publications

Arthur Orsini has written extensively on child and youth engagement in sustainable transportation – in newspapers, magazines, journals and books.

Emotional and Community Health Benefits for Youth Cyclists

This article appeared in Eingana – the Journal of the Victorian Association for Environmental Education (Melbourne) December 2005 (pg. 30-32).

 

Cycling can be a healthy pastime. Regular cycling to (and from) school can generate the physical activity necessary to maintain healthy adolescent growth and development (Health Canada, 2002). Cycling to school can also counter the growing trend towards physical inactivity that has been the net result of years of: car-oriented town planning; cheap and abundant electronic entertainment; readily available energy-sense convenience foods; and increasing portion-sizes of snacks and meals (Newman, 2004).

However, my recent work with teenage cyclists has indicated that cycling may be equally valuable in maintaining emotional health and well-being. This article highlights some of the emotional and community health benefits identified while working with a group of six Vancouver youths1 who were old enough to drive, but regularly cycled to high school. These youths participated in a research study and video project2 for my Master’s thesis in Environmental Education and Communications at Royal Roads University3. This confidence, independence and positive self-worth seemed to suggest an important arena of emotional and community health that can accompany a social and physical activity such as cycling.

Giving up the Car

For my birthday this year, I asked my family to stay out of their cars. Giving them all fair warning, I sent my birthday with to each of their 16 households a month before the big day. I guess that I was trying to create a new way of celebrating our birthdays. My idea was actually rooted in the gift my sister Patricia gave me last year when she phoned to say that in my hounour, she had biked to work. This year, I invited my entire family to participate...

Ch. 10: Learning without Teaching: Youth-Led Programs to Reduce Car-Trips to School

A chapter in an exciting new book from Sense Publishers called Emancipatory Practices: Adult/Youth Engagement for Social & Environmental Justice. 

from introduction to Section C

Arthur Orsini outlines his work with youth that has the specific objective to change attitudes and circumstances so that youth and their peers can develop their own leadership to foster walking or cycling to school. He shares examples of processes used to set-up a youth engagement program and stories of shifts in power dynamics between youth leaders and himself, as well as other youths and school administrators. He follows a youth engagement strategy that values the pre-existing knowledge and experience of participants, endeavoring to build support, collaboration and skills to aid youth leaders. Using school case studies from his experience as a youth leader, Orsini illustrates how connecting with teens requires more than trying to teach them in the traditional sense, demonstrating that a respectful approach to collaboration with current youth cyclists acknowledges their experiences and interests as valuable assets to ‘what the teacher is teaching’.

Role Models in Active Transportation - Biking from the top down

by Jane Sayers & Arthur Orsini

Chris Kelly stands in a Vancouver bike shop along Fourth Avenue trying to choose a new bike. He has an appointment with the store manager to get advice about what type of bike will suit him best. Cycling to work, Kelly hopes, will be a way of cutting back on driving.

He got to this point slowly. His son and daughter -both in their early 20’s- are enthusiastic cyclists and a few of his friends regularly commute by bike. However, a few days after picking-up his cross-trail bike, Kelly is not yet ready to call himself a cyclist. "I almost commuted this morning, just as a case in point, because I thought, well I've got a day that will allow me to do that. And in retrospect, I should have, but I just wasn't as ready..." he reflects from his office on West Broadway.

Engaging and Empowering Youth Leaders

This article appeared in the ALAR Journal (Action Learning, Action Research), Vol. 11, no. 1, April 2006 following a presentation at the “Telling Our Stories”: ALARPM Annual Conference at the University of Technology, Sydney, NSW on Saturday, 1st October 2005

 

This paper outlines experiences gained in a collaborative approach to involve teenagers in the development of a sustainable transport program. The fundamental lesson learned was that it was beneficial for youths to be engaged in a topic before being educated on it. Mentoring, training and support were the primary characteristics in building rapport with youth leaders. This non-coercive process enabled the youths to shape the look and feel of the outreach directed at their peers. The youth leaders were empowered to select and adapt objectives to suit their character and community. The program co-ordinator’s main role was as a mentor – facilitating collaboration between other youth groups, resources and colleagues. Overall, the program was designed to build upon incentives that the youths valued; skill-building, environmental awareness, social interaction and a broader understanding of program issues.

Dry & Safe on 2 wheels (2001)

On rainy days I keep dry by riding my bike. ...

It takes a whole bus to educate a child (1999)

There are many things we cannot teach our children. They need to be around and learn from strangers. It's one of those it-takes-a-village-to-raise-a-child kind of things. And so I am glad that we rely on the bus. It's very educational. Public transit is relatively cheap and my kids love it because they get to meet and talk with a variety of people. Well, okay, not the very rich, but pretty much eveyone else. I can't think of any other public space where they have such liberty with strangers and I have no anxiety about it. They talk to anyone: seniors, radicals, sleepyheads, lovers, business people and teenagers. ...

Time for the Train: the Cost of Speed in Business Travel

Travelling long-distance by train can be a relaxing holiday – even when on business. A ticket for a night sleeper gives me a couple of days to settle back in the most productive work space I have ever experienced. And although it might feel like a vacation, time aboard a land cruise with my laptop computer offers valuable workdays without chronic phone and email interruptions. It’s the greener choice where the real benefit is Time.