Marketing & Communications
Division of University Relations and Development
News Release
|
PRESS RELEASE Contact: Jason Foster SDSU TO LAUNCH NEW FORUM FOR CIVIC ENGAGEMENT SAN DIEGO, Monday, December
8, 2003 -- San Diego State University announced today the
formation of a pioneering forum for civic engagement and journalism
called "Envision San Diego: The Creative Community." The initiative is a groundbreaking partnership
between KPBS, SignOnSanDiego.com (The San Diego Union-Tribune's
leading local online news and information source), and SDSU's International
Center for Communications that is designed to enhance citizen awareness
of and commitment to solving major public policy issues affecting
the development of the region. It will do this through a combination
of in-studio programs, neighborhood-based online discussions and
town hall meetings that will begin in early 2004. An official launch for Envision San Diego also
is planned for March 31 as part of SDSU Month, a monthlong celebration
of the contributions of the university's students, faculty and alumni
to the community. Backing the partnership are a large number of corporations
and civic organizations from throughout the region that have formed
a new collaborative - the City of the Future Steering Committee
- and will assist and advise the media partnership. (A list of members
is attached at the end of this release.) "Envision San Diego: The Creative Community
provides a missing link and a model for the debate and discussion
in communities across the country that are trying to reinvent themselves
for the new global knowledge-based economy and society," said
SDSU President Stephen L. Weber. "What has been missing in
our own discussions is the recognition of the enormous role the
media play in fostering civic awareness. You cannot have an informed
and effective citizenry if it does not know the issues, and the
media plays a vital role in that informative effort." SDSU's International Center for Communications,
under the guidance of Executive Director John M. Eger, initiated
this new partnership and has worked on the City of the Future initiative
since 1993. The center recently released a seminal report called
"The Creative Community" in which it defined a creative
community as one "that fully recognizes the basic shift in
the structure of the global economy from one based on the production
of goods and services to one based on the production, storage, transfer
and use of knowledge or information; and, as such, promotes: 1)
connectivity to ensure we have the new information infrastructures
for the 21st century; 2) collaboration and civic engagement to provide
the kind of leadership the digital age requires; and 3) creativity
in all its forms - in the schools, in the workplace, and throughout
the community." Doug Myrland, general manager of KPBS, emphasized
that the March 31 launch of "Envision San Diego: The Creative
Community" will represent the start of a comprehensive five-year
program in civic engagement for his station and other participants.
"In partnership with SignOnSanDiego.com and other media outlets
in the region, we hope to take the discussions in our studios and
online to every neighborhood in the region, and in turn to give
every neighborhood and the individuals in those neighborhoods an
opportunity to become directly involved in helping shape our future,"
he said. Ron James, Content Manager of SignOnSanDiego.com,
said, "Envision San Diego: The Creative Community will be another
major initiative on our part to help citizens not only know more
about their community, but help them better understand what we can
become and achieve together with their direct participation."
Over the next several weeks, readers, listeners
and viewers will be encouraged by KPBS television and radio and
SignOnSanDiego.com to begin expressing their views about San Diego's
future. During SDSU Month on March 31, KPBS will host a town hall
meeting at its studios and produce a special one-hour public affairs
program featuring what the steering committee believes are some
of the best ideas for ensuring San Diego's success well into the
21st century. For more information on Envision San Diego: The
Creative Community, contact SDSU's International Center for Communications
at (619) 594-6933 or john.eger@sdsu.edu. San Diego State University is the oldest and largest institution of higher education in the San Diego region. Founded in 1897, SDSU offers bachelor's degrees in 79 areas, master's degrees in 67 areas and doctorates in 14. SDSU's more than 34,000 students participate in academic curricula distinguished by direct contact with faculty and an increasing international emphasis that prepares them for a global future. For more information log on to www.sdsu.edu. ### 2004
CITY OF THE FUTURE Steering Committee Co-Chairs: Joyce Gattas Doug Myrland Andrew Poat Members: Mary Lou Aleskie Tom Blair Molly Cartmill Kevin Cottrell Peter Cowhey Kent Davy
John Hull Ron James Jessie Knight David Lang Kevin Leap Richard Louv Alberto Mier y Teran Joe Panetta Reint Reinders Daniel Sullivan Julie Meier Wright Daniel Yankelovich Isabella Furth Craddock Stropes
Peter Andersen David Dozier Mary Ann Eger Treacy Lau Jeffrey M. Wergeles Tom Karlo |
