations to One Street

Due to our exciting (and successful!) Kickstarter campaign for our Bike Shift Lever and its accompanying mailings, we will not be sending our usual year-end appeals letter. Not only did this campaign tap out our mailing and postage budget, it likely wore out our welcome in mailing boxes for now. Thanks to all of you who have responded to these letters in the past!

But we still need your support! Our programs are growing and 2014 looks to be an invigorating year, especially for our Social Bike Business program, One Street Components and One Street Press. If you would like to make a year-end donation to One Street, simply click “Donate” (also on any page of OneStreet.org). You’ll find a printable form that is easy to mail in. You’ll also find the option to pay online with your credit card. We will so appreciate any support you can offer. And as always, your donation is tax-deductible.

Meet Our Four New Advisors

We are thrilled to welcome four new members of the One Street Board of Advisors! All four have offered their ideas and assistance to One Street for several years. They are all big thinkers and are eager to help One Street into the future. Please join us in welcoming:

• Jerry Hiniker – a bike shop manager and Safe Routes to Schools Coordinator in Grand Marais, Minnesota;

• Dave Horton – a sociologist, author and philosopher of cycling in Lancaster, England;

• Justin Hyatt – a journalist and avid advocate of sustainable communities particularly in Budapest, now living in Tunisia; and

• Amanda Aziidah Ngabirano – a sustainable transportation teacher and consultant and CEO of Goudappel Africa in Kampala, Uganda.

Each brings extraordinary experience to One Street’s efforts serving leaders of organizations working to increase bicycling in communities around the world.

Resources – Make Your Own Pedal Powered Phone Charger

This easy-to-follow guide and video will walk you through the steps to create your own phone charger using an old-style light generator that attaches to any bike. The DIY maker movement is inspiring lots of projects like this and we look forward to bringing you more as well as posting them to our One Street Components page under a new heading for DIY projects.

Hot Topics – Kids Banned from Riding Bikes

Just the title of this hot topic should set readers’ blood to boiling. Read the blog post and article if you dare upset yourself even more.

Once you’ve calmed down a bit, take a minute to enjoy the silver lining: the Free Range Kids blog is not a bicycle blog. This is just a concerned mom who wants all kids to regain the freedom they once had. It’s pretty cool to see a non-bike blog post that’s just as irate about banning bicycling as any of us are.