23 – Co-creating the city you want to live in, with Ben Orcutt

Attention Podcast Land! Could you take a moment to help us make this podcast more relevant or interesting to you? We're running a quick (nearly pain-free!) little questionnaire to learn more about what you'd like us to dive deeper into, and what things we could stand to work on. (Do we say "um" too much? Great, now you're listening for it...) Just go to this Google Form. It'll take you 5 minutes, tops, or your money back. ;) We really appreciate it. Ben Orcutt is a bike-advocate-turned small business owner and candidate for city council of Anderson, Indiana. He joins (one-time Anderson resident) Jordan Clark on this podcast to discuss the importance of believing in your neighborhood, how cities could help clear hurdles for citizens who want to contribute, and what we stand to gain by focusing on authenticity and transparency in local government. Ben has spent years demonstrating—through his neighborhood businesses as well as his advocacy and volunteer work—what is possible when you invest your time making repeated small bets on your community. After being approached by many of his neighbors and peers to take that approach to city government, Ben is now running for a seat on Anderson’s City Council. Ben is the first to tell you he’s still learning, that he doesn’t possess all the answers. But he is serious about asking questions, about observing local needs, and about trying new things out incrementally to see if they make a difference. And if you ask us, that’s exactly the kind of person we need in positions of city leadership. Check out Ben's campaign page here. Near Anderson? Visit Buckskin Bikes for all your bike needs, and then hop over to Jackrabbit Coffee for your caffeine fix. The Go Cultivate! podcast is a project of Verdunity. Learn more at verdunity.com. Find more about this and other episodes, and our blog here. (Music in this episode is from Custodian of Records and Tours.) https://www.verdunity.com/podcast/episode-23