Presenter Bio:
Anders Swanson is a multimedia artist and a lover of nature. For the last 15 years or so, he has dedicated his life to collaborating with people much smarter to advance sustainable transportation and placemaking. His skills include non-profit management, community organizing, treeplanting, bike mechanics, and design; he is very pleased that he still gets to do a little bit of all of those things in his current role of Executive Director of Winnipeg Trails. Over the years, he found an important niche thanks to a penchant for listening to youth, empathy for people in positions of power, a knack for communicating with the public and he likes to use mapping, design, and volunteerism to advance international, national and local policies that make us/the environment healthier and happier. As a longtime volunteer working at the grassroots and as a political advocate, he has been involved in many initiatives in his home of Winnipeg, Canada and across the globe. He is the past-chair of Canada’s national transportation cycling organization Vélo Canada Bikes, the current Secretary of the International Winter Cycling Federation and a proud co-founder of a number of plucky little organizations in his hometown.
Presentation:
What Dodging Frostbite and Avoiding SUVs Can Teach Us All About the Present and the Future
In the world of recreation and transportation, people love to use the words “all ages and abilities” to describe the outcome and the reality of a not too distant future. This is a story about Winnipeg Trails and as an organization full of diversity of both activities and people what we’ve learned along the way by actually trying to make inclusive “stuff” happen – both for one off events and for the world around us.
