You Might Already Be an Advocate

Bringing national advocacy training home to Arkansas

By Jessica Pearson, Founder of Arkansas Moves

One of my biggest takeaways from the League of American Bicyclists’ recent advocacy workshop in Chicago was this: so many people are advocates without even knowing it.

If you ride your bike to work, accompany your child to school, or pedal to a neighborhood business, you are making bicycling visible. You are showing that people want and use places to ride. You might even inspire someone else to give it a try.

Riding a bike is advocacy.

So is thanking your city for a new trail connection, supporting a business that welcomes bicycles, or showing up to celebrate a safer crossing. These everyday actions help build a community where walking and bicycling are familiar, valued parts of daily life.

This understanding of advocacy is central to our work at Arkansas Moves. It is also something I was proud to bring to Chicago on September 16–17, when I participated in the League Cycling Advocate workshop and trainer development program.

I returned home as one of only five National League Cycling Advocate Trainers in the nation. Being invited to help develop this program from the ground up is a tremendous honor. It gives me the opportunity to contribute what we are learning in Arkansas while helping shape how community advocates across the country are trained and supported.

This certification also equips me to bring the League’s advocacy workshop model home, giving more Arkansans access to practical tools for making a difference in their communities.

During the Chicago workshop, I presented “How to Get Organized / Working with Partners in Your Community.” Sharing our experience reinforced that the work happening through Arkansas Moves is inspiring other communities. Our coalition partnerships, bike trains, encouragement campaigns, and community celebrations offer examples that others can adapt to their own neighborhoods.

We see that inspiration spreading here at home, too. A school bike train gives another group of parents the confidence to start one. A business demonstrates how to welcome people arriving by bike, and others see an opportunity to participate. A community celebrates a new connection and helps build enthusiasm for the next one.

These experiences make change feel possible. They give people something tangible to join.

A message I wanted to share is one we have seen play out repeatedly at home: advocacy can be positive, approachable, and rooted in encouragement.

At Arkansas Moves, we have found tremendous success in organizing positive support and encouragement campaigns. We invite people to experience new infrastructure, celebrate progress, and recognize the people helping make our communities more connected.

A ribbon cutting gives residents an opportunity to show that an investment matters. A bike train helps families experience what a safe route to school can make possible. A thank-you message lets city staff and elected officials know their work is making a difference.

Together, these actions make community support visible. They give decision-makers encouragement to keep moving forward and give neighbors an approachable way to participate.

We can identify challenges, ask for improvements, and remain clear about our goals while leading with respect, gratitude, and a willingness to work together. That is how we build relationships that sustain progress.

The Chicago workshop provided tools for strengthening that work, including organizing, storytelling, coalition building, funding, policy, and engaging decision-makers. My goal is to bring those tools home and help more Arkansans recognize their own ability to contribute.

Through future League Cycling Advocate workshops and our existing coalitions, I plan to help community members turn their experiences into effective action. That might mean organizing support for a missing sidewalk, speaking about a school crossing, or helping neighbors communicate why a trail connection matters.

You can begin with something you already know: your own experience moving through your community.

Alongside that advocacy work, Arkansas Moves is investing in the educators who help people feel comfortable choosing a bike.

This December, Arkansas Moves will host a League Cycling Instructor certification seminar December 14–16 at NorthWest Arkansas Community College in Bentonville.

League Cycling Instructors, or LCIs, teach the League’s Smart Cycling curriculum to children and adults. They help people develop riding skills and confidence, and the certification seminar prepares candidates to teach those skills effectively.

Expanding our instructor network will help bring bicycle education to more schools, workplaces, and community settings. Together, advocacy training and cycling education help us build both community support and individual confidence.

If you are interested in participating in the December LCI training, please contact me at jessica@arkansasmoves.org for details about the seminar, prerequisites, and how to prepare.

I am grateful for the opportunity to help shape this national program and share what we are learning in Arkansas. Most of all, I want more people to recognize that they already have a place in this work.

Your ride, your encouragement, your presence at a celebration, and your willingness to share your experience all matter. You may already be an advocate. We would love to help you take your next step.