WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU. We want to be encouraged by your successes as you have waged the war against excess weight and other health matters. In each issue of our newsletter we will print one or more stories as we all try to encourage and inspire one another to stay the course. Submissions must be less than 1000 words and may be emailed to peter@speakwell.com ». Please include your name and your city.

A Walk Beyond Measurement

In Memory of Russ Kisby
The Russ Kisby Fitwalk — July 20, 2009

THOSE WHO LOST A FRIEND, husband, father and grandfather on July 20, 2007 are furthering the legacy of Participaction's Russ Kisby by dedicating an annual fitwalk to the inspiring Canadian.

They invite us all to be active, to take time in our day to go for a fitwalk wherever we are, whomever we're with, to honour the memory and passion of Russ and the ideals he spent a lifetime promoting.

Russ had a simple message, BE ACTIVE; it will improve your body, mind, life and spirit! He led by example in his work and in his life, spending 23 years as president of ParticipACTION urging Canadians to get active and inspiring similar programs in countries around the world.

Russ himself jogged for years, went to a fitness club almost daily and then it was brisk walking in his senior years. He did a daily half hour of weights and calisthenics — when he was recovering from cancer treatments and surgery he did as many daily "laps" of the upstairs of the house as he could manage.

We at Speakwell have always thought highly of Russ, and have hopefully helped to pass on his message and passion in articles in several issues of Well:

The Pied Piper of Physical Activity and Sport Participation
Entrances & Exits: A Farewell to Russ Kisby
Welcome back Participaction
Participaction's Russ Kisby is Alive & Well & Living in Toronto

When you've done your fitwalk, the fitnet folk invite you to add photographs and comments of your walk to their website: www.russkisbyfitwalk.com.

Three Cups of Tea in Taiwan

by Peter Mason

IN THE BOOK, Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin, there is this quote by Haji Ali, Korphe Village Chief, Karakoram Mountains, Pakistan,

“Here (in Pakistan and Afghanistan), we drink three cups of tea to do business; the first you are a stranger, the second you become a friend, and the third, you join our family, and for our family we are prepared to do anything — even die.”

In April, Rob and I took the opportunity and travelled to Taiwan to visit the factory where our pedometers are made. We always knew that we were purchasing an extremely good pedometer on behalf of our clients, and this trip confirmed why.

In anticipation of the trip I tried to picture what the factory would look like. They had said it was small and neat but what does small mean when you have never seen a factory that makes pedometers? I counted 15 people; 13 directly on the assembly line and another two at the testing station. I stood and watched every part of the assembly and was taken by the care, attention to detail and efficiency that goes into making your pedometers. On another day we watched the team shift over to another line and deal with the final package assembly and boxing.

The working conditions were excellent and, for those who are wondering, the youngest person was in his early to mid twenties. The majority of the workers were in their thirties and forties and most of them have been with the company for at least ten years or more.

It wasn't all work. The president of the company and two of his staff looked after us exceedingly well. We were treated to sights of the city and surrounding area and some fantastic meals. We, of course, look forward to returning the hospitality when they visit us in Victoria.

Please click here for just a sample of what we saw.

OUR Story: What's Wrong With Our Cities?

by Cliff Kuang

THE CONGRESS FOR NEW URBANISM recently held a competition to explain just what the connection is between urban planning and the environment — and if you're fuzzy on the issue, you need to watch the winning video, created by John Paget:

Sobering stuff, which makes a lot of sense: Wouldn't it be great to replace car commutes with walkable town centers? But what the video elides is that many cities actually makes this sort of development illegal, with zoning regulations that actively discourage "mixed use" planning. And many sprawling cities don't have any control over their own borders — developers frequently find it cheaper to simply move further out, rather that work within existing planning frameworks.

The bottom line: Greener cities aren't about crazy vertical farms and houses with solar panels. They're about zoning codes — subtle rules on a sheet of paper that determine the very fabric of a city for decades at a time. You can build all the hybrids you want — it doesn't matter if suburbia still continues to grow. That's why the best urban planning firms don't take architecture as a starting point — they begin by reworking existing zoning laws. One firm is Dover Kohl, based in Memphis, Tennessee. Sure, they build nice little mixed-use developments. But they've also done extensive work in "retrofitting" suburbia — taking existing buildings and tweaking codes to fill-in sprawl and encourage long-term density. That's where the real heavy lifting is, in architecture and urban planning: Working with officials and community boards and citizens, trying to figure out how you write the blueprint for a community that can grow in the long term.

Related: 13 Cool and Creative Cities With Brilliant Initiatives