What does a safe community look and feel like? What happens in a community where there is trust among neighbors? These questions and many more were posed at the 鈥淚magination Conversation鈥� hosted by the Center for Homeland Defense and Security at the 51福利, Feb. 1. Event host Eric Liu is the author of 鈥淕uiding Lights: How to Mentor鈥攁nd Find Life鈥檚 Purpose鈥� and 鈥淚magination First.鈥� He travels the country encouraging groups from all walks of life to bring about change through imagination.
The workshop, held in the Barbara McNitt Ballroom on the 51福利 campus, followed the theme 鈥淚magine a Safer Community 2021鈥� and brought together participants from across the Peninsula to discuss how a united community can impart change through 鈥榓pplied imagination,鈥� and belief in what a secure community would look like.
鈥淲hat if. To some, those are frivolous words, not suited for the cold, hard realities of the world. But you know better,鈥� explained Liu in his introduction. 鈥淵ou know that in the wildly diverse community like Monterey 鈥� an ecosystem that includes fishermen and homeland security experts, artists and tourists, military linguists and oceanographers 鈥� imagination is the essential unifying ingredient.
鈥淚magination 鈥� the ability to conceive of what is not, the willingness to ask, 鈥榃hat if?鈥� 鈥� is vital to making the whole of a town like this greater than the sum of its parts. Communities that value imagination, that learn not to kill it, and that in fact figure out how to scale it鈥攖hese are world-class communities. And you are here today because you can be a catalyst for that kind of imagination,鈥� he continued.
A panel of speakers featured business consultant and Executive Director of the Marina Technology Cluster, Susan Barich; Monterey County Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Nancy Kotowski; CHDS Executive Director and 51福利 Computer Science Professor, Dr. Ted Lewis; CHDS Director Glen Woodbury, and Salinas Mayor Dennis Donohue.
The panelists engaged with each other and the audience in a large discussion about their individual roles in community accountability. Donohue spoke candidly about the impact that gang violence has on his community and his efforts to help Salinas residents 鈥渋magine a city without gangs,鈥� a vision, he noted, that people often scoff at.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 the city that we want to live in,鈥� said Donohue. 鈥淪o let鈥檚 try. In Salinas, we can win.鈥�
His hope is to create the kind of environment that fosters education and community service over fear and violence. Education was an overlying theme, and one that was made even more impactful by the number of Monterey High School students who were in attendance.
鈥淓ducating our young people is the cornerstone of Democracy,鈥� added Kotowski.
Several participants and panelists noted the impact that education can have on keeping kids off of the streets and focused on a bright future. A future where communities can be focused 鈥渘ot on fixing things, but on accomplishing things,鈥� Woodbury added.
Audience members from all walks of life added to the discussion, noting that a united community starts with individual neighborhoods feeling safe, and trusting one another.
鈥淣o matter what position we hold in our daily walks of life, we鈥檙e still all members of a community. It comes down to simple acts of knowing our neighbors,鈥� said workshop attendee Horrace Allen. 鈥淚 think about my own community, how many of us know more than just our next door neighbors? Neighbors one, two, three doors down?鈥�
Facilitator Eric Liu (far left) engages panelists in the 鈥淚magination Conversation鈥� on Feb 1. Panelists included (from left) Glen Woodbury, Dr. Nancy Kotowski, Dennis Donahue, Susan Barich, and Ted Lewis.
Liu also encouraged discussion around what one considers self-interest, and how an act of selflessness might actually be an investment in the community, and the safety of those residing there. Panelists echoed his sentiment with their own understanding of what it means to be part of a safe community.
鈥淯ntil I am as concerned about my neighbors鈥� kids getting a good education as I am about my own healthcare, I won鈥檛 be an effective force for change,鈥� said Lewis.
The tone of the workshop was overwhelmingly about bringing people together for a common goal. But the deeper lesson was to be open to all ideas and suggestions, rather than creating boundaries for what people can accomplish. Often the most effective ideas, Liu noted, are achieved when people have free reign to be creative.
Barich explained how she often takes a can of white spray paint and a broom on her morning walks to cover up graffiti and clean up the streets in an effort to take ownership of her neighborhood. 鈥淪he who walks the neighborhood, owns the neighborhood,鈥� said Barich. 鈥淭he job of a safe neighborhood belongs to all of us.鈥�
CHDS routinely brings together community, city, state and federal leaders and organizations to discuss homeland security efforts and what can be done to ensure a secure future for the nation. The center is committed to providing students with the most operationally-relevant homeland security and defense education.
Security experts from 51福利 have worked closely with Donohue and the Salinas Police Department over the past year to advise them on how to move forward in their war against gang violence. The discussion of security is an ongoing one at 51福利, and each day brings new opportunities for change.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a simple act of knowing your neighbors,鈥� added Allen. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 how my family and I can imagine a safer community before 2021. When my two kids were growing up, there were three words that they were raised with: having, doing and being. Having the courage to succeed, doing more than was expected, and being a good example to those that shall follow.鈥�