Prologue

The CEF International Best Practices Study Component

One component of the Fellowship is an international best practices trip—a week-long study in a foreign country. We are responsible for researching and selecting a topic focus and study location, and must engage in fundraising to cover their travel expenses.

In preparation for our international best practices study, we conducted extensive research on potential topics and locations and met with many community leaders in Northeast Ohio to discuss the region’s challenges and opportunities, as well as, model achievements abroad. After thorough evaluation of this information, we decided to travel to Duisburg and Stuttgart, Germany.

From April 18 - 25, 2009, we will travel to Duisburg and Stuttgart to study successful policies and practices in post-industrial urban infrastructure as it relates to quality of life. We will gain cultural perspective, insight and knowledge while studying these relevant issues and will share best practices and commit to engaging the Northeast Ohio community in action upon return.

Mission
The purpose of the 2009 International Best Practices Trip is to AUGMENT previous research, ADVANCE knowledge and invite the community to ACTION. The Cleveland Executive Fellows commit to sharing and personally engaging the community before, during and after their travels.

Goals

• Engage community stakeholders to gather specific recommendations about as we shape the scope and content of the trip.
• Meet with government officials and community leaders and observe the policies, practices and culture of Germany's sustainable transportation, streetscapes, greenspace, architecture, bikeways and other infrastructure.
• Communicate with the community via blogs, podcasts and teleconferences before and during our travels.
• Facilitate multiple discussions and actions upon return to creatively recommend incremental steps toward improving workforce quality of life of Northeast Ohioans as they interface with their urban environments.

Northeast Ohio Exploration
We will learn about specific challenges and objectives for post-industrial urban infrastructure, with an emphasis on transportation, use of public space, innovative developments and collaborative processes.

International Study Preparation
In preparation for our study in Germany, we met with many government officials and community leaders in Northeast Ohio to investigate local policies, procedures, issues, challenges, and successes related to sustainability, urban infrastructure, education, workforce development, and other relevant areas. Some of these leaders included:

• Justin Glanville, Project, Building Cleveland by Design
• John Mitterholzer, Senior Program Officer, The Gund Foundation
• Michael DeAloia, Senior Director of Business Development, Fit Technologies, Marshall Memorial Fellow
• Jorge Delgado, Director of International Relations, The Cleveland Foundation
• Andrew Watterson, Program Director, City of Cleveland, Office of Sustainability
• Maribeth Feke, Director of Programming and Planning, Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA).

Some of these individuals also provided us with pertinent information about Germany, its infrastructure, culture, successes, and challenges. During these meetings, we were encouraged to observe the use of space, transitions from pedestrian areas to non-pedestrian areas, the efficiency and organization of the public transit systems, and many other subject areas during their time abroad.

In addition to meeting with Cleveland area professionals, we conducted two regional trips: to Pittsburgh, PA, and Youngstown, OH. These trips were an opportunity to investigate nearby cities, their successes and challenges, and their relationship to the Greater Cleveland area. During the trip to Pittsburgh, we visited Manchester Bidwell and met with City Councilman William Peduto, Dr. Cliff Davidson of Carnegie Mellon University, Dr. Aurora Sharrard of Pittsburgh’s Green Building Alliance, and Paul O’Connell at the Pittsburgh Convention Center. During the trip to Youngstown, we met with Tony Paglia of the Youngstown Warren Regional Chamber of Commerce, James Cossler of the Youngstown Business Incubator, Margaret Murphy of Wick Neighbors, Sharlene Senediak of MCTA Workforce Development, and Youngstown Mayor Jay Williams.

After reviewing takeaways from meeting with these and other individuals, and conducting extensive research, we crafted our international study focus on successful policies and practices in sustainable urban infrastructure which improve the quality of life of urban residents and visitors.