Thursday, January 21, 2010

Connect the dots for effective change ...

"A new study has identified a sea of parking lots and vacant space in Long Island’s downtowns, land whose development could bring about the downtown renaissance many locals and politicians have been asking for.

The Long Island Index 2010, a nearly 40-page report by the Regional Plan Association released Thursday, identified 8,300 acres within a half mile of downtown centers as ripe for redevelopment, including more than 4,000 acres of parking lots."

Another potentially useful study in a sea of potentially useful studies divorced from one another.

Until and unless Long Island commits to a dynamic, flexible uniform method of data collection and analysis (common language project) it will be very difficult to reach a consensus on anything of sustainable value.

No one group has all the answers. We handicap ourselves by not working collaboratively and by not reaching out effectively to all Long Island residents.

There is still too much of the "protecting my own turf" mentality from organizations and entities of all types.

There is a basic lack of trust in the populous which can only be overcome by approaching the problem differently. "One Long Island" is a suggested method of doing so.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Change in the environment ...

"Time and time again, New Yorkers have demonstrated the ability to rebuild and renew - that is the promise of the Empire State. New Yorkers have recovered from economic crises and rebuilt after disasters both natural and man made. Every time our capacity for hope has been questioned, every time our faith has been tested, every time we have approached a wall that seemed too high to scale, we have proven that our fight knows no bounds. New York will rebound again."
"To solve these problems in these times will require sustained effort, seriousness of purpose, and the ability to build a coalition for change."

Fixing the problems of New York State is not and should not be the burden of one person.

While it is traditionally thought, and in some ways true, that we elect individuals to "lead" us to a better and more productive society, one person will never have the ability required to effect positive sustainable change.

What one person can do is give his or her constituents the tools necessary to create a dynamic collaborative society.

What one person can do is reach beyond the rhetoric and incorporate ideas and concepts from all sources in order to "recreate" New York.

What one person can do is challenge his or her constituents to be better and work harder for the common good.

What one person can do is create an environment of trust through verifiable information.

This does not require the accumulation of "power" by one person or a small group to complete but rather the "dissemination" of power directly to the residents of New York.

It is an "environmental" change based upon a fundamental rethinking of how we govern ourselves.

"One Long Island" is an attempt to create an environment for dynamic, collaborative, fundamental change.