17th August 2023

Dear Ely Chapter Members,

Last month I had the pleasure of moderating a discussion with our very own Jewell Walton and Christine Williams.  They both served on last year’s Legacy Committee; Jewell is our VP of Membership and Christine is a former Chapter President and serves as our society’s historian.

Christine set the stage with an overview of our chapter history, and a survey of Ely’s career and influence.  She shared the common misconception that Ely founded our chapter, he did not, it was named after him by a group of land economics students at Northwestern University in 1930.  We then discussed what equity means for us and where we should be applying our efforts.  What should we be doing to keep our chapter vibrant; bring relevant programming to a wide audience; attract quality candidates; and serve our community and professions?  Through a series of prompts we were able to gather live feedback.

Over the past five years, the Chapter Board has been engaged in intentional scrutiny of our practices around Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.  This year we have invited the whole chapter to join us in this work through a series of events.  In March, I released the Legacy Report which is posted on our website.   In April, we gathered in small groups to unpack past land use policies and debate how our industry should grapple with this inheritance. The conversations were broad and expansive, but the conclusion was universal – we cannot stand idle. The luncheon last month was the third touchpoint and now we are offering those unable to attend the opportunity to join the conversation.  Please use the provided Survey Link to answer the same prompts posed at the luncheon.  We will meet virtually on 28th August at noon to reveal the survey results.

The board acknowledges that equity is a process, whilst we have specific outcomes we want to assert, we recognize that the work is ongoing, and this year is not an end point.  The tangible step of changing the chapter name is an important one and should be taken.  We are not alone in considering this, the American Economics Association which was actually founded by Ely and where he served as president, resolved to rename its distinguished Richard T Ely lecture.  It is now the AEA Distinguished Lecture.  What matters is what we do next, and how we continue to open doors and make connections.  To that end, the Chapter Support Fund was launched this year. Through the generosity of our members, a financial resource is available to members via application on our website.  This resource can be used to offset the costs of attending our events or maintaining membership.

I look forward to seeing you on 28th August when we will also vote on the 2023 slate of nominees and at the Initiation and Awards Banquet being held 18th October.

Yours sincerely,

Lynsey J. G. Sorrell, AIA, LEED AP, MLAI

Ely Chapter President 2022-2023

lynsey@bureaugemmell.com

VIEW LEGACY REPORT