I Believe We, the Citizens of Yellow Springs, Can . . .

• Build on and nurture our strengths as a community—our actively engaged citizenry, our rich history, our strong arts and educational institutions, our lively downtown, and our beautiful green spaces—to create a bright future.
• Thoughtfully engage with one another on the serious challenges that face our village—and which even threaten to divide us—in a spirit of generous, active listening and respect. While we must create reasonable time frames for our decision-making, the quality and longevity of the decisions will be improved if we always insist on honoring the democratic process. Our collective wisdom can only emerge if we listen. While true consensus may not always be possible—and compromise may be inevitable for all of us—all citizens who care about our future should feel welcomed and heard by Council members.
• Find better solutions for our future energy dilemmas by welcoming the perspectives of knowledgeable citizens, as well as local, regional, and national groups with serious concerns about the proposed 50-year contract with AMP-Ohio to build and support another pulverized coal plant in Southeast Ohio. We owe it to our neighbors and to our grandchildren, who will all live “downwind” of this plant and its dangerous emissions, to make this vital decision with great caution and care.
• Keep Yellow Springs a diverse, inclusive, affordable, and walkable college town by looking for opportunities for economic development rooted in the arts, education, and green/eco-friendly businesses. Compact development and redevelopment within our current village “footprint” is not just the right thing to do, it’s the smart thing to do. Intelligent, socially and environmentally just growth that fits our community’s needs and values is a tall order, but we should aim to meet that high standard.