Zion Lewis

Ariana Simms

CINQ397

Blog Post

 

Visualize your partner network and explain how it works in simple words.

For each partner, explain

– Why should they partner with you?

– Inputs: What they contribute/invest?

– Outputs: What they receive in return?

– How will you go about building the partnership?

 

Collaborative Partnerships-

 

• Lehigh Valley Stands Up

 

Why: By partnering with us, Lehigh Valley Stands Up could bolster their credibility as an organization. Additionally, they should partner with us in order to educate us on different areas of our project they are more knowledgeable in, allowing the opportunity for us to do the same as well.

 

Inputs- Resources, Knowledge, Access.

 

Outputs- Quality work that can provide them with prestige as well as accolades in the industry.

• Lehigh Valley Justice Institute 

– Why should they partner with you?

We can gain knowledge from them in regards to what different endeavors they have taken on that are closely related to our research. Additionally, we can learn of different ways to strategize from them given that they have proven experience

– Inputs: What they contribute/invest?

Insight. Access to meetings and events we’d like to attend.

– Outputs: What they receive in return?

Symbiotic work that would benefit both parties. 

– How will you go about building the partnership?

 

Local Law Enforcement

– Why should they partner with you?

Because we both are focusing on the issues within their industry

 

– Inputs: What they contribute/invest?

Data. Access. Various resources, and experience.

They can contribute access to data, insight into their training and more. 

– Outputs: What they receive in return?

A better relationship with the community that they serve. Possibility for a reduction in adverse outcomes. 

– How will you go about building the partnership?

Reaching out to local law enforcement, possibly utilizing our other partners to gain access

 

• Already existing alternative 911 programs 

– Why should they partner with you?

They would be a useful resource to have because they are doing the same work that they are trying to accomplish. 

– Inputs: What they contribute/invest?

Their insights and potential access to useful contacts 

– Outputs: What they receive in return?

They are working towards the same mission. So we both may possibly have connections and information that can benefit the other party. 

– How will you go about building the partnership?

Reaching out through email and explaining who we are, what our project is, and what we are trying to achieve. 

• Lehigh Community Service Office 

– Why should they partner with you?

They should partner with us because our project is composed of Lehigh students and we are working 

– Inputs: What they contribute/invest?

They can help us get into contact with local organizations and groups that work with individuals 

– Outputs: What they receive in return?

Ultimately we hope to positively impact the community with our project, so by working with us they are going to be able to help us with our goal to assist the community. 

– How will you go about building the partnership?

By reaching out to the community service office via email and explaining to them what our goals are and what we are trying to achieve. And then furthermore explaining to them the ways that we think we can collaborate and what we would like to gain from a partnership  

 

Zion Lewis 

Ariana Simms

 

Organizations Blog Post 9/28

Multilateral Organizations-

1. Partner to form a union of countries dedicated to keeping police interactions healthy and non-violent. Once formed, create a program and training that officers can participate in.
2. Interact with multilateral police brutality organizations/ race reform that will enable us to obtain and compare data from other countries about the amount of violent police encounters experienced typically.

 

Government Agencies-

1. Review the processes by which the government can call for mandate’s to be issued about certain behavior. Consider the framework of the police system nationally, and attempt to realign it to modern times and the issues most prevalent that we see.
2. Partner with mental health agencies to advocate for added mental health awareness in the justice system’s interactions (commercials, government advertisements)

Non-Profits-

1. Use the space of a non-profit to create a division for giving training sessions as well as distributing informational packets and materials for people interested in our mission.
2. Run a fundraiser with a non-profit focused on police brutality. Being that the fundraiser wouldn’t be paying for people’s salaries, the money made during the fundraiser would allow for spending on informational materials or even developing further advancements.

Foundations-

1. Partner with the Police Foundation (1970), learn how they plan on using tech and other things to advance the mission of improving policing for all. By learning from them, we can use things from their business model in order to advance our venture in regards to different ways that we may be able to improve policing in abstract ways. As the Police Foundation was primarily focused on improving policing with technology.
2. Collaborate with the Chales Koch foundation which is a foundation dedicated to eliminating over policing, policing, due process, and sentencing.

Academia

1. Work with a research university similar to Lehigh to discover more about the region-specific data regarding police stops to analyze any patterns existing or anything that is experienced on college campuses that is different from any other area of society. (big population, small, majority race, etc)
2. Use a local University (Lehigh) space to give a talk about the work that we’re doing and to encourage people to participate in whichever capacity they find comfortable.

Startups

1. Partner with a tech startup looking to develop applications in order to develop a technological aspect to our project that can be accessed by all therefore making it  more accessible, and more known.
2. Create a symbiotic relationship between the venture and a startup, where in return for advertising and utilizing their good/product, they would use ours thus allowing both of our products to grow considering their respective markets are close in identity.

Social Ventures

1. Partner with a venture focused on similar goals but within a different branch of the overarching systemic issue.
2. Work with a closely related venture to develop a product that would encapsulate both of our projects while keeping our original goal paths in mind.

Think Tanks

1. Send our ideas to a think tank dedicated towards working the inner makings of police brutality and ultimately find a solution for a centuries old issue.
2. Using grant money or other funding, pay for our project’s potential solutions to be discovered and published by a think tank team.

K-12 System

1. Use a system of local public schools (separated by school district or region) to hold a series of awareness talks about the realities of police brutality as well as the way in which we plan on combating it and can change it. Discuss the systemic aspects as well.
2. (Includes another partner) However work within the government to at least have Critical race theory continued to be taught in schools as well as units about the systemic history and effects of the policing system in America.

Corporations

1. ‘Sell’ our idea to a corporation, hoping they can either sponsor our project in whichever capacity it is. Consider the typical market for this brand and how they would react to our partnership.
2. Utilize a corporation that cares about our project’s goals, and offer them the opportunity to take aspects of our projects as their likeness so they can make money in return for their name and passive advertisement.

Consulting Firms

1. Contact a social consulting firm like ERPI that would be able to point us in the direction for the goals and desires of our project.
2. Use a business consulting firm to help us discover the most profitable ways to finalize our project in regards to the actual product and the way that police brutality is disencourage and ultimately decreased as a result.

Zion Lewis

Emma Burke

Fatima Mumtaz

Ariana Simms

Grassroots Diplomacy Strategy Development Methodology

Step 1: Determine the facts in the situation – obtain all of the unbiased facts possible

• 4 kids were given hats 
• Jack is going to be staying at the youth center (schooling, health center, general resources for street kids) 5 months 
• The staff was unconcerned about the 4 kids who were not given the same gifts as the majority 
• Presents sent by an international donation organization
• Staff members allocated and labeled the gifts for the children
• Jack was invited to give out the gifts because of his status as a guest
• The kids were convinced that Jack was the one who got the gifts for them
• Kids are mad about the way they received the gifts rather than just the gift itself.

Step 2: Define the problem and the stakeholders – those with a vested interest in the outcome

• The kids who did not get a hat, want to get a gift
• Jack who gave the gifts and got the mad faces
• The staff who bought the gifts but didn’t buy enough or care
• The kids who did not get a hat didn’t get the same ceremony like everyone else

Step 3: Determine and distinguish between the personal and professional motivations of the stakeholders.

• Kids
  • Don’t want to be unprofessional and unthankful for their gifts outwardly
  • Are personally unhappy with the hats
  • Want to maintain status and relationships with their peers, staff, and with Jack.
• Jack
  • Seems uncomfortable at the prospect of taking credit for getting the gifts for the kids, but recognizes the value of his relationship with them.
  • Doesn’t want to personally upset the kids who he is to be with for a while
  • Doesn’t want to professionally annoy the staff and seem unprofessional.
• Staff
  • They have professional concerns, don’t want Jack to create issues for them
  • Allocate gifts to the kids where they were available.

 

Step 4: Formulate (at least three) alternative solutions – based on information available, to have a win-win situation for your relationship and your venture.

Approaches [1/2/3: repeat for every action]

 

• Potential Solution: 1
  • going out and getting gifts for the four that didn’t get gifts 
• How does it solve the problem?
  o Pros: 
  • give the four kids gifts and make them feel appreciated
  • Make the kids not hate Jack
• o Cons: 
  • introduces additional costs where funding might not be available
  • Making the staff think lesser of Jack
• How does it save the face of those involved?
  • Protecting Jack’s reputation as the suspected gift giver. He is being fair to all kids by giving a gift.
  • Save the face of the kids who did not receive a gift. Reduces questions from themselves and others about why they specifically did not receive one.
• Implications on relationships
  o Short-term 
  • Kids like him 
  • Staff is annoyed by him
• o Long-term
  • Kids will remember him as thoughtful 
  • Staff may make fun of him
• Implications on the venture
  o Short-term
  • Kids get gifts
• o Long-term
  • What if there are more kids the next year that don’t get gifts? May ruin the budget the center has if money gets spent on getting more presents.
  • Sets precedent that Jack or the Center has the resources to go out and buy gifts, which they might not.

 

• Potential Solution: 2
  • Telling the 4 kids who have given the hats the reality of the situation, that they were 4 gifts short. And then tell the kids that they are going to work to get them the same gifts.
• How does it solve the problem?
• o Pros: 
  • honest with them so they will be less upset about the situation.
  • Eventually going to get them the gifts.
  • Jack will get to explain that he is not the one that is responsible. Avoids hard “no”s, keeping the chance for a gift open without making promises either.
• o Cons
  • Does not resolve the disappointment the children have about not receiving their gifts in the ceremonial fashion 
• How does it save the face of those involved?
  • This saves face for the staff because it would be dealt with in a way that only involved those who were impacted and not publicly. 
  • This saves face for Jack because if the situation is explained to the kids then they would probably be less upset with him specifically
• Implications on relationships
• o Short-term
  • Kids may be temporarily bothered by the fact they didn’t get a specific gift. 
• o Long-term
  • Building honest/truthful communication between center staff, guests, and kids.
• Implications on the venture
• o Short-term
  • Children will be less upset assuming they are going to get gifts
• o Long-term
  • Can be assumed that Jack is going to keep getting them things

 

• Potential Solution: 3
  • Giving the 4 kids who were not gifted the hats in a ceremonial way, a ceremony where they received something
• How does it solve the problem?
  • Solves the issue of them being upset that they didn’t get the hats in the same way that the other students got gifts and makes them feel appreciated 
• o Pros
  • Allows the children to not feel left out
  • Would improve Jack’s relationship with the kids 
• o Cons
  • The staff would be annoyed 
  • Does not resolve the issue quickly
  • Possibly would confuse/upset the other children.
    • They may question why these 4 kids are receiving this special ceremony
• How does it save the face of those involved?
  • Saves face for the 4 children, because it would remove the question of what reasons led to them not ceremonially getting gifts in the first place
  • Would save face for Jack because the kids would not be upset 
  • Would not impact the staff, since there is no blame 
• Implications on relationships
• o Short-term
  • It Will make the kids feel happy
• o Long-term
  • This will negatively impact Jack’s relationship with the staff at the center, they do not see an issue and he is going against them 
• Implications on the venture
• o Short-term
  • Solves the issue without getting the kids new gifts
  • Kids who only got hats may be embarrassed for being put on a show
• o Long-term
  • Makes the staff think lesser of jack because he is wasting time
  • Embarrassing the kids who did not get the hats

 

• Potential Solution: 4
  • Telling all the children who were responsible for sending them the gifts that they received 
• How does it solve the problem?
  • Takes the responsibility away from the staff and jack and solves the issue of the kids being mad at the staff and jack for something that wasn’t there fault
• o Pros
  • Removes animosity towards Jack as the reason 4 kids didn’t get gifts
  • No expectation to spend resources getting additional gifts.
• o Cons
  • Does not resolve the disappointment these children feel
  • Still mad at jack 
  • Makes staff and donor look bad for not getting enough 
• How does it save face of those involved?
  • The failure of four kids to recieve gifts is no longer placed on Jack
  • Removes blame and appreciation from the staff and Jack
• Implications on relationships
• o Short-term
  • Makes them see jack as reasonable for explaining to him
• o Long-term
  • May affect the youth centers relationship with external funding/gift giving 
  • May make youth not trust staff and others as they are coming short 
• Implications on the venture
• o Short-term
  • The children possibly will not see Jack as favorably since they know he was not responsible for the gifts 
• o Long-term
  • Children may fight for toys and gifts since some 

Step 5: Seek additional assistance, as appropriate – previous cases, peers, reliance on personal experience, inner reflection

• Maybe Jack could ask a single staff member who he trusts more than the rest what they think the best decision would be to do. 

Step 6: Select the best course of action – that solves the problem, saves face and has the best short- term and long-term implications for your relationship and venture. Explain reasoning and discuss your solution vis-a-vis other approaches discussed in class.

• The best course of action would be to do nothing. 

This would save face because it wouldn’t put the kids in a spotlight which would make them embarrassed for being the only ones who didn’t get a gift and it would save face for the staff and Joe because they wouldn’t have to explain why they messed up on giving gifts or anything like that. 

The short-term implications of this would be that the kids would be a little upset for a while but eventually, the next round of gifts would come around and they would be fine. They may have a bad relationship with Jack for a little bit of time as they get over this incident happening but then they will be fine. 

The long term implications of this would be that the kids won’t think of Jack as a person who can give them things all the time and take advantage of that. It will also keep the staff from calling jack names and thinking little of him.

This solution would be better than others because it is the easiest way to go about the situation without ruining the balance that exists between the staff and the kids. It protects Jack from being someone who ruins this balance and loses face in the eyes of both the kids and the staff. 

Step 7: List the sequence of actions you will take to implement your solution.

• Step 1: tell jack not to engage with the kids who received the hats and are unhappy. 
• Step 2: make sure the staff know that Jack isn’t going to be doing anything about the situation so that they don’t tease him anymore about it
• Step 3: get Jack introduced to the kids and make him get on their food side in another way other than giving them gifts

 

Testing water sources

 

Is it ethical to conduct this study?

Yes as long as others can build onto it

• Test water sources for disease pathogens 
• Need assistance from the community 
• It is not ethical to conduct the study without a pension considering the members of the community could benefit from a small profit that might help their community immensely. 
• Considering there are several publications willing to work alongside there might be enough money for the citizens to gain 

 

Facts in the Situations: 

• Low and Middle-Income Countries: Lesotho is a small developing country in South Africa 
• Mission: test water sources 
• Pathogen only found in Lesotho
• Community members will have to help find and store water

 

Define Stakeholders and Motivations: 

• Primary: Community members 
  • Money (if provided)
  • Safe water 
  • Knowledge for their own solution 
• Primary: Academic researchers (10)
  • Understanding lifecycle 
  • Educating others on the pathogen 
• Secondary: Scientific community 
  • Absorb information for their future publications and studies 
• Secondary: Low and Middle-Income countries with similar issues
• Secondary: Organizations/agencies the researchers belonging to
• Lesotho’s environment 
• People previously affected by the pathogen

 

Formulate alternative solutions:

1. Members of the research team would find the locations of the water resources themselves in order to remove the issue of compensation.
   1. Pros: This is ethically sound and does not impose upon the community
   2. Cons: Intruding on the community 
2. Using money as an incentive to force the Lesotho community to work with them.
   1. Pros: Can help community members economically
   2. Cons: Community members might find it offensive if not communicated appropriately
3. Emphasizing the importance of the testing 
   1. Pros: Researchers will gain the community’s trust and promote education
   2. Cons: Community being against the testing based on their new knowledge 

Seek additional assistance, as appropriate – engineering codes of ethics, previous cases, peers, reliance on personal experience, inner reflection

• Looking for best practices in working with low and medium-income communities
• If compensating, looking for the appropriate rate to pay members

 

Select the best course of action – that which satisfies the highest core ethical values. Explain reasoning and justify. Discuss your stance vis-a-vis other approaches discussed in the class. 

Overall the best course of action would be for the researchers to compensate the citizens in order for there to be an appropriate transaction between the two. Ethically this would allow for the community to understand how gracious and empathetic the researchers feel towards them. 

 

(If applicable) What are the implications of your solution on the venture. Explain the impact of your proposed solution on the venture’s technology, economic, social, and environmental aspects.

Although it doesn’t directly affect the venture, our solution will only be able to positively influence and aid the community.

Summer Recap

 

This summer we were able to accomplish setting up the platforms that we need to begin collecting the autoethnographies. These platforms include our website, and google forms. We have already gotten our google form translated to Spanish. And we are going to work on getting our flyer translated to other languages. This summer we were also able to redirect and begin doing work on another component of this larger issue, going beyond just learning about alternative 911 programs. We decided to work on the ethnographies so that we could highlight the voices of those who have been impacted by policing and the criminal justice system.

 

We decided that we were going to redirect from just researching the broad and extensive alternative emerging 911 programs and also hone in on looking into the more established alternative 911 programs because some of those programs have had many published studies and have already documented that the work and features of the program has been successful. So even though there are certainly many routes to go and features that would work in these programs, the feedback that we have been hearing is that the more established programs would be easier to explain and prove the efficacy of alt 911 models. 

 

We both are not from the Lehigh Valley, and have made this area one of our homes due to our attendance at Lehigh University. And while we are passionate about social justice we understand that our voices and even our experiences are ultimately not paramount here. We want and honestly need to listen to those who are full time residents, and have and are and will continue to be most impacted by these programs and policing. 

 

Goals:

 

New partnerships – we plan on gaining and establishing new partnerships through our distribution of materials and more importantly our flyer. Although several local establishments have been contacted, we still would like to solidify our strategy in regards to where we place our flyers as well as why. 

 

Distributing flyers and other recruitment materials – Our flyers need to be distributed in areas where there is a high probability of people interacting with our ‘product’. We have also considered the amount of interactions and web traffic we may be able to gather if we are actively sharing our work via social media– we think that this may bring about more total traffic, but from a different demographic as opposed to those interacting with the physical poster.

 

Collect more stories 

 

IRB approval: It is important that we get IRB approval so that we have the ability to collect these ethnographies in more ways. In order for us to collect these stories in person we need to get IRB approval, this is important to us because we think that we would be able to reach more people and collect stories from people who possibly don’t have access to the internet or devices that would be needed to complete the google form. Additionally, by gaining IRB approval we would be able to engage in deeper conversations with participants and close upon gaps existing through the first stage of our research.

 

 

 

• Identify five things you could do better with your seven-minute presentation.

1. Screen share in a different way for the next presentation 
2. There were some issues with our slides, so making sure those are cleaner and clearer in the future 
3. Condense the information that we are sharing in order to make sure that we are not running out of time
4. Be better prepared to answer questions from the referees in a concise way 
5. Add in graphs and figures, slides were wordy

• Did you respond to the referees’ questions in a concise and precise manner? Describe five responses you could have approached differently.

1. I think the question about our community partners, was answered to the best of the knowledge that we have, but we should spend more time learning about the LVJI and our other partners even though we are not working on that side of the project 
2. The response on how the police could be an asset or barrier to working with us, the response was not very concise so there would definitely be an opportunity to learn more about this aspect and formulate a better response 
3. On the point of who and how interviews will be conducted, being that we both are not working on that side of the project, making sure that we communicate with the rest of our team on this matter. So that for the next presentation we can have a response and more to share. 
4. There were questions about the alt 911 programs that we are focusing on, so it would be good for us to have back up slides with information about the Denver STAR and Houston, Harris center, so that the referees can see that clearly and also would overall add to the presentation
5. There were questions about the Lehigh Valley in particular, and the types of incidents(mental health, etc.) that are received here. We did not respond to that well because we had not looked into that, so we will do that and make sure to include that in presentations moving forward.

• Identify five techniques / strategies (content, design, answering questions, etc) that other teams did particularly well…that you could adopt for your own team.

1. Other teams had really nicely designed slides, I think that is something that we can improve on for next time 
2. Being that our team is only 2 members, we were not able to have someone else help us with sharing the screen, so possibly with more practice we can have a smoother transition between slides in the future 
3. There was a nice slide detailing team members so that is something we can add
4. We need to create graphics, other teams did that and it definitely added to the clarity and understanding of their presentation 
5. Adopt the strategy of transitioning back and forth between two speakers, clearer script    

 

Team Name: _____________________________________   Date: _________________
Goals	·      What are the personal goals (small g) of each member on this team? (Team Member #1,#2, #3, etc) Make sure they connect to the DREAM on the Individual Profile.  ·      What is the Project GOAL (big G) we’re all committed to achieve together? ·       Is our Project Goal scaled to our resources (dreams, materials, skills, differences, etc.) and constraints (assignment, time, skills, etc.)  ·      What are the metrics for success for what we’re producing?
Roles	·      Who is responsible for which deliverables? ·      Which deliverables that require collaboration, subgroups & individual work? Who does each person depend upon to succeed? ·      Do we need a project manager to coordinate?  ·      What are the deliverables each person is accountable to produce?
Procedures	·      Decision Making – What process shall we use: consensus, majority rules, deference to expert, default to the loudest, or? ·      Effective Meetings – Focus on key, timely decisions together vs. status/update (offline);  ·      Meeting roles: scribe, facilitator, time keeper  ·      Communication – FTF: frequency, time, location; type of technology: (Googledocs, Hangout, etc.); expectations for responsiveness; ‘best time to work’ (AM, PM, weekends?)
Relationships	·      Team Diversity – What is the diversity on our team? Disciplines to tap for solutions;  individual learning styles for the stages of invention;  overall team learning style strengths and places to supplement;  cultural backgrounds , work experience,  dreams to leverage for scope & impact of goals, new roles, better procedures;  languages for more diverse customer set, bigger market; ·      Listening – Notice my binary thinking, auto-rankism, and go beyond it.  ·      Team Name–What’s a team name that captures who we are and what we’re going to do?

 

Team Name:     Lehigh Valley Justice Initiative    Date: _March 2021___
Goals	Small g Creating a positive change  Preventing more adverse outcomes from the improper response to certain incidents  Helping others  Big G Preventing adverse outcomes that come from interactions with law enforcement  Bringing more resources into communities to address public health crises Change in the way that police and others respond to issues  Make a strong case for implementing alt 911 programs here in the Lehigh valley  It is really hard to say if the goals and ultimate impact that we hope to create as a project team are scaled to our resources. There are many outside factors that we can not have control over and especially not within a short or foreseeable time period. With the work our team is doing I think that making a case and providing evidence for the efficacy and benefits of alternative 911 programs, it is scaled to our resources. But the ultimate implementation is not something that we can entirely control or concretely say when.
Roles	Both of our roles in relation to the distribution of work for the team are comparable.  We each have to do research on alternative 911 programs. It is important that we communicate effectively with one another so that the work that we are doing does not overlap.
Procedures	Consensus, weekly meetings, google docs and email for communication
Relationships	Relationship with our project team, made up of 3 students and 2 professors. At this point the 2 of us who are in the CINQ class do not have a relationship with the Lehigh Valley Social Justice Institute, but the professors do.  Community involvement(these initiatives are going to impact them the most, they should have a say and hopefully a part in the formation and implementation) Criminal Justice System(police departments, courts, police officers, etc.) Lehigh Valley Social Justice Institute Local Elected Officials

 

1. My team’s work does not require IRB approval. Particularly at the stage that we are at. The work that I am doing in regards to my project is exploring and looking into alternative 911 programs and all of the data that I am accessing is publicly available and has no information that needs to be privacy protected. Also, I am not creating new studies for my project so there are no human subjects that I or any member of my project team are currently working with. 

 

Eventually, after we learn more about the current alternative 911 programs that are working and not working we plan to work with the Lehigh Valley Justice Institute to implement these strategies here within the Lehigh Valley. I am not sure if that would need approval from the IRB because if the changes that we suggest get implemented then there would be an impact on people’s lives. So my team would likely need IRB approval but not at this time and also depending on if the changes we suggest are accepted here. 

 

1.Who are you?

• Zion Lewis and Ariana Simms, and we are Lehigh Valley Social Impact Fellows who are a part of the Lehigh Valley Justice Initiative project

2.What are you doing?

• We are working towards compiling evidence and pushing an agenda for alternate 911 programs to be utilized across the country. We are learning about the different programs that exist around the country, how they have been successful, and questioning if these programs are viable long-term solutions for police brutality and excessive force situations.

3.Where will you be doing it?

• We are learning about programs throughout the country and world, but we are specifically working towards implementing an alternative 911 program within the Lehigh Valley

4.Why are you doing it? (what problem are you solving/addressing?)

• In order to change the approach that is taken when addressing public health issues and ultimately improving outcomes and preventing adverse situations that can come from interactions with law enforcement 

5.How are you doing it?

• Making a case for the implementation of alternative 911 programs here within the Lehigh Valley, by finding programs that are effective throughout the country and even the world and explaining the benefits which can be allowing those in need to receive the proper help, it can be cost-effective, and more

6.Credibility/validity – partners? funders? 

• Our partners are the Lehigh Valley Social Justice Institute

1. List ten things that make you feel human.

 

 

 

1. Taking a shower.
2. Eating food when hungry.
3. Writing with a pen and paper.
4. Long, intellectual conversations.
5. Immersing myself in water.
6. Making beats with random things around me.
7. Hiking 
8. Discovering new highlights of nature.
9. Seeing the landscape around me move fast.
10. Waking up

 

 

 

 

1. Why should I engage?

To aid the community of mentally ill people who have fallen victim to police, and to help communities become semi-entrusting of alternate 911 programs.

 

2. How must I engage?

From a distance, with community liaisons and partners, with an end goal of discovering the most about alt 911 programs in the area and their functionality.

 

3. With whom must I engage?

Community leaders, volunteers, and police departments both locally and nationally.

 

4. What kinds of challenges, opportunities, and approaches should I care about?

Resistance in attitudes from opposing-minded people. Lack of information, as well as a possible misunderstanding of certain programs’ actual goals.

 

5. What might my epitaph read?

 

“Here lies a good man, who died on a hill of hard work and honor.”

 

A design process that is unique to me would be one that focuses on people while utilizing social skills and platforms to spread awareness about our product(s) and the way in which they help communities. I personally think that also incorporating a way for people to visualize the perspective change that our project would bring would be beneficial.

 

Police Departments

• Closest understanding of distress calls
• Understanding of the community
• Can give arrest records and other important documents regarding arrests
• Potential backlash regarding our goal
• Stories from police officer’s perspective

 

Alternate 911 programs

– Closest to understanding the potential of alt 911 programs.

– Most experience in regards to the breakthrough legislature as well as movements to get programs in place.

–  Statistics and cases.

– Mutual interest

 

Community Volunteers

• First-hand experience with distress calls.
• Knowledgeable of the processes it takes to create effective programs
• In-depth understanding of tight-knit communities formed from programs (i.e Harris, Houston Texas)
• Access to statistics regarding distress calls and distribution of team members.

 

3 ways to validate project concept and usability

• We can validate project concept and usability by providing statistics regarding the way in which alternate 911 programs can assist in reducing violent confrontations with police.
• Another way we can validate our project is by highlighting the shared experiences of community volunteers who have worked with particularly successful programs. This will show the way in which programs can benefit the communities they are stationed in.
• We can measure the usability of our concept by comparing the way in which traffic stops and other police interactions when resolved typically, as opposed to when resolved with alternative programs.