As a followup to the Jan. 26 story about attending WEAN’s daylong session on “Finding Your Voice Civic Workshop,” five of its participants, including me, spoke Feb. 3 at the Island County Board of Commissioner’s (BOCC) meeting. WEAN is an acronym for Whidbey Island Environmental Network, which is tasked with “protecting ecosystems on Whidbey, Camano, and beyond through civic education, policy advocacy and litigation.”
Had it not been for the workshop, I would not have learned the tools by which to stand up and speak at a public meeting. What I learned from WEAN’s Exec. Director Marnie Jackson and Engagement Director Amanda Bullis was how to speak to a point in which I had a personal interest. We wrote up a draft speech–to be delivered within 3 minutes–practiced with one another, and rehearsed again the following week in a Zoom meeting.
You see, I’ve long been terrified of public speaking, though I’ve written close to 3,000 stories as a newspaper reporter/blogger since the early 1980s, many of them involving reporting on local government meetings.
By finding my civic voice and commenting on Island County’s proposed Comprehensive Plan, I spoke about including protection of wildlife when driving Island County roads, citing that Island County has one of the highest deer/vehicle collisions in WA state.
Our public comments preceded the BOCC public hearing voting to reduce speeds on Island County roads to 45 mph. During the next 30 days all 50 mph signs will be removed and replaced with signs stating 45 mph. Existing speed signs below 45 mph will remain in place. Speeds on SR 525 and SR20 remain unchanged as they are regulated by WSDOT. Learn more by visiting this link for an Island County Speed Limit Study.
Meanwhile, Marnie Jackson, WEAN’s executive director, just published this in today’s email. She supports the power of community engagement:
“Your voices—our voices—matter.
“We often talk about participation in terms of environmental and land use decision-making, but the skills we develop in such planning can extend to emergency response. Minneapolis—nominated this week by The Nation for a Nobel Peace Prize, in a first for a city— has shown us the moral power that local involvement can wield. Their use of nonviolent resistance to shield neighbors from federal overreach is a testament to what happens when a community refuses to be a bystander to its own story. A truly engaged community is a safer community; when we know how to speak to our local leaders and look out for one another, we strengthen the systems and practices that protect us all.
“Don’t miss your chance to speak up during Comprehensive Planning. The deadline for public comment on these drafts is February 9. Find one or more things that you love, that concern you, or that you wish were included and share here.”
I am a better person, having learned through WEAN, how to speak up. I invite This is Whidbey’s readers to take a step and engage.