The Power of Persistence Barb Olsen Browne DPPA president Keynote speech - Living Green Conference - Feb. 17 2001 Barb Olsen Browne gave the following keynote speech at the 9th annual Living Green conference at the Peace Church in Duluth. It was very well received. Hello! And thank you to each one of you for coming, all of you who have bypassed the allure of a good book and the sofa on this Saturday-or perhaps the charm of our magnificent outdoors. When Jan Conley asked me to be the keynote speaker at this year's Living Green conference, she suggested I talk a little about the volunteer organization of which I am President, the Duluth Public-Policy Alliance. Jan mentioned that DPPA's involvement in environmentally-related issues and what DPPA has found to be effective strategies might be of particular interest to this group. I told her that Persistence was the most powerful strategy I'd encountered so far. And it's on the power of persistence that I'd like to focus today-whether it be persistence in helping good people run for city office. Persistence in preserving the old-growth forest at Spirit Mountain. Persistence in speaking out for a Comprehensive Plan that truly reflects what we in Duluth want our city to be. Jan also stressed that I should make sure to include something about Butch the Couch Dog, the dog who on occasion makes his way into my Reader newspaper column. I do a twice-monthly column in the Duluth alternative newspaper, the Reader Weekly, covering our Duluth City Council, and it's sometimes along with tales of Butch the Couch Dog that I weave the City Council stories. So, if it is in Butch that you are indeed most interested today, I do promise to squeeze in an update on Butch. For now, let me assure you that Butch is hearty and hale and probably at this very moment taking care of some highly demanding nap duties on my living room couch. (Duluth Public-Policy Alliance) Well, anyway-I look to the summer of 1999 when I consider how the Duluth Public-Policy Alliance got started. That's when 2nd District City Councilor Greg Gilbert walked into the City Clerk's office and filed to run for Mayor against two-time incumbent Gary Doty. Until Greg's decision to run, no truly viable candidate had come forward, and so Mayor Doty's reelection had been a foregone conclusion. Though many people throughout Duluth had voiced discontent with the Doty administration-on such issues as the DesMoines, Opus, and Bayfront-it seemed almost as if we Duluthians were sometimes dulled into a kind of political submission. By a sense that no one was listening to us anyway. By the exhausting realization that no matter how many battles we fought, more of the same just would just keep cropping up. But as a volunteer in the Gilbert for Mayor campaign, over that summer and fall I watched enthusiasm surge for the hope of a new future in city government. Week after week at the Campaign Phone Bank, phone volunteers listened as voters talked to them about issues that were at the heart of the Gilbert for Mayor Campaign: preserving Duluth's urban forests, creating living-wage jobs, developing not at the expense of our environment and our history but in concert with it, bringing a sense of fairness and openness to our city government in place of the stifling atmosphere of never-question-never-disagree. It was exciting to see how many people across the city shared these ideals, and as we continued knocking on doors and planting yard signs, the optimism and the sense of a new voice grew. It was gratifying as well to see that no matter how long the hours or how great the stress, Greg was kind and respectful and appreciative toward everyone on the campaign. And a man of humor as well. I remember one Sunday when, after Greg's own church service was over, he and I went over to St. Mark's African American church to attend their service and talk with Reverend Foy about some of the concerns of Duluth's black community. So we were at St. Mark's for a few hours as well, and when we finally left St. Mark's and headed out to deliver some yard signs, Greg looked at his watch and grinned. And said, "I've just spent 6 1/2 hours in church today. No one can say I don't want this job." As you might recall, Greg Gilbert captured an impressive percentage of the votes on that election night in 1999-but not enough votes to win. Perhaps you've had the experience of losing a political campaign-if so, you'll know that there's little that can rival the dismay. The nonstop exhaustion of phone calls and fund-raisers and literature dropping suddenly come to a halt, and there you stand- probably at some Election Night party, maybe having downed one too many glasses of wine-and staring this huge loss in the face… though of course that loss was tempered that year by the fact that although Greg Gilbert had lost, some great City Council candidates had won. About a week after the election, we on the campaign organized a Gilbert for Mayor post-election potluck, and upwards of a hundred of us attended. We talked about what a shame it was that after all of our efforts to come together we would now lose touch-and by the same token, lose ground on the many issues that the Greg Gilbert campaign had brought to the political debate. And we felt badly to think that our newly formed friendships would likely melt away. Someone in the crowd mentioned the idea of keeping our group together, if for no other reason than to have our forces in place for the next local election, in the fall of 2001. We chewed and drank, and cogitated on this, and then went home. But the idea held, and a few of us began collecting the phone numbers and email addresses of those who were interested in staying together as an organization. We came up with a name that implied what we were about-a group that didn't focus on one particular issue but instead focused on public policy-that is, how things get decided in our city. For example, who gets to decide whether we continue to plunk landfills only in the western part of our city. Who gets to decide whether we restore the grandeur of Skyline Parkway or allow it to continue to crumble while we shovel our money into new projects. Who gets to decide whether we put more of our energies into supporting our locally owned and smaller businesses, like Renegade Theater for example, or solely into drawing the big-box chains, like Office Depot. In our organization's name, we also included the word "Alliance," since our aim was to be allied with groups across the city. We established a monthly newsletter, created an email talk group, and began meeting regularly. We hosted a Campaign Training Seminar to help our members learn how to run for local political office. We have sent hundreds of emails and letters to City Councilors, written letters to the editor, and created Point of View opinion pieces for the local newspapers. We've forced ourselves to overcome nerves and learn how to speak before the Duluth City Council in the starchy City Council Chambers. Most every volunteer organization, as you likely know, is peopled by individuals who are too busy. Will Rhodes, DPPA's Vice President, is also the President of Northeastern Minnesotans for Wilderness. Terry Brown, DPPA's Secretary/Treasurer, is one of the founders of the West Skyline Planning and Preservation Alliance, and was also a plaintiff in the Spirit Mountain Lawsuit. Our other Board members-Margaret Ann Neuman, Iver Bogen, Bill Hardesty, and Irene Ferrario-all pursue many other civic activities. Yet they persist in giving generously of their time, in the belief that what they've done has already made a difference-and will continue to do so. As you likely also know, most every volunteer organization has one individual who for better or worse acts as the glue that holds the group together. In the case of the Duluth Public-Policy Alliance, that person is myself-and for now they're stuck with me as President because I'm willing to do the work. I actually think this kind of work is fun, in fact, and so our members let me have my fun. Of course, civic involvement at this level isn't all fun- and I'm sure you know that as well. In my case, there are the days when I can't face reading one more email, when my kids complain that I'm neglecting them-and no matter how much I tell myself I'm being a good role model of civic activism for them, I know there's a kernel of truth in their complaint. There are the days when I race feverishly from one thing to the next to the next and still end up at night more behind than when I started, and I drop into bed drained and discouraged. I suspect you all know precisely what I'm talking about. Let me assure you, I can feel just as sorry for myself as the best of them. But, like the person who stubs her toe, I've begun to see that the discomfort will pass if I can just wait it out. And I keep waiting it out because I can't help noticing how reliably persistence pays off. Perhaps someday we can open a rest home for worn-out civic activists. What have been the victories? When have we in DPPA seen the payoff from our persistence? A few examples come to mind: At the end of 1999, DPPA members made phone calls, sent emails, wrote letters, and called in to the local talk- radio shows to urge the City Council to use an open and fair process-after the newly elected Councilors were seated and not when the lame-duck Council was still in power--to select a replacement for departing City Councilor Dale Swapinski. The City Council did vote to wait, and they eventually chose Gary Eckenberg as 4th District City Councilor. They made a good choice. I would venture to guess that Councilor Eckenberg is one of the most thoughtful and principled people on the Council-not to mention, one of the more humorous-and his voice has undoubtedly contributed to the positive direction the Council has taken over the past year. Last year, DPPA also urged the City Council to form a Citizens' Advisory Committee for the Comprehensive Plan-or "CAC" for short-so that citizen volunteers could track how the process of creating the new Comprehensive Plan was going-and keep the City Council informed. The Council did vote to create a citizens' committee, and many DPPA members applied for it. Of the 13 people eventually appointed to the Citizens' Advisory Committee for the Comprehensive Plan, 7 were DPPA members. DPPA members have pitched in on a number of other fronts in Duluth-among them: The never-ending McQuade boat launch issue. The Bayfront. The preservation of Duluth's historic Granitoid streets. The Armory. The apartment-complex proposals in the Chester Park neighborhood. Greg Gilbert's land-trust idea for buying privately-held land to retain as public green space. The preservation of West Skyline Parkway. The saving of the old-growth forest at Spirit Mountain. Other Stories of Persistence But these are newer stories. Over the years in Duluth, persistence has played a role many times over. It took many years and much persistence, but Representative Willard Munger was instrumental in creating the Western Lake Superior Sanitary District and setting up other initiatives that helped improve the quality of the Saint Louis River. It's important to elect state legislators who care about the environment, and it's important for green-thinking people to run for political office. Why is it so hard to recruit good people to politics? Your guess is as good as mine. Perhaps it's because the idea of being involved in civic affairs hasn't traditionally been part of our daily lives or our education. Perhaps it's because we've allowed politics to be defined as something that only the egotistical and the dishonest get involved in, instead of an opportunity for well-meaning and generous people to serve. Maybe it's because we're all so busy. It could be because so many of us just don't see ourselves as "leaders," so we're intimidated. But maybe it's time to rethink what we call a "leader." To be an effective leader, is it necessary to have mastered the intricacies of tax- increment-financing and be ever-confident in all situations? Or is it sufficient simply to be interested enough and generous enough to give of one's time? A friend who was considering a run for City Council told me that she was discussing her idea with another friend and told him how the idea intimidated her. "Why me?" she asked him. "Why would anyone vote for me for City Council?" To which this fellow replied, "Don't ask yourself 'Why me?' Ask yourself, 'Why not me?'" From a woman's standpoint, the barriers can seem even heftier-perhaps as evidenced by the fact that out of nine Duluth City Councilors, only 2 are women-and one of those 2 is not planning to run for re-election this fall. I recently sat with a friend who was considering running for City Council, and we were making a list of "influential people" in Duluth with whom he should speak to potentially gain support. As I looked at the names on that piece of paper, I realized that nearly all of them were men. Now, don't get me wrong-I am a very great fan of men. But, nearly every person in a position of power on that list was a male. And I wondered how I would feel if I were the one who would have to meet with one after another of those people on the list and try to find some way to connect with them, knowing that we likely valued different things and even spoke a slightly different language. The prospect was daunting. Yet, there seems to be no other way around it than for women to simply take the leap-and worry about the details later. After all, if not now, when? But, I digress… Another example of persistence and citizen participation-the volunteer St. Louis River Citizen Action Committee. They came together in 1989 to prepare a Remedial Action Plan for the river and then stayed together to form a non-profit organization. Currently, they're working on a habitat plan for the river. Duluth now has an effective Environmental Advisory Council, or EAC. The EAC would not exist, however, if not for the persistence of people like Jamie Harvie, who put on the pressure to create it. It was the EAC that introduced an ordinance to prohibit the sale of mercury thermometers in Duluth, which the City Council passed last year. And in 1999, the EAC initiated the Natural Resources Inventory to gather data about green spaces in Duluth-those lovely stretches of urban forest that grace our city and that many of us mistakenly think are all public and well-protected. As a result of this work, Mayor Doty in his recent State of the City address announced an initiative to work with the Nature Conservancy to set up a legal framework for better protecting our city's natural areas like Magney-Snively Park. Perhaps one of the best things the EAC has done was to develop a list of sustainability principles for Duluth- and get the City Council to adopt those principles. Now we just need to hold councilors and other decision-makers to these principles. You'll get a DPPA handout shortly, and on it you'll find this list of principles of sustainability. Spirit Mountain No discussion of the power of persistence in this town would be complete without including the controversy over the proposed Spirit Mountain golf course. "Mountain" is the operative word here because it is only because of the mountain of persistence on the part of some dedicated people that several hundred acres of old-growth northern hardwood forest still stand, that many acres of forested wetlands remain undisturbed, that Stewart Creek and its healthy population of Brook Trout has not been impacted, that Duluth has not lost an extensive piece of green space on the western hillside. Minnesota author Carol Bly's words speak of wondrous places like Spirit Mountain-and of the sentiments of those who have protected it: Carol wrote: "Real love of a place manifests itself not in moony sentiments about laughing loons or moody FOGS wafting up from morning lakes ... but in righteous anger against the forces that would destroy such places and in the savvy engagement of their enemies." What a long and convoluted saga the whole Spirit Mountain golf course controversy is, having dragged on now for almost 30 years. It began in 1975, when a golf course was added to the Spirit Mountain Master Plan. In recent history, it was in 1996 that golf course developer Kent Oliver presented his proposal to the Mayor-appointed Spirit Mountain Board. Perhaps if the Spirit Mt. Board had included people with a background in natural resource management, or eco-tourism, or science, they might have been willing to consider other ways in which to use the Spirit Mountain forest. Early in 1997, The Duluth Tree Commission was the first public body to speak out against the golf course proposal, and from that point on, the public has persisted in dogging this issue at every step, though they have not always been welcomed with tea and cookies. The first time the Tree Commission spoke to the Planning Commission, for example, Planning Commissioner Tom Schefchik told them, "this is none of your damned business." It was around this time that a professional forester looked at the area and made clear for the first time that the area was home to a high-quality old-growth forest. In December of 1997, the lease agreement between the developer and the Spirit Mountain Authority was presented to the City Council, and at midnight that lame- duck Council voted 6-3 to approve the lease agreement. Over the years, there has been one public hearing after another-about the Spirit Mountain Master Plan, about accepting changes to the Spirit Mountain Master Plan, about whether an Environmental Impact Statement was required for the proposed golf course project. At each and every one of these hearings, those speaking against the golf course vastly outnumbered those speaking in favor of it. And they came with hard environmental evidence in hand. Or, in the case of that most-excellent 5th District City Councilor Russ Stover, who lives adjacent to Spirit Mountain, they came with first-hand experience of what effect this development would have on their neighborhoods, on their wells, on the children who play at Stewart Creek. Those speaking in favor of the golf course were primarily the developers themselves and the Duluth Chamber of Commerce, and unlike the citizen speakers who were given 3 minutes each, the golf course promoters were given almost unlimited time-sometimes hours--to present their case. There was the occasional stray citizen speaking in favor of the golf course; their contribution was usually something along the lines of, "If this gold course is built, that'll give me a chance to get out there and see a few of those trees I've been hearing so much about." After each and every one of those public hearings, the body holding the hearing voted to approve the golf course plan. As one person who attended many of these sessions phrased it, "The message to the public was this: 'We have accepted your comments, and now we'll ignore them. Thank you.'" You are likely aware of who it was that last year decided- after overwhelming public and even state-government testimony to the contrary-that an Environmental Impact Statement was not needed for the proposed Spirit Mountain Golf Course project. That was, of course, the Duluth Planning Commission. You are perhaps also aware that the members of this Commission are appointed by the mayor and that they represent primarily business interests. Not, of course, that there's anything wrong with business, per se. We have many excellent business people right here in this room. But it's a matter of balance. Not one of the Planning Commission members has a background in city planning. Not one represents labor, education, or an environmental group. So why, you might ask, are they deciding the fate of Spirit Mountain? The answer lies in the fact that Duluth has a Strong-Mayor- Weak-Council system, and by City Charter, the Mayor and his Administration get to appoint the people on every board and commission in Duluth. It's true that the City Council gets to "interview" these appointees and vote on their appointment, but… well, perhaps you'd like to pick up a copy of this week's Reader and take a look at my column- there's a stack of Readers _____. You'll see what I mean when I say in there that the City Council "interviewing" these people is akin to a person "interviewing" an oncoming freight train. You know what's coming, so why bother? What can be done? For one thing, our City Councilors need staff. Unlike in many, many cities, our City Councilors have to do everything themselves, and that's an exhausting and nearly impossible task. In your travels, you might have met DPPA member Roger Reinert-he's here today, in fact, and is doing a symposium on civic organizing that you might want to catch. Roger has done some impressive research on what other cities in Minnesota offer their City Councilors in support, and it doesn't make Duluth look too good. For another thing, we all need to apply for positions on Duluth's boards and commissions and pressure the mayor to appoint people with a broader range of expertise. To the handout I'll be passing out, I've attached a copy of the boards and commissions application, as a little bit of encouragement to everyone. I suspect that we might be fighting these battles forever until we get out in front of the game and consider the possibility of changing our City Charter so that we have a Stronger City Council and let each City Councilor, for example, pick one member of each commission. We've had the Strong mayor system since the 1950s, and as we move toward a new Comprehensive Plan and a new Administration with the mayoral election in 2003, perhaps this is the perfect time for a change. We can strive to create an atmosphere in which unwise projects never get proposed-because, once a development is proposed, it's difficult to stop. We need to be one step ahead... We need to get better people on the Planning Commission before too much is developed... protect the forest before someone asks if they can have a piece of it... designate Skyline Parkway as a local heritage landmark before it is beyond repair. Despite all of this heartache and frustration-through lost lawsuits and lost sleep-citizens have persisted to an inspiring degree on the Spirit Mountain issue. They have learned that, even though it might appear to be "too late" to stop or change a bad project, it is important never to accept that it is a "done deal." They have taken to heart that empowering truth that you're only assured of failure if you don't try. The Spirit Mountain developers would still have significant hurdles to leap if this project were to go forward, such as state, federal, and local permits. The City Council must also review work permits for the project. If Councilors were not satisfied that the project met environmental standards, permits could be denied. As a recent editorial stated, "Although many agencies will be involved, it is the members of the Duluth City Council and the Spirit Mountain Authority who bear the final responsibility for ensuring that the publicly owned natural resources at Spirit Mountain are protected. They all have the power to just say 'no.'" The person from whom I gain great inspiration in the power of persistence is the person who has been with the Spirit Mountain fight for years now and stands firm in it today. She's going to be really steamed with me for mentioning her, but I'm going to do it anyway. I'm speaking about Nancy Nelson-she's here today. Nancy has fought to protect the Spirit Mountain forest as a member of the Tree Commission, as a speaker at all the public hearings, and as a plaintiff in the Spirit Mountain lawsuit, which was lost, despite the fine work of Duluth attorney Anne Roeser. Nancy Nelson has given up income opportunities, vast amounts of time, and peace of mind, with hardly ever a complaint. I asked her once how she could manage to keep up the fight after all this time. Here's what she wrote to me in an email: "Why do I keep fighting? The forest at Spirit Mt. is part of the most significant natural area in the city. It is worth fighting for. If it is cut down it can NEVER EVER be replaced. When I was a graduate student at UMD, I got an "A" in every class but one, metamorphic petrology. I did not get an "A" in that class because on the final exam I didn't do quite well enough... The professor told me that I was within a gnat's eyelash of an "A." At the beginning of the next quarter, he gave the class the opportunity to take the exam over again. One friend named Steve took advantage of this, but I did not. I felt I did not have the energy to study the material again. Steve got an "A" in the class. I got a B. I learned a valuable lesson in persistence from this experience, and I translate that lesson to my efforts on behalf of Spirit Mountain: I suspect that the golf course developers are within a gnat's eyelash of giving up. And I will not sacrifice the forest because I don't have the energy for one more fight." I want to extend my public thanks to Nancy Nelson for her courage and her persistence. The Reader I want to give my thanks as well to Duluth's two alternative newspapers, the Reader and the Ripsaw, for their persistence in bringing into the light many of the most challenging issues facing our city. Without them, many of these stories would never be told. Though I value both newspapers, I confess to a particular fondness for the Reader, since I write a twice-monthly column for them. Which brings us, of course, to Butch the Couch Dog. If you pick up a copy of the Reader here today-or perhaps you've already seen this week's issue-you'll see that Butch's picture, and not mine, accompanies this column. I've done this, in part, because a number of people have asked me whether Butch the Couch Dog really exists-or whether he is simply a fictional character. I regret to inform you… that… Butch the Couch Dog does indeed exist. And most everything I wear has the dog hairs on it to prove it. As I explain in this latest column, Butch has a new companion-a Puppy, who, as puppies are wont to do, has chewed to varying degrees many of my valued possessions. Butch the Couch Dog, while on the surface appearing innocent in this matter, seems to have decided that his role is to point out to the Puppy what she should chew. The items he has suggested to her fall primarily in the category of Things That Are In The Way of Butch's Enjoyment Of The Couch. A book on the couch, for example, Butch the Couch dog soon nudges to the floor, where the Puppy gnaws it back into the pulp from whence it came. A case for my eyeglasses has suffered a similar fate. A wallet. A set of headphones. Until, finally, the couch is clear of any obstacles, the Puppy is occupied and thus not focused on snagging Butch's tale, and Butch the Couch Dog can lounge without discomfort of any kind. This, in itself, can be said to be an example of the power of persistence. Close As I close-and as some handouts from Duluth Public-Policy Alliance come your way-I'd like to include part of a quote from Martin Luther King Jr.'s elegant and powerful piece, "Letter from a Birmingham Jail." In this letter, King asks the religious leaders of the south why they have been so reluctant to step forward and stand by their black brothers and sisters in the struggle for equality and justice. And he urged them to cast aside the notion that the time just wasn't quite right for equal rights. Or that time itself, simply by passing, would somehow cure all ills. Here are King's words: "Human progress never rolls in on wheels of inevitability. It comes through tireless efforts and persistent work…. and without this hard work time itself becomes an ally of the forces of social stagnation. We must use time creatively- and forever realize that the time is always ripe to do right." Thank you very much for having me. I appreciate the privilege. These articles are retained on the web for historical interest and do not necessarily reflect the views or goals of DPPA today.

[Index] [Previous article] [Next article]