Towns, villages, and neighborhoods in Alabama, and across America, face an uncertain future — a future which is increasingly threatened by large scale change to economies, relocations by the population, telecommunication needs, housing shortages, public health challenges, a changing environment, the distribution of goods, and changes in land policy.

In the face of these forces, communities struggle to maintain their vitality and even their sense of identity. Whether the threat is sudden growth or stagnation, planning and design decisions can often make the difference between survival and decay, between healthy prosperity and decline. Despite the crucial importance of planning and design, small communities rarely have good access to professional assistance and information on the application of planning and design to their communities’ issues.

The Your Town Alabama program is a first step in meeting these needs. The workshop format is an intensive engagement of citizen leaders and professionals. Our time together is intended to be highly participatory with lectures, case study presentations, and interactive group problem solving, including work on realistic issues in a hypothetical small town. The goal is to provide advanced leadership skills supported by information and planning tools that can be taken home to all corners of our state and applied to the process of designing our future!