If you are one of the last minute shoppers who is yet to buy a holiday present for your children (or for someone you dearly love), I’d recommend getting them a bicycle. Why? A bike not only helps them stay active and lead a healthy life but also helps them learn to be independent (and not depend on you to get around to and from school) and stay focused in their studies.  Besides the provocative title for this post (and the fact that I’m writing this even though I’m a parent, at least yet), there must be some truth to the fact that we might be transporting our children, all caged up in automobiles all the time instead of setting them free on a bicycle (or walking).  Well, at least that’s what these children in Netherlands,  Belgium, France and Britain are hinting at in this video produced by Sustrans, a UK based non-profit organization that promotes pedestrian, bike and public transportation options.

Watching this video promoted me to do a quick comparison of  the academic performance (Mean score in PISA 2012) of children from these countries (I know it is a crude measure but still worthy of pointing out that).  Not to be surprised, they all fared well above our good ol’ USA (and before you ask we are far behind the chart-topping Asian giants China, Japan and Korea): 

Of course, I didn’t get enough time on hand to compare the health indices of these countries but I have no doubt that we might be in for some shocking results, given the ungodly levels of childhood obesity rates we currently have in the United States. I’ll reserve that angle for exploring on another rainy/snowy day. If every school district in the U.S. spent a tiny fraction of its budget on providing/building bike lanes and bike infrastructure, we may soon see a tremendous change in the way our kids learn/live. It may be the perfect antidote for a nation that has ungodly levels of childhood obesity.  Mind you, the US tops every country on Earth when it comes to educational spending (roughly $68.1Billion in 2012, (over 7 % of GDP), which is ~$15,171 on every young person in the system) Here are some alarming data nuggets from the Center for Disease Control:

• Childhood obesity has more than doubled in children and tripled in adolescents in the past 30 years.
• The percentage of children aged 6–11 years in the United States who were obese increased from 7% in 1980 to nearly 18% in 2010. Similarly, the percentage of adolescents aged 12–19 years who were obese increased from 5% to 18% over the same period.
• In 2010, more than one third of children and adolescents were overweight or obese.
• Obese youth are more likely to have risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as high cholesterol or high blood pressure. In a population-based sample of 5- to 17-year-olds, 70% of obese youth had at least one risk factor for cardiovascular disease.

More here.  Encouraging more children to take up cycling requires that we provide good infrastructure support, which is sorely lacking in many towns and cities across America.  We have to work, as a community and nudge our decision-makers to spend on these low-cost measures (i.e.,bike lanes) and make our cities bike and pedestrian friendly. At least it is worth exploring, from a scientific perspective, how biking (and walking) helps improve the quality of life for our children (in academic and otherwise).

Image Courtesy: Safe Routes to School National Partnership

Position:  Federal Policy Manager

Program:  Safe Routes to School National Partnership

Institution:  Bikes Belong Foundation

Employment and Classification:  “At will” employment status; full-time salaried position

Location: Your home office within the Washington, DC metro area

Applications: Applications are due on January 6, 2014 and must be sent to hr@saferoutespartnership.org. Specific details on application requirements are provided below. You are encouraged to apply as soon as possible as there will be rolling interviews.

Start Date: Late January or early February

Summary: Join the Safe Routes to School National Partnership (National Partnership) and use your professional talents and personal passion to advocate for safe walking and bicycling to and from schools, and in daily life, to improve the health and well-being of America’s children and to foster the creation of livable, sustainable communities.

Image Courtesy: Safe Routes to School National Partnership

The federal policy manager plays a critical role in representing the Safe Routes to School National Partnership on Capitol Hill and with federal agencies. The federal policy manager will regularly meet with Congressional offices and key federal agencies to convey the needs and importance of having Safe Routes to School and to advocate for policies and funding levels that are supportive of Safe Routes to School, active transportation and multi-modal transportation options. This position is also responsible for tracking the implementation of the recent MAP-21 transportation bill, researching and writing policy reports and papers on Safe Routes to School and related topics and producing blog posts and web content. The federal policy manager will collaborate closely with national and state coalition partners to advance active transportation policy and funding. The federal policy manager reports to the deputy director. 

For more information about the federal policy manager position, please see the detailed job description.

Qualifications:

• Minimum of four to five years’ proven experience in legislative or government affairs, with a strong preference for experience with federal transportation policy.
• Track record of analyzing and developing federal legislation and legislative campaigns.
• Experience in building coalitions and working with allied organizations to achieve policy change goals.
• Knowledge of Safe Routes to School programs or active transportation a plus.
• Effective public speaker comfortable presenting in front of large groups or one-on-one.
• Strong writing skills, including writing for legislative and non-legislative grassroots audiences.
• Ability to travel to group meetings and conferences as required. Anticipated travel to be approximately two to four out of state trips a year and regular travel (without overnight stays) in the DC region. Occasional work in the evenings or weekends to attend receptions or events.
• Ability to work from home, to work independently (self-starter) and as a team member with minimal supervision.
• Self-motivated, organized, strong attention to detail, creative and energetic.
• Ability to follow-up in a timely manner and to work under tight deadlines/schedules.
• Proficient with PCs and with MS Office software.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience required.

Background:  The Safe Routes to School National Partnership was founded in 2005 and is a network of more than 600 organizations. Its mission is to advance safe walking and bicycling to and from schools, and in daily life, to improve the health and well-being of America’s children and to foster the creation of livable, sustainable communities.  The National Partnership is hosted by the non-profit Bikes Belong Foundation.

Annual Salary:  This “at will” position offers a starting annual salary of $48,000 to $60,000/year, depending on experience, plus health insurance benefits, paid time off and optional participation in a deferred compensation plan. A PC computer, telephone and internet access will be provided. All Safe Routes to School National Partnership personnel are employees of the Bikes Belong Foundation and work from home offices.

To Apply: Interested applicants should submit (via email) a cover letter, resume and three writing samples in one PDF file to hr@saferoutespartnership.org. The PDF file shall be named as follows:  [LastName]_FederalPolicyManager.pdf.  Ensure that the subject line of your email includes the text “Federal Policy Manager.” We are not accepting email or telephone call inquiries.

Receipt of applications will be acknowledged with an email reply.  Applications will be accepted until January 6, 2014.  Applications must be submitted in the format indicated in order to be considered.  Applying soon is encouraged as the position will be open until filled, and interviews will be conducted on a rolling basis.

Visit www.saferoutespartnership.org for more information about the Safe Routes to School National Partnership