On this episode of CivicCast, I speak with 2024 Equity Award winner Walter Arrington.

We spoke about his background and reasons for getting into community advocacy, the biggest challenges he faces in his work, and how we can change the narrative to build more empathy for our most vulnerable populations.

Walter serves as Director of Advocacy at Community Health Northwest Florida, an organization with which he has also held other pivotal roles including Homeless Health Navigator and CORE Navigator. Beyond his professional accomplishments, Walter actively participates in various community organizations and task forces. His roles on boards such as the National Area Health Education Centers Organization, Emerald Coast Equality, and the Mental Health Taskforce of Northwest Florida reflect his commitment to building inclusive and supportive environments for all community members.

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Donate to the Center for Civic Engagement at this link.

In this episode, we talk with Anna Muessig, director of Gehl's Cities Team.

Gehl is a global urban design and architecture firm with locations in Copenhagen, New York and San Francisco. The firm recently partnered with the city of Pensacola to create the new 10-year strategic plan, "Strive to Thrive: Pensacola 2035".

Now that the plan is complete, what comes next?

We chat with Anna about how communities can benefit from a strategic plan, balancing data with public input and how average citizens can be a part of the plan's implementation over the next decade.

Check out the full 10-year strategic plan at this link.

Learn more about Gehl at this link.

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On this episode of CivicCast, we chat with our upcoming CivicCon speaker, Tom Dahlborg.

Tom Dahlborg is an internationally recognized speaker and writer focusing on stopping bullying, amplifying positive childhood experiences, and bringing “love in action” to all we do.

Tom’s multiple award-winning book, The Big Kid and Basketball … and the lessons he taught his Father and Coach, focusing on bullying and ACES and PCES, has led to significant youth sport and school system improvements and improved child experience and well-being.

In the episode, he shares some of the biggest misconceptions about bullying, his history with bullying education and what we can all do to stop bullying together.

Tom Dahlborg will be speaking at the Wesley Abbey Building of First United Methodist Church on Monday, October 28, from 6:00 - 7:30 p.m. Wesley Abbey is the white building on the corner of Wright and Palafox. Register for free at this link.

He will also be hosting a workshop the following morning in the downstairs training room of Maritime Place (350 W Cedar Street) on Tuesday, October 29 7:30 a.m. - 9:00 a.m. Please RSVP for this workshop by emailing Eduardo Lara at elara@civicconversations.org.