The TPB trained community leaders at CLI 17 across three nights. Community leaders from across the region gathered to learn about the transportation planning process and how they can become involved in the decision-making process within their communities and across the region.

Representing communities from across the region, participants learned about the TPB and transportation planning, got to know people from different parts of the region and with different interests, and got to play some fun educational games. 

On the first day of CLI, community leaders had to play the role of agency staff and workfix traffic problems and account for future growth. (TPB)

Each session included presentations and interactive discussions or games. The idea was to help community leaders learn about transportation planning in our region and to put themselves in other people’s shoes, whether agency staff working to fix traffic problems and account for future growth or imagining a future with a million more people and a million more jobs. Where should they go? How can we connect them? How can we pay for it?

CLI participants imagine future jobs and housing in the region and what the transportation system should look like in the future. (TPB)

For the map game, participants got to imagine our region growing. They chose where to put jobs and housing and then how to connect all those people and jobs. Here’s the spoiler, after they imagined their utopian transportation system, reality set in and each group had to figure out how to pay for everything.

Another group of CLI participants decides what our region's future transportation should look like. (TPB)

These games gave participants a new perspective into how complex it is to make decisions for the region’s transportation system. While it allowed them to think big, it also provided a dose of reality to rethink their big ideas.

For the final session, participants learned about the region’s long-range transportation plan, Visualize 2045. They also got a chance to think about their roles as community leaders and how they as leaders can work with their communities and decisionmakers to influence change.

Reflecting on the activities over the course of the institute Solomon Haile said that he was impressed with how much, "each exercise resonates with reality in our communities."

Overall participants said they enjoyed the program. It helped them “think regionally, and act locally.” It introduced them to people from different walks of life who represent different parts of the region and exposed them to a diversity of people and ideas. 

If you’re interested in learning more about the CLI visit: mwcog.org/cli

We will be recruiting for another session and look forward to meeting more community leaders soon.