In this episode, I finally connect with Paul Steely White, Executive Director of Parks & Trails New York, for a ride down memory lane, reminiscing about his time in Missoula, MT, his role as Executive Director at Transportation Alternatives in NYC, and serving as the final driver in Central Park and then we catch up on his more recent activities focussing on Parks and Trails from his new home base in Upstate New York. This is a fun one featuring cameos from our favorite A.U.T.O. lobbyist, Veronica Moss, also known as Kate McKinnon, Clarence with Streetfilms, JSK, and even Robert "Bob" De Niro.

Helpful Links (note that some may include affiliate links to help me support the channel):
👉 Parks & Trails New York
👉 Empire State Trail
👉 Adventure Cycling Association
👉 Karen Overton and Recycle-A-Bicycle
👉 My on-bike interview with Dan Burden
👉 Ep 304 Jennifer Hamelman
👉 Rails to Trails Conservancy
👉 Transportation Alternatives
👉 Barton Springs Road project playlist
👉 Meet Veronica Moss aka Kate McKinnon on Streetfilms
👉 Kate’s Veronica Moss spoof Times Square Redo
👉 Veronica Moss visits Times Square Streetfilms
👉 Ep 275 with Prof Donald Shoup
👉 Jan Gehl - Cities For People
👉 Carmel, IN Monon Blvd video with American Fietser
👉 Richard Louv - The Nature Principle
👉 Amy Camp Trail Towns
👉 Trust For Public Land
👉 10-Minute Walk to Parks Campaign

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Credits:
- Video and audio production by John Simmerman
- Music via Epidemic Sound

Resources used during the production of this video:
- My recording platform is Ecamm Live
- Editing software Adobe Creative Cloud Suite
- Equipment: Contact me for a complete list

For more information about the Active Towns effort or to follow along, please visit our links below:
- Active Towns Website
- Active Towns on Bluesky
- Weekly Update e-Newsletter

Background:
Hi Everyone! My name is John Simmerman, and I’m a health promotion and public health professional with over 35 years of experience. Over the years, my area of concentration has evolved into a specialization in how the built environment influences human behavior related to active living and especially active mobility.

Since 2010,  I've been exploring, documenting, and profiling established, emerging, and aspiring Active Towns wherever they might be while striving to produce high-quality multimedia content to help inspire the creation of more safe and inviting, environments that promote a "Culture of Activity" for "All Ages & Abilities."

The Active Towns Channel features my original video content and reflections, including a selection of podcast episodes and short films profiling the positive and inspiring efforts happening around the world as I am able to experience and document them.

Thanks once again for tuning in! I hope you find this content helpful and insightful.

Creative Commons License: Attributions, Non-Commercial, No Derivatives, 2025