The management team at The Olympian last year started talking about creating an agenda we could pursue editorially for 2012 – topics we want to focus on that will – we hope – improve the quality of life for all South Sound residents. It’s the agenda of the Opinion page only, and does not cross over into the news department.
We batted around a number of ideas about what should or should not be on that editorial agenda and finally settled on asking some friends to help us – former community representatives on the editorial board.
Over the last 20 years, dozens of community residents have served as fully participating members of the editorial board. They have sat in our Wednesday morning editorial board meetings, quizzed guests right alongside The Olympian’s representatives and helped us draft editorials – the official position of the newspaper on a wide range of topics.
We went back in our records and invited the last 30 community representatives to join us for a brainstorming session in early December. We asked them what should be on the editorial board’s Community Agenda.
This is not a shy group that lacks opinions, mind you. We asked for two or three suggestions from each and were flooded with multiple nominations. One community representative could not limit her list to anything less than an even dozen suggestions.
We boiled those ideas down into a half-dozen proposed topics, and about 20 former community representatives joined us for a 90-minute evening meeting to help define and refine a final list of topics The Olympian’s editorials should focus on in the coming year.
We will continue to write our collective opinion on a wide range of issues, but the “Community Agenda” will be uppermost in our minds as we tackle topics in 2012. Having an agenda will also keep us on track by reminding us of issues we haven’t addressed in a while.
We owe our former community representatives a huge debt of thanks for their suggestions, their participation and the lively discussion it prompted.
So here – drum roll please – are the six topic areas on The Olympian editorial board’s Community Agenda for 2012:
Public safety: It’s at the top of just about everyone’s list. Our safety is paramount to our quality of life. Suggested topics under this heading range from the importance of neighborhood programs to cooperation and coordination between public agencies at this time of budget shortfalls. Our community representatives want us to focus on the erosion of the social service safety net and preventive strategies that improve our safety as a community.
Government accountability: This newspaper’s editorial page always has been a strong defender of the First Amendment and its guarantees of free speech and a free press. And part of our First Amendment role is to pry open the closed door of government offices and shine a spotlight on public records. Our advisers want us to continue that mission, but also focus on public education about government and its processes, how budgets are built, who the players are and hold them and their agencies accountable. It’s a mission we embrace enthusiastically.
Strong community: As we saw in the last Olympia elections, there is broad community support to create a safer and healthier downtown Olympia, and help Lacey and Tumwater succeed. We’ll spend editorial space dealing with tough social issues such as homelessness, veteran services, community policing and comparing people’s perceptions of downtown safety versus reality.
Public education: How are our schools doing in everything from creating good citizens to teaching science and critical thinking skills? Our advisers noted that the first step toward a strong economy is a healthy education system. They want us to highlight those educators willing to take risks and those who create multiple pathways to a high school diploma.
Healthy environment: Ask most residents the keys to a wonderful life in South Sound and they point to the mountains, to the ocean, to the clean air and water – our incredible natural surroundings. Community representatives insisted that we advocate for a clean and healthy environment – passing that precious gift on to future generations.
Economic vitality: For this community to succeed, we must fortify the economic base – not just state and local government, but the private sector, too. We lack a dominant employer outside of government and that presents some challenges. Our advisers want to see editorials that champion job diversification, employers who are going the extra distance and how volunteers are key to filling gaps when the economy slows.
That’s it – six general topics that will help us keep our priorities focused in 2012. You’ll recognize those editorials because we plan to insert Community Agenda logos (shown above) into editorials on those topics.
Let’s hope at the end of the year, we are able to look back and say that by keeping these conversations alive and vibrant, we helped the community stay focused on things that mattered and helped prod people into doing the right thing.
