We are very pleased to introduce our 2019 Summit speakers.
Check this space for updates to Summit agenda, speakers, and events.
Keynote Speakers
Mark Fenton
From Pilots to Policy: Advocating for Economic, Environmental, and Public Health. Health professionals tell us it’s clear that Americans must be more physically active, but it’s also very clear that simply telling people to walk and bike more is not working. Increasingly interdisciplinary groups of health, transportation, and economic development professionals are partnering with advocates, elected officials, residents and others in the effort to create “healthier” communities by design. In this thought-provoking and entertaining presentation Mark Fenton will explore whether there’s any evidence that contemporary planning and design actually matters to public health, and the related impacts on economic well-being. And he’ll share practical lessons on the progression from pilot projects to full-fledged policy change gleaned over two decades of simply trying to get people to walk and bicycle more!
Mark will be also be leading a Pre-Summit Workshop on Thursday, November 7, called “Building Community Engagement with a Walk” instructing participants on how to lead and learn from walk audits in their communities. See the registration page for details.
Bio: Mark Fenton, nationally recognized public health, planning, and transportation consultant, adjunct associate professor at Tufts University, advocate for active transportation, and former host of “America’s Walking” on PBS television, has led training and planning processes for pedestrian-, bicycle-, and transit-friendly designs in communities across the US, Canada, and Australia. Mark studied engineering and biomechanics at the Massachusetts Institute Technology (BS and MS) and at the U.S. Olympic Training Center, and has published numerous articles and books related to exercise science, physical activity promotion, and community interventions. He also tries to practice what he preaches, having served on his community’s planning board, and walking and cycling for as many routine trips as possible.
Mike Sewell
Engineering Healthy Communities. Mike will do a deep dive into the roles of engineers and planners of our transportation systems. Health takes on many forms: The most obvious being physical fitness, but there are also elements to social health, mental well-being as well as financial health that our transportation networks are influencing. During his presentation, Mike will help explain what has happened to our urban centers over the past century, why we are in the current state of single occupancy car-centric mayhem, and then point to future transformational things occurring in our field that we should be excited for as multimodal enthusiasts and practitioners.
Bio: Mike Sewell, P.E., LCI, is a professional engineer and serves as Gresham Smith’s active transportation service line leader, bringing more than 20 years of experience in the planning, design and implementation of transportation projects. He was named as one of the owners of his firm 6 years ago and uses his platform to strategize about active transportation’s role in positively impacting the communities that we serve.
Leading projects ranging from 100-mile greenway studies to statewide multimodal planning initiatives, Mike has spent the past 15 years focused on complete streets and right-sizing our roadways for all users. A daily bike commuter himself, Mike’s advocacy efforts for bicyclists and pedestrians have helped forge many important relationships within the local communities he serves and the broader transportation industry. As a result of his advocacy efforts, he currently serves on the National Board of Directors for the League of American Bicyclists, where he chairs the equity and fundraising committees.
Mike has been named as the J.B. Speed School of Engineering’s Outstanding Young Engineer, was a recipient of the D.V. Terrell Award by the Kentucky Society of Professional Engineers and has earned a spot among the Business First Forty Under 40. His dedication to his profession has led to recent co-authoring of the widely used National Cooperation Highway Research Program 880, which focuses on providing the appropriate balance of service and safety for all users. He was also invited to testify in front of Congress in the spring of 2019 on the importance of better funding and planning for multimodal connectivity and safety.
Locally, Mike helped to secure federal dollars for the Town Branch Commons project in Lexington, Kentucky, and serves as the project manager for the design of this transformational multimodal installation.
Melicia Whitt-Glover (details to come)
Equity considerations for bicycling and walking. We like to think that bicycling and walking are equitable forms of transportation, but are they really? This presentation will focus on equity-related factors that impact opportunities for biking and walking. Dr. Whitt-Glover will review the latest evidence-based research around equity and active transportation. She will also outline strategies for engaging under served communities in active transportation opportunities
Bio: Dr. Melicia Whitt-Glover is President and CEO of Gramercy Research Group in Winston Salem, NC, whose mission is to positively impact and improve the lives of individuals and communities by addressing health and related issues. Dr. Whitt-Glover is also Executive Director for the Center of Excellence for the Elimination of Health Disparities (CEEHD) at Winston-Salem State University. CEEHD strives to promote equity and social justice in health care delivery, treatment, and outcomes by leading collaborative efforts to generate and disseminate evidence-based, policy-relevant solutions, and to educate future leaders how deliberately consider and incorporate equity and social justice in professional practice.
For over 20 years, Dr. Whitt-Glover has been engaged in research and evaluation projects designed to identify effective strategies to promote adherence to national recommendations for physical activity, diet, and healthy weight gain to address disparities in chronic disease morbidity and mortality. Her research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute, national and local foundations, and local government organizations. She is a member of the 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory Committee, which is a group of the country’s most accomplished physical activity and health expertise who will play a critical role in a comprehensive process, culminating with the publication of the second edition of the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans.
Dr. Whitt-Glover received her BA (Exercise Physiology, 1993) and MA (Exercise Physiology, 1996) from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She received her Ph.D. (Epidemiology, 1999) from the University of South Carolina. Dr. Whitt-Glover completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine (2000 – 2002).
Hannah Cockburn, Bicycle and Pedestrian Division Director, Public Transportation Division Director, NCDOT, will be providing updates on these newly merged departments. (details to come)