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To shine the spotlight on the progress and victories of the bicycle and pedestrian advocacy movement, the Alliance for Biking & Walking is pleased to announce its 2011 Advocacy Award winners. Since 2009, the Alliance has solicited public nominations and recognized the individuals, organizations and business leaders who are propelling our People Powered Movement. This year, we honor the following winners from across North America.

Advocacy Organization of the Year- Bike Pittsburgh

On its face, Pittsburgh is a tough place to ride a bicycle. The streets are steep and twisting, and the winters are long and brutal. But bicycle mode share is up and the Steel City is charged up with new enthusiasm for active transportation. Why? Bike Pittsburgh. The advocates at BikePGH have been working hand-in-hand with government officials to get new infrastructure on the ground, partnered with the local companies to get the business community on board and created innovative programs, like Car Free Fridays, that are getting more people on bicycles. But BikePGH excels at more than the nuts and bolts of basic organizing. The members of their small staff are the best kind of ambassadors for the movement: They’re friendly, energetic and welcoming. The work and attitude of BikePGH are making Pittsburgh a mighty appealing place to ride… despite the tough terrain.

Advocate of the Year: Jackie Douglas, LivableStreets (Boston)

This award goes to an individual who has shown tireless commitment to promoting bicycling and walking in his or her community and serves as a role model for other advocates across North America. In 2010, there was no advocate more tireless or worthy of modeling than Jackie Douglas from LivableStreets in Boston. Having risen from the ranks of intern, Douglas never rests as executive director, working to improve conditions for cyclists and pedestrians; increase membership for the organization, bring in grant funding for its programming and act as the face of LivableStreets at near-daily public meetings, volunteer gatherings and public speaking events. For Douglas, working overtime is the norm and that tireless dedication shows in the sophistication and success of LivableStreets campaigns, including a Better Bridges initiative that’s tackling the tough task of getting better provisions for bicyclists and pedestrians on the region’s river crossings. Despite her busy schedule, Douglas is generous with her time, frequently sharing her experiences and insights with other advocacy leaders in Advocacy Advance reports and Alliance Mutual Aid Calls.

Business Advocate of the Year: New Belgium Brewing Company

In 2010 alone, New Belgium Brewing Company raised more than $330,000 for bicycle advocacy organizations with a nationwide event that blew the minds of more than 70,000 residents in 13 different cities. The Tour de Fat festival is an ingenious way to celebrate and elevate bicycle culture - and give back to the bike-ped movement. In each Tour city, New Belgium selected area nonprofits to receive the proceeds from the beer sales, funneling thousands of critical dollars into local advocacy efforts to improve biking and walking. In addition to the Tour de Fat, New Belgium Brewing promotes biking to the brewery for employees and visitors; provides a free bike to each employee upon their first anniversary; provides funding to many bicycling-related non-profits through its Community Grants program and sponsors dozens of bicycling events around the country.

Winning Campaign of the Year: Michigan Complete Streets

At the start of 2010, Michigan had just one local complete streets ordinance. By the end of the year, there were more than 20 communities with complete streets policies and the Governor had signed a new statewide complete streets law. That incredible and rapid transformation was sparked and spurred by advocates from the League of Michigan Bicyclists, who helped to create a powerful Michigan Complete Streets Coalition with more than 100 diverse member organizations. That powerful, unified voice led to the passage of a statewide complete streets bill, the adoption of policies in a number of communities and a new priority within the state Department of Transportation to plan streets that safely accommodate bicyclists and pedestrians. Thanks in large part to this Winning Campaign, the state that spent the last century focused on all things automotive is now leading the way in the Great Lakes region.

Best Practices Award: Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition

The Best Practices Award goes to an organization that serves as a model for other bicycle and pedestrian advocacy organizations. In 2010, countless individuals and a number of advocacy organizations drew information and inspiration from the Los Angeles County Bicycle Coalition. The LACBC’s City of Lights initiative elevated the conversation about “invisible cyclists” - men and women who ride bicycles but whose voices aren’t heard and needs aren’t acknowledged because of language or economic barriers. Through thoughtful outreach and, more importantly, true collaboration, the LACBC is changing the dialogue among city officials about urban planning, bringing new cyclists into the movement and, expanding the scope of the bike-ped movement to address critical issues of social and economic justice.

Susie Stephens Joyful Enthusiasm Award: Stephanie Routh, Willamette Pedestrian Coalition

The Susie Stephens Joyful Enthusiasm Award commemorates Alliance co-founder, Susie Stephens, commemorating her passion for biking and walking as fun and economical means of transportation and her commitment to creating a safe environment for all street users. This year we honor Stephanie Routh, executive director of the Willamette Pedestrian Coalition. In just two years, Routh has transformed the group from struggling-to-be-noticed to well-networked, in the news, and in demand for participation in regional active transportation forums. Stephanie has embraced this role with great enthusiasm, increasing the membership and volunteer base, building bridges to diverse communities and partnering with other active transportation organizations.

Innovation Award: Fairfax Advocates for Better Bicycling

The Innovation Award goes to an organization that’s pioneering or inventing new ways to promote biking and walking. In 2010, the Fairfax Advocates for Better Bicycling released a groundbreaking new resource: Guide to Reviewing Public Road Design and Bicycling Accommodations for Virginia Bicycling Advocates. The 28-page booklet simplifies and streamlines the confusing road design process with easy-to-follow flow charts, handy check lists and explanations that make sense to folks who don’t have a masters degree in urban planning. Almost immediately, FABB’s innovative guide was in high demand. Over the past six months, it has been widely distributed, well received by both advocates and transportation officials, and now FABB advocates are working on a template that other organizations can use to tailor the guide for their specific states and transportation jurisdictions.

This past September, Alliance President/CEO Jeff Miller attended the Tour de Fat in San Francisco — and he couldn’t stop talking about it for a week.

Lucky for us in Washington, DC, Jeff took plenty of photos showcasing the bike-centric festivities, giving us a glimpse of the fantastic event hosted by New Belgium Brewing Company. (Still, we were jealous!)

It’s no secret we love New Belgium. Right now we’re accepting applications for Strategic Planning Assistance, a service supported by a generous grant from the Colorado-based beer makers. But New Belgium doesn’t just support the Alliance. They spread their love of bicycling by supporting to plenty of our member organizations, as well. One of the ways they do it is through the annual Tour de Fat, a multi-city tour that combines music, theatrics and creative bicycle merriment for the benefit of local advocates.

Last month, New Belgium tallied the impact of the 2010 Tour de Fat. “The philanthropic traveling bike festival raised $331,428 for non-profit friends, which is up nearly 20 percent from 2009,” the company said in a press release. “The 2010 tour also saw record-shattering attendance with 70,250 cycling celebrants in 13 cities.”

The Tour raised tens of thousands of dollars for a number of Alliance members, including the Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin, Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota, Bicycle Alliance of Washington, Bicycle Transportation Alliance, Bike Fort Collins, Bike Denver, San Francisco Bicycle Coalition and San Diego County Bicycle Coalition. Just as important, though, the Tour gave advocates the chance to engage hundreds of residents — and potential new members — in their communities.

“We’d like to high five each person who supported our efforts, but since that’s a little tricky, we’d like to thank everyone for their tremendous support,” Bryan Simpson, New Belgium Brewing Spokes Model, said in the December release.

We, for one, would like to raise a glass to New Belgium for their incredible support of our People Powered Movement. And you better believe we’ll be filling that pint with Fat Tire.

Read more about New Belgium Brewing Company and their community grants for advocacy organizations. 

In 2010, funding from New Belgium Brewing Company allowed us to offer strategic planning assistance to four member organizations. In 2011, continued support from the generous, bike-loving, beer company will allow us to expand this offering to two more organizations.

The Whole System Strategic Planning approach brings together organization stakeholders to establish a shared, clear, and compelling vision - and guides those stakeholders to craft a set of specific actions to achieve that vision. The results are transformational: increased buy-in from the organization’s stakeholders; clearly defined and prioritized actions for moving forward; and an energized commitment to the organization’s future.

Just ask the folks at the Bicycle Alliance of Washington. The Seattle-based organization was among the groups selected for assistance during the competitive application process in 2010. Barbara Culp, the group’s executive director, says the BAW is already seeing improvements. “The Strategic Planning process has positively changed how we do business in the office, and the board of directors, staff and membership are eager for the planning summit this spring to help clarify and focus the organization to meet the ever-shifting bicycle advocacy movement,” she says.

Is your organization struggling because you lack a compelling or widely held vision? Are you looking for ways to increase your volunteers or membership? Do you want to engage new audiences in your work? Are you interested in revisiting your current strategy? If you answered “Yes” to any of those questions, your organization could be a winning candidate for strategic planning assistance. The service, valued at $5,000, is being offered at no cost, thanks to New Belgium’s support.

The Alliance will be accepting applications through January 31, 2011. Click here for more information and to download the application. For questions about or guidance with your application, contact Jeremy Grandstaff, Member Services Director, at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). 

For many, the 2010 National Bike Summit had a clear highlight. Ray LaHood, the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, didn’t just show up and give lip service to the assembled bicycle advocates. He literally jumped on a table, broadcasting in enthusiastic form his commitment to elevate biking and walking to equal status as the automobile. Not surprisingly, LaHood’s message — and theatrics — drew media headlines and made an impression in the halls of Congress.

Now you can broadcast your message to Congress in dramatic form, too — no table-leaping required.

The National Bike Summit was also the start of the PeopleForBikes.org campaign. The ingeniously simple idea came from the Bikes Belong Foundation, an organization funded by the bicycle industry to improve funding, infrastructure and policies related to biking. The reality: Social and political change are built on strength of numbers. The idea: Unite one million voices across America to show Congress there’s a big, broad, vocal constituency that cares about bicycling.

“Every day, millions of Americans ride for their health, for the environment, for their communities, and for the pure joy of bicycling,” the group’s president, Tim Blumenthal, said in a press release launching PeopleForBikes.org. “But until now, only a fraction of riders have stood up to help improve bicycling in America. PeopleForbikes.org is going to change all that. We’ll build on the expert work of existing bike advocacy groups – our partners – to develop a powerful movement with the clout and influence to get things done. That means promoting bike-riding on an individual level, but also sending a unified message to our elected leaders, the media, and the public that bicycling should have their full support.”

And here’s the beauty of the Bikes’ Belong campaign. It’s not complicated. To be part of this tidal wave of public opinion, you don’t even have to change out of your pajamas. You don’t need to travel to the nation’s capital. You don’t have to write a letter or buy a stamp. Just surf on over to the Web site. Give your name and email. Take the pledge.

That’s it.

Over the past six months, PeopleForBikes.org has built an army. Lance Armstrong signed the pledge and even sported the campaign’s decal on his bike during the Tour de France. The beer makers at New Belgium Brewing Company invited PeopleForBikes.org to join their popular Tour de Fat festivities in cities across the nation. Even beyond the bicycle world, marketing magazine Fast Company took a shining to the campaign, touting PFB’s “ingenious bike branding campaign that presents a refreshingly sunny view of life on two wheels.”

With more than 7 million media impressions, the PFB movement is building. It took the campaign more than four months to hit 50,000 signatures. But then, last week, this announcement hit my inbox: “PFB tops 100,000 pledges in support of bicycling!”

“Only a month ago, we were at 60,000 pledges,” Blumenthal wrote in the message. “We’ve nearly doubled in the last 30 days — that’s major momentum!”

Which begs the question: Are you for bikes? Can you spare 20 seconds for safer streets that accommodate bicyclists? Will you add your name to this Million Cyclist March?

It doesn’t matter if you ride a mountain bike or a city commuter; if you bomb down remote dirt trails or carefully navigate crowded urban streets; if you use your bicycle as your primary means of transportation or just dust it off for the weekend joy ride. Even if — no, especially if — you don’t ride a bike at all, because you don’t feel safe two-wheeling around your community, this campaign is for you.

Sign the pledge now.

Beer, bikes and offbeat films.

New Belgium Brewing Company has the good life all figured out.

The Colorado-based, eco-focused beer-maker is taking its Clips of Faith show on the road this summer and fall and helping a bunch of Alliance member organizations along the way.

The tour, which kicked off in Madison, Wisconsin, last week, showcases a variety of amateur film shorts, displaying the DIY creativity of New Belgium beer drinkers. From kayaking adventures to love affairs with bicycling, the mini-movies compliment the new, innovative suds from the makers of Fat Tire.

“The goal of the event is to introduce our guests to the creativity of our brewers, highlight awesome bike advocacy organizations, and keep working towards having one of the most sustainable events possible,” says New Belgium’s Christie Catania.

At each event, participants will kick back on their blankets and sip the popular brewer’s new line: Lips of Faith. And company reps hope folks arrive on two wheels. In fact, proceeds from the shows in many of the 14 cities are going to local bike-ped advocacy groups, like the Missouri Bicycle and Pedestrian Federation.

“Bike advocacy fundraising is definitely intentional,” says Meredith Giske, the tour’s event director. “From the inception of the brewery, bikes and sustainability have been a passion of ours. The brewery itself was conceived of on the seat of a bike, and the NBB culture is ripe with bike culture.”

“Bikes make people happy,” Giske adds. “They are better for the world. They give us sexier legs, slow us down, and make the air nicer to breath for everyone. So yes. We want to do all we can to further getting more people out of their cars and onto bikes. Bikes rule.”

Rock on, New Belgium.

Find an event near you.