Mark Fenton gave an inspiring and thought-provoking keynote address at our 2016 Bike Walk Summit on June 3, 2016 at CCSU in New Britain. He built a public-health argument for making our communities more bike- and walk-friendly and had some helpful tips for how our Connecticut communities can get there. 

He encouraged us to think about the three P's of Programs, Projects and Policies and how each of these can play a role in changing the safety and accessibility of our cities and towns. Read more from Mark about the three P's here (PDF).

Some core principals he shared:

• It's not really about building sidewalks and community gardens
• It's about building the CAPACITY and the POLICIES to create these everywhere
• It's never really about the money
• It's about the long-term VISION and the political and community WILL to make it a reality

A big thank you to Mark Fenton for providing inspiration AND concrete suggestions for how to make Connecticut a better place to bike and walk!
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Check out the full presentation PDF below and check out Mark's website for more. 

View the Fact Sheet - Complete Streets Benefit Public and Environmental Health created by the Active Transportation Alliance in 2012 here. 

Leadership for Healthy Communities (www.leadershipforhealthycommunities.org) is a national program designed to support local and state government leaders nationwide in their efforts to reduce childhood obesity through public policies that promote active living, healthy eating and access to healthy foods. It focuses, in particular, on policy efforts that can improve nutrition and increase physical activity among children at high risk for obesity.

Active Living by Design (www.activelivingbydesign.org) is a national program sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Public Health. The website contains useful statistics and case studies on efforts to promote physical activity via environmental changes.