- Cvsg - list.chattanooga.digital

Where should we start engaging the community?
by Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. May 20, 2026

May 20, 2026

The general input from the group is that our focus going forward should be on applied learning about community engagement. Where should we start? A key element of genuine community engagement is allowing community members to set the agenda. The way to do this is to listen to them about what is important to and missing/needed in the community. Are you personally interested doing this? Of course, the challenge is to do this in a fair, open manner so that voices from all parts of the community are heard and can be heard by others. What suggestions do you have about who to engage, where, and when? Might you be interested in working on community engagement tools? If none of the above, what is your interest in Chattanooga Venture and/or community engagement? Please let me know what you think! I need your input. Email me directly (greg(a)eduity.net <mailto:greg@eduity.net>) with answers if you do not feel comfortable emailing the entire group. Our next regular meeting on June 2nd (in-person and online) will focus on this issue/question. Thanks! — Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. Executive Officer and Principal Eduity, LLC www.eduity.net greg(a)eduity.net 706-271-5521

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Agenda for Tuesday, May 5th, CVSG Regular Meeting
by Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. May 4, 2026

May 4, 2026

The Chattanooga Venturing Study Group’s regular meeting is noon tomorrow at Adele’s. Please a bit early to purchase lunch. We’ll wrap up around 1:00. Here’s our agenda for tomorrow: Review our purpose Discuss change of focus to applied learning How might we genuinely engage community members and connect existing efforts to increase incomes and prosperity throughout the area? Walk through online platforms venturing.chattanooga.digital for Study Group purposes. Bring your laptop or use your smart phone Create an account via https://venturing.chattanooga.digital/invites/yHMGvGCeCb in.chattanooga.digital Open to the local public for community purposes and to be used by the Facilitator Bank Present initial plans for the Facilitator Bank Discuss Chattanooga Venturing Dialogues Next dialogue on “Central Places and Urban Design and Development," June 1, Waterhouse Pavilion Move to a webinar/podcast format with small in-person groups, possibly with satellite sessions The value of learning activities Discuss regular Study Group meetings Move discussions and meetings online via Discourse and Nextcloud Talk Continue in-person meetings? Maybe quarterly? Let me know of any other topics to cover. — Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. Executive Officer and Principal Eduity, LLC www.eduity.net greg(a)eduity.net 706-271-5521

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CVSG Regular Meeting, Tuesday, May 5th agenda
by Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. April 30, 2026

April 30, 2026

For those who did not make it to our last dialogue on housing, one of the key insights, beyond the insights into our current housing issues, was the value of games as learning exercises. This is a prime example of how we might improve community venturing, building on practices from the past. The challenge is to translate that talk into action: What do we do with insights from learning exercises? How to we effectively act on our knowledge as and for the community? This is something Venture did amazingly well, about which I think we still have a lot to learn. That is one of my personal learning objectives. The preliminary agenda for our next meeting is: Review our purpose and proposed shift in focus to applied learning How might we genuinely engage community members to increase incomes and prosperity by connecting existing efforts throughout the community? Walk through online platforms venturing.chattanooga.digital (Discourse) for Study Group purposes, including documenting Venture and related initiatives and supporting community venturing as a practice Bring your laptop or use your smart phone Create an account via https://venturing.chattanooga.digital/invites/yHMGvGCeCb in.chattanooga.digital (Friendica, which is like an community-owned Facebook) for general community purposes, specifically for engaging, hearing from, and sharing insights of community members To be used by the Facilitator Bank and open to the local public Plans for the Facilitator Bank Announce open applications, cost, and structure Discuss timeframe and milestones Chattanooga Venturing Dialogues Next dialogue on “Central Places and Urban Design and Development," June 1, Waterhouse Pavilion Move to a webinar/podcast format with small in-person groups How to incorporate connecting and learning activities Regular Study Group meetings Move discussions and meetings online via Discourse and Nextcloud Talk Let me know of any other items to cover or any input/questions you might have for any of the above. — Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. Executive Officer and Principal Eduity, LLC www.eduity.net greg(a)eduity.net 706-271-5521

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Re: Last night's Chattanooga Venturing Dialogue... and next week's regular meeting
by Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. April 28, 2026

April 28, 2026

Thanks for the feedback! Addressing several replies together… > On Apr 28, 2026, at 12:18 PM, Arch Willingham <a.willingham(a)tuparks.com> wrote: > > I think y’all need to keep pushing the concept of “The next version of Chattanooga will be crafted by you!”. I LOVE that, Arch! But… what is the means for that? See my response to Jack, below, for more on this. (Spoiler alert: reviving the Facilitator Bank, using a dedicated, local, public online platform.) > On Apr 28, 2026, at 12:42 PM, Audrey Ramsey <aramsey3(a)gmail.com> wrote: > > I think CNE is a well kept secret. More PR is needed for CNE especially during these tough economic times and the housing crisis we face today. I hoped the topic would draw in more people for this very purpose! CNE definitely is not as well known as it should be. It is such an amazing, effective organization. Maybe it's because they have been rather focused. Maybe it’s because we simply don’t have good community media. Bigger picture, I would personally love to see the Study Group evolve into a network for sharing information about resources like CNE but I really think we need to LISTEN first and foremost, not tell. Once people have told us about their goals, issues, needs, after we have listened to and shared their concerns and ideas, then we can tell them about resources. > On Apr 28, 2026, at 11:48 AM, Tricia King Mims <tricia(a)nppcha.org> wrote: > > I think the cost is a deterrent as a few people have told me they would have come to my talk with Sally and Eleanor had it been free. There is a no-cost registration option for our public events — registrants simply have to put “0” in the amount field for “Attendee” ticket — and we welcome folks who have not registered (and don’t ask them to pay an attendance fee, although that’s likely to change in the future to cover our costs). > On Apr 28, 2026, at 11:05 AM, Jack Zibluk <jackzibluk(a)gmail.com> wrote: > > My overvalued 2 cents is that Ventures at this point is made up of non-profits and community groups and individuals with great ideas and valid concerns, but 1) an "action plan" or similar framework of translating concerns into actions hasn't come together and 2) there doesn't seem to be a lot of buy-in from the political community, River City Co., the chamber of commerce or other folks whose support would be necessary to put concerns into action. The plan (program) for 2026 is to (1) establish an online platform, (2) hold regular meetings, and (3) host topical dialogue sessions. We are working on all of those and welcome any help. Remember that the Study Group is an informal group, Jack. It has no real structure or capacity. I have done most of the leg work, supported Eleanor, Kate, Philip, a few folks who have helped engage stakeholders like those you mention in 2, and, of course, our speakers and dialogue participants. The Study Group's purpose has always been to learn about how to do community engagement, not to actually engage people and document/share their concerns. We simply do not have capacity for that. That said, there seems to be strong interest in "hearing the voice of the community." That is why I’m reviving the Facilitator Bank. It will have formal expectations of participants and will be more structured. The Study Group can advise, guide, and support facilitators. If you have other thoughts on how to do this, I’m all ears! What do you think we should ask for/expect as buy-in from stakeholders? Representatives of the groups you mention have attended Study Group events and meetings. River City Co is co-producing/hosting our next dialogue. I’m sure others would participate if invited but, again, we have limited capacity that. I’m doing what I can, roughly following Venture’s timeline. We have gotten a lot of encouragement but I have not seen any interest in funding this work or supporting in any substantive way. — GL

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Last night's Chattanooga Venturing Dialogue... and next week's regular meeting
by Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. April 28, 2026

April 28, 2026

Thanks to Chris Thompson and the CNE team for the program last night! It was very informative. I thought the learning games were especially interesting as an engagement practice. They definitely helped folks — some of whom had deep experience with the topic — understand the issues. With a bit of tweaking, learning exercises like that could become powerful catalysts for collaborative action. They are a bit labor-intensive but that issue could be addressed by creating generic versions or templates for facilitators to use without any/much pre-work. Unfortunately, it was not as well attended as past sessions. Does anyone have any thoughts about why? Was it lack of a Venture-era “celebrity” to anchor the discussion and/or singular focus on CNE? Is the topic just not that important or interesting? Surely not! Did we just not reach the right audience? My goal is for the dialogues to be interesting and useful to activists and change-makers, especially as we consider changing format. Any input or suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Our next regular meeting, next Tuesday, May 5, at noon, will focus on means to address our new focus and goal. Based on your input the Study Group’s goals are to build community infrastructure for engaging people and to connect causes, initiatives, and organizations in the community. Rather than telling people what’s happing, our goal is to hear about and share others’ goals, issues, needs, opportunities, and resources. Basically, we’re applying lessons learned from Venture and similar initiatives to learn-by-doing about community venturing, we’re facilitating community problem-solving rather than just providing solutions. The proposed focus is how to increase incomes and prosperity in our community, guided by the question, “how might we do better and make more?” — Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. Executive Officer and Principal Eduity, LLC www.eduity.net greg(a)eduity.net 706-271-5521

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Recent community engaged planning/visioning efforts
by Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. April 26, 2026

April 26, 2026

I have recently learned (or been reminded) about a couple of community engaged planning/visioning efforts. The Chamber of Commerce worked with community groups and businesses to create a plan for the future in 2019/2020, called Velocity 2040 <https://chattanoogachamber.com/velocity2040/>, to make Chattanooga-Hamilton County "a place where we all succeed together.” River City Company developed the ONE Riverfront District Plan <https://www.rivercitycompany.com/one-riverfront> in 2022 to "create a place for all Chattanoogans to enjoy” including the "civic responsibility to improve social and economic equity.” This was followed by more focused plans for the Riverfront parks (Ross’s Landing, etc.) and Hawk’s Hill (currently site of AT&T field). These are in addition to the City’s One Chattanooga plan <https://chattanooga.gov/stay-informed/one-chattanooga> of 2022 for “a community where all Chattanoogans can thrive and prosper” and Plan Hamilton <https://planhamilton.org/> for "sustainable and responsible growth that preserves the unique and cultural aspects of the county” that was adopted in 2025. Are you aware of these? How might we build on these? Should we study them? Should we use them as a jumping off point for our efforts? My sense from the group is that our goal is not to plan or strategize for a particular purpose (or revist previous planning). Our goals are just to listen, connect, and build infrastructure for engagement. Is that right? — Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. Executive Officer and Principal Eduity, LLC www.eduity.net greg(a)eduity.net 706-271-5521

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Focus the Study Group on how to do better and make more?
by Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. April 26, 2026

April 26, 2026

There’s been a bit of feedback on the group’s “North Star” — engage people to connect various efforts to address community issues. Might it make sense to focus it on work: how to create jobs and increase incomes via entrepreneurship and small business. How do we develop our local talent and enable our talented people to capitalize on their creativity, knowledge, and skills? “Work” was a general topic of Venture that did not get as much attention as the other topics. It is a really critical general issue for our community, especially with the County Mayor wanting to close the BDC. I think we would get some very powerful and useful insights from the community if we asked and listened. What to you think? Bad idea? Good idea? Thoughts about how and where to do this and who to engage? Also, please spread the word about the dialogue session on Monday. — Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. Executive Officer and Principal Eduity, LLC www.eduity.net greg(a)eduity.net 706-271-5521

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Housing dialogue session on Monday
by Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. April 21, 2026

April 21, 2026

Our next dialogue session is this coming Monday, April 27th, 5:30 PM (doors open at 5:00). It will focus on housing and be anchored by Chris Thompson, president and CEO of CNE. You can get additional information and register online at https://luma.com/oo948apo. Please share! — Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. Executive Officer and Principal Eduity, LLC www.eduity.net greg(a)eduity.net 706-271-5521

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Chattanooga Venturing Study Group's "North Star"
by Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. April 15, 2026

April 15, 2026

During our discussion at the last CVSG regular meeting about refocusing on active, applied learning, Tricia asked about the Study Group’s “North Star.” The other day Becca Dunston, a new participant in the group, emailed me with the suggestion of using “how do we?” questions to guide our effort. She had several good specific questions for dialogue topics. In general, she suggested asking “how do we build genuine community engagement that connects the fragmented efforts already underway rather than adding another siloed initiative?” I think this is a great “North Star” for the group, an ideal way to focus our learning. It makes lessons from Venture very relevant but also focuses us on where we want to go. The key implication is that our objective requires identifying as many “efforts already underway” as possible and relating them to each other, ideally via direct, interpersonal connections and collaboration. For “genuine community engagement,” I think we can use the fundamental rationales for community engagement as criteria: How do we tap into the capabilities and intelligence that 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? What do you think? — Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. Executive Officer and Principal Eduity, LLC www.eduity.net greg(a)eduity.net 706-271-5521

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Follow-up to today's regular meeting and next steps
by Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. April 7, 2026

April 7, 2026

Thanks, all, for your continued interest in learning from Chattanooga Venture about engaging and mobilizing community members for inclusive, positive, sustainable change. The discussion today confirmed my thinking about evolving the group into a network, which means (1) we all contribute and coordinate while (2) we all do our own things and (3) we connect others who are working for inclusive, positive, sustainable change. Going forward I’m going to personally focus on listening to the voice of the community as a representative of Chattanooga.Digital—our new community tech cooperative… and the world’s first digital utility! Chattanooga.Digital will provide the software infrastructure for this, the means for people to connect, engage, and share, as a community service. It’s literally our mission. The Study Group will transition from in-person meetings to the online platform, venturing.chattanooga.digital. Our next regular Study Group meeting on May 5th will be an on-boarding session for the platform, to get everyone signed up and familiar with its features and functions. You can join Venturing.Chattanooga.Digital now by clicking here <https://venturing.chattanooga.digital/invites/xQEhVNYuDG>! I will administer it and train others to do so. Chattanooga.Digital will have workshops for the platform (Discourse <https://discourse.org/>) because we’ll provide it to any community group that needs a forum. The platform is quite powerful but also rather generic at the moment. If anyone we want to add content and/or customize it, Chattanooga.Digital can facilitate that. Chattanooga Venturing will continue as a collaborative network to do what Venture did: Channel the voice of the community and connect people to learn and work together. This is something Chattanooga.Digital needs and I suspect others do, too. We need capacity and tools for that. I see an opportunity as well as a need here, so I plan to revive the Facilitator Bank as an entrepreneur through my company, Eduity. We will open source all of the tools, etc., for anyone to use My objective is to build the capabilities for the community and cover my costs; this is not going to be a money-making, exclusive, high-dollar program! If anyone is interested in participating or partnering on the Facilitator Bank, please reach out! The dialogues will shift to a livestream/podcast format after this month. Philip Luckey and I will produce these. We encourage others to join in and replicate them. The format will be “open source” so that anyone can host dialogues in conjunction with or separate from what we’re doing. Chattanooga.Digital will provide apps and services to support this, too, and we will coordinate and share via the Venturing platform. We will be looking for topics, sponsors, and locations. If you have any suggestions, please reach out about that. Thanks, again, for your in-person participation and interest. Let’s take it to the next level! Join the network, continue to connect and share. — Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. Executive Officer and Principal Eduity, LLC www.eduity.net greg(a)eduity.net 706-271-5521

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