I had the same thought about the lack of attendance. We are in the middle of an election cycle and there are lots of get out the vote (GOTV) activities going on throughout Hamilton County. This might explain it.

 I found last night's CNE very informative and a very timely subject with subject matter experts facilitating the workshops. Honestly, until last night I did not know or was completely aware of the mission of CNE. 

Perhaps this may explain why fewer people showed up. Compared to the packed house on previous meetings 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. Any political groups, candidates and incumbents should recognize the solutions CNE is bringing to the table and get behind the public policy writing that brings solutions to the housing and homelessness crisis.

Where is the media? 


Audrey Ramsey,


Tennessee Evironmental Council, TEC

615-415-8845

"The strength of a community, as opposed to a collection of individuals, lies in the concerted efforts of its individual members to work together to enrich the lives of all".
- Dr. John Chaffee, Ph.D. The Thinker's Way

On Tue, Apr 28, 2026, 10:37 AM Greg Laudeman, Ed.D. <greg@eduity.net> wrote:
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@eduity.net
706-271-5521

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