Have you decorated your bike tree and cookies yet? Sung your bike carols? Anxiously waited for the Bike Month peloton to land on your rooftop? I hope so.

With gas prices climbing and environmental concerns increasing, this is a particularly good year to celebrate National Bicycle Month. Started in 1956, National Bike Month is still going strong and growing.

To celebrate, take a minute (well, two) to watch this great little video about one man’s bike commute.

Mat’s Commute from Mat Barlow on Vimeo.

NEW NATIONAL LEGISLATION
Complete Streets Bill Now in House and Senate
(05.05.08) Representative Doris Matsui (D-CA) took an important step on Thursday, May 1 for safer, better designed streets yesterday by introducing the Safe and Complete Streets Act of 2008 (HR 5951) into the U.S. House. Click here to read more.

UPCOMING EVENTS
May 16: Bike to Work Day
Not a centralized national event, so you might want to Google “Bike To Work Day 2008″ for more events in your area.

May 21: Ride of Silence
Ride of Silence will begin in North America and roll across the globe. Cyclists will take to the roads in a silent procession to honor cyclists who have been killed or injured while cycling on public roadways. Although cyclists have a legal right to share the road with motorists, the motoring public often isn’t aware of these rights, and sometimes not aware of the cyclists themselves.

FOR MORE BICYCLE AND CYCLING ADVOCACY INFO
Bikes Belong Coalition
(very nice design, excellent up-to-date content)

League of American Bicyclists
(great advocacy info and contact forms to talk to politicians about cycling rights/issues)

Bicycling Magazine’s This Just In blog

Please feel free to share links and resources that you find helpful. Happy National Bike Month!

We spend a tremendous amount of time in business talking about global sustainability issues — like what practices do our firms put in place to save trees and use less oil? Unfortunately, I fear that most sustainability discussions are little more than lip service; more marketing hype than anything.

We worry, too — what about the sustainability of our own neighborhoods, our schools, our future work force, our health care services?

At Hanson Dodge Creative we’re trying to bring sustainability discussions closer to home and, as a business, get involved.

That’s why, as of yesterday, Hanson Dodge Creative stands proudly as one of the first businesses in Milwaukee to become a founding member of Common Ground, a powerful new force for community change in Southeastern Wisconsin. Common Ground is founded on the principles that: 1) if we don’t engage, change can’t happen, and 2) if we unite to demand change in our community, anything is possible.

Over 2,300 people from over 60 regional churches, non-profits and other organizations — representing the wonderful and diverse ethnic and faith groups that are Southeastern Wisconsin — came together yesterday at Milwaukee’s Midwest Airlines Center to launch the founding of Common Ground. Together we will work to tackle issues like job creation, health care for underserved populations, central city crime and skyrocketing unemployment, among other issues.

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