Chattanooga Venturing Dialogue on Housing
What does community engagement have to do with housing? Find out at the next Community Venturing Dialogue on April 27th at 5:30 PM! The dialogue will be anchored by Chattanooga Neighborhood Enterprise's (CNE) President & CEO, Chris Thompson. During this session you will learn how CNE was developed via Venture in the 1980s, the results of CNE's work, and what CNE is doing today, including its 40th anniversary activities.
Most of the dialogue will focus on current housing issues and feature learning-by-doing about how to establish a shared understanding and vision among community members. Attendees will dialogue about the issues and evaluate options for addressing them. We will dig into how we might expand access, increase supply, preserve affordability, and prevent displacement. We will also work through partnership opportunities and options for regional and neighborhood strategies.
By the end of the session, which will be led by CNE team members, we will identify key housing challenges for our community and bold ideas to overcome them. The objective is to leave with clear understanding of actions we can take as community members and leaders.
Please join us and share this with others who are concerned with housing in the Chattanooga area! We will have networking at 5:00 PM and the program will start at 5:30. Get more information and register to attend online at https://luma.com/oo948apo. Information about all scheduled Study Group events is available at https://luma.com/ChattanoogaVenturing.
Why Engage the Community?
There are three simple reasons to engage community members in planning. First, there is much better and more knowledge about issues among community members, particularly those dealing with the issues directly, than among any small group. This is also the reason to get input from outside experts and learn about what other communities have done.
Second, people tend to support that which they help to create. They need to see their input in the vision and their part in achieving it to know their issues will be addressed by the solutions. Third, a common approach to a shared vision provides a flexible framework for collaboration and makes coordination much easier, which makes the solutions much more effective.
Every leader should understand the principles based on these reasons. Too few do. That's why the Study Group exists: to apply and promote these principles. It's also why we are evolving our approach. More on that below!
Evolving the Study Group
The Chattanooga Venturing Study Group is refocusing on applying lessons from Venture and similar initiatives while continuing to execute our program for 2026. We are going to focus on how to genuinely engage community members and connect disparate efforts rather than adding another siloed initiative.
The goal is to learn about and share goals, issues, needs, opportunities, and resources across the community... and to learn about community engagement by actually engaging the community:
How do we tap into the capabilities and intelligence that is distributed throughout the community?
How do we get community members to buy into and support efforts?
How do we facilitate collaboration to maximize community benefits and reduce duplication of efforts and risk of conflict?
Expanding the Dialogues
The Study Group started with a series of speakers reflecting on what Venture did and how it did it. That evolved into our current dialogue series, which is more participatory, focused on today, and action-oriented. We want to expand the dialogues and make them more accessible. This summer we will move to a hybrid format. Dialogues will be conducted as online events for small groups at various locations, livestreamed via social media, and then posted online as podcasts.
We are looking for hosts and sponsors! If you are interested, email Dr. Greg Laudeman, greg@eduity.net.
Taking the Group Online
The Study Group now has an online home, thanks to Chattanooga.Digital. Check it out! https://venturing.chattanooga.digital/. We will use this platform to coordinate Study Group activities and share information about Chattanooga Venture, the practice of community venturing, and related initiatives here and elsewhere.
Reviving the Facilitator Bank
The Facilitator Bank was a group of individuals trained in group facilitation methods who were available to help community group. It was established by Venture, taken over by the Regional Planning Agency after Venture's demise, but faded in the 2000s. The Study Group is going to need capabilities for the new focus so we're reviving the Facilitator Bank!
Members of the Facilitator Bank will be educated about Chattanooga Venture and community engagement as well as trained in facilitation methods. As part of the program, participants will be required to facilitate a few informal "Community Confabs" about what people see as key challenges, resources, and visions for the future. If you are interested in either participating in the program or hosting a Community Confab, email Dr. Greg Laudeman, greg@eduity.net.
NOW ONLINE: The Chattanooga Venturing 2026 Kick-off video!
A video of our 2026 Kick-off, which featured a highly participatory process for identifying issues and mapping assets — and learning-by-doing about community engagement — is now online at https://vimeo.com/showcase/11773651?video=1181464770. Check out videos of our speaker series, including a recap video and a vintage video from 1994, at https://vimeo.com/showcase/11773651.
About the Chattanooga Venturing Study Group
The purpose the Chattanooga Venturing Study Group is the learn how to engage community members for inclusive, positive, sustainable change by studying Chattanooga Venture, the initiative that transformed Chattanooga from "America's Dirtiest City" to "America's Coolest City," and related initiatives.
You received this message because you registered for or attended one of the Study Group’s events, asked to be included, or filled out the interest form. If you know anyone else who might be interested, please forward this email. If this email was forwarded to you by someone else and you are interested in participating in Study Group activities, complete the interest form online at https://cloud.eduity.net/apps/forms/s/KbHkwnS9TtBcBb5fSNFoKmA8 or just register for our next dialogue.
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For additional information, contact:
Greg Laudeman, Ed.D.greg@eduity.net706-271-5521