Page 288 - BWA FEB 2013

288 | Business World Magazine | February 2013
had citizens with ideas, and a city manage-
ment and council, that was willing to listen
to those ideas… as a smaller community, we
were able to be flexible and be very engaged
with the citizenry that were driving the ideas
which helped make our community what it
is today.”
Those efforts began with a recycling
program in the early 90s, followed by educa-
tion campaigns to inform residents about the
benefits of recycling and conversation. Then,
in what may be the greatest testament to the
community flexibility, City leaders began to
examine their own operations. Community
Information Officer Sharon Logan explains
that the city started analyzing whether it was
practicing what it preached, and determined
to set the example they would encourage
others to follow. “We had to become the ex-
ample for the adoptions the community has
picked-up.”
Culture change isn’t easy, as Vanhoozi-
er says, “Sometimes, it is easier for an organi-
zation to look outside, but not at itself, when
it comes to enforcing regulations… and it
took time to develop a system that allowed
us to better regulate ourselves.”
What began as a simple recycling cam-
Shoppers at the Coppell
Farmers Market