Sharing What I Learned

I never set out to run for public office. I never set out to write and publish a book. But here I am. This book was written during the 2020 Corona virus pandemic, which has been a time of reflection.

My career of over 45 years has included policy development and international negotiations at NASA and NOAA, strategic planning and market research at a major aerospace corporation, program development and interdisciplinary program management at Scripps Institution of Oceanography and across the UC San Diego campus, teaching business ethics and corporate social responsibility to college students, and four years on the city council in a coastal Southern California city of about 63,000 population.

Since leaving office in 2016, I’ve been dabbling with memoir writing, consulting, traveling, and always volunteering and political activism.

One thing I’ve wanted to understand is why some citizen advocates are listened to, and their ideas and proposals are taken seriously, even if they are not always adopted as proposed. Other people put in just as much time and effort, but don’t seem to have any impact. What makes the difference?

After much reflection and lots of discussion with public officials and activists, a few key lessons emerged. This book is intended to share those lessons through the journeys of three fictional residents, each with a different issue or concern.

#civics #activist #localpolitics