People Power Meet 'n' Greet

People Power will introduce its new director, Amelia Conlen, with a meet-up next Wednesday, August 1st at the Santa Cruz Mountain Brewery from 5:30-7:30pm. To bike to the event with Amelia, meet at 5pm at the People Power office, 703 Pacific Ave.

 Amelia holds a degree in urban planning from the University of Washington, with a focus on bike and pedestrian planning and community development. She comes to People Power most recently from local nonprofit Ecology Action, where she worked on a variety of outreach programs including Bike to Work Day, and has had success organizing Seattle community groups around urban agriculture issues. Amelia has spent time studying and biking in Seattle, Portland and the Netherlands, and seeks to bring those experiences to improving conditions for all cyclists and pedestrians in Santa Cruz.

 According to outgoing director Micah Posner, “We are very lucky to have the opportunity to work with Amelia. Her intelligence and fresh perspective coupled with her dedication to our shared values will enable People Power to go to the next level.”

 "Amelia's unique academic and real life experience working in great bike cities such as Portland and Amsterdam will serve People Power and Santa Cruz as she leads the ongoing effort to make our community safer, more convenient and more enjoyable for those choosing to ride a bicycle," states Piet Canin of Ecology Action.

 Cyclists who can’t make the event are still more than welcome to bring their visions and concerns to the new director. “Santa Cruz is already a great bike town, and we have the opportunity to make it even better and encourage new groups of cyclists. I’d love to hear from as many folks as possible what they love about biking here and where the challenges are,” says Amelia.