Youth and older adults have similar needs when it comes to navigating our streets on foot. Whether a second grader is walking to school, their grandfather is walking to the corner store with their shopping trolley, or their aunt is walking to the park to socialize – we need accessible destinations, continuous paths, and safe crossings.

But what does an inter-generational safe street look like? Here’s your chance to show us.

AARP Oregon and the Safe Routes Partnership are working together to bring Oregonians an Inter-generational Safe Streets Challenge. We invite you to tell us your proposed Inter-generational Safe Streets Challenge project and we will support your project with a stipend of $1,000 to make it happen.

The rules are simple:

• The project must engage older adults and K-12 students (all other ages welcome, too!)
• The stipend must be used directly to complete the challenge.
• The planning process must get started before December 1, 2016
• The project must be completed by July 31, 2017.
• Selected challenge team must submit a short two-page summary of the challenge project (including photos) telling us about what you did/the process; who was involved; and the outcome.
• Challenge team will obtain photo release from participants.
• The summary of your project may be shared on media and/or social media.
• Eligible applicants must already work in or with a school at the time of application

Winning entries will receive a $1,000 award after verification of nonprofit or school status. Application must come from a nonprofit or a school, checks cannot be made out to individuals. Award-winners will be required to complete their project by July 31, 2017 and submit a final report, photos and photo releases. If the project is not completed or a report is not submitted, the winner may be asked to return their award.

Following are five project ideas for the challenge. We welcome you to choose one of these, or if you have another idea, please let us know what you would like to do in the form below.

• Conduct an inter-generational walk audit
• Create a community safe streets map
• Do a temporary street demonstration project that creates a safe space for people of all ages
• Pilot a “walking school bus” engaging older adults to assist youth to walk to school
• Create a community safe routes with neighborhood older adults as route safeguards

Everything else – including how you work with the community and how you demonstrate what an inter-generational safe street looks like – is up to your team!

Application Deadline: Nov 1, 2016. Applications are now closed. Learn more about the successful application ideas.