This Week in MVP: Eco Conference!

Two of our Mobile Voice Project team members had a great time at the 2013 Southeastern Ecological Community Psychology Conference this weekend! Great time to give and take ideas with others doing community work. Thanks #se_eco_2013 !!

Photo(s) of the Week: "Have a seat?"

Many of our participants are also clients at The Healing Place of Wake County, and we love working with them! They often take a picture of the sign for the Healing Place as something that is really helpful to them in getting around town and other areas of their life. But they also often photograph the one uncovered bench at the bus stop nearest to the Healing Place as something that is a major barrier to them getting around town. Judging from the pictures below from one participant, what about this might pose a problem for these participants? How might this effect the rest of their day?

Photo(s) of the Week: "If the city takes care of its people..."

"If the city takes care of its people, then people will take care of it."

An MVP participant recently said these words to describe the need for bus shelters to be put in place and well maintained in Raleigh. From her view, if the city puts up nice shelters with a place to throw away trash, people will keep them clean. If not, then people will follow the city's example.

Participants often comment on the need for more shelters and on how much shelters in different parts of the city differ in quality and maintenance. See several of the different photographs just this one participant took of various shelters in Raleigh. How do they differ?

Photo of the Week: "All my Stuff"

"All of my stuff I have to carry and try to fit on a bus."

A common concern among our participants is trying to take all of their belongings with them on the buses. For participants without storage space, they must carry everything they own with them everywhere they go. Participants must make difficult decisions about what is worth carrying and what they must get rid of. They experience the stigma of carrying these possessions with them on the buses as well as the physical difficulty of crossing town carrying so much baggage. Buses are generally not equipped to accommodate passengers carrying luggage. See what this participant thought was still worth carrying around town? What would you keep? What would you be able to get rid of?

Photo of the Week: "Kind of Scary"

This participant used her photo to show that: "The way to the library is kind of scary sometimes due to no cross-walk there & lots of cars go by." How could we make Clark more pedestrian-friendly for easier access to the resources in Cameron Village?

Photo of the Week: "After dark"

Another striking participant photo to show how there are, "not enough street lamps on some less frequently visited bus stop areas ... after dark!" Safety after dark while riding transit or walking is a common concern of MVP participants. What more can be done to make riders and pedestrians safer after dark?

Photo of the Week: Can you find it?

Can you find the crosswalk signal in this picture? Hint: It's waaay back behind the Exxon sign on the left. One of our participants took this very illustrative photo of why this could make for a dangerous intersection for pedestrians. — at 624 St Mary's St Raleigh NC.