Walk into any meeting in Port Townsend or greater Jefferson County and you are bound to hear someone bemoaning the area's apparent lack of a young adult workforce. But stroll the market or the pubs and you'll see long-faced young adults discussing the scarcity of jobs in our community.
WSU Jefferson County Extension and Team Jefferson, the local economic development council for Jefferson County, think it is time to bring these conversations together. With the inspiration and guidance of a number of young WSU Extension employees, the two entities are launching an innovative campaign to survey, attract and retain 18- to 40-year-olds and revitalize the dialogue between the generations. The youth organizers are calling the outreach campaign the RhodyRevolution and have created a website, www.RhodyRevolution.com.
According to organizers, RhodyRevolution.com is about creating a vibrant online space for young adults who are living in the area or planning to move here, allowing them to network, hunt for jobs, and have a free exchange of ideas. RhodyRevolution.com's objective is to highlight opportunities for intergenerational collaboration by posting upcoming public meetings, town hall gatherings and cultural events. Organizers also hope to reach the young adult population more effectively by establishing a presence on multiple social networking sites such as MySpace, Facebook and WiserEarth.
The young WSU organizers are calling it a D.I.Y. Revolution, by which emerging mediums and approaches are used to encourage creative and innovative ideas.
"It's time for a paradigm shift in how we view economic growth and development," said 25-year-old Kai Wallin, one of the campaign's creators.
"I think young people can help Jefferson County be at the cutting edge in these rapidly changing times. As a local who left to pursue higher education and came back to find work, I want to participate in the decision-making processes and help grow the local economy. I want to contribute and collaborate in positive ways. There is a general consensus that there are no young people here or we're all apathetic, but that is a false assumption. We just have not found appropriate venues to plug into. We hope RhodyRevolution.com can change that."
"There's also a belief among young people who grew up here that it's hard to come home because it's so difficult to make a living here," said Shelby Smith, another organizer. "When I get together with my peers, many say they would love to come back to this county but can't imagine how they could continue to work in their current field, find a community of young people, afford to buy a home or support young families. We want them to know that there are successful young entrepreneurs making their way in this county, and that WSU and Team Jefferson are working hard to find ways to support them."
Look for the launch of RhodyRevolution.com and simultaneous promotional activities around Port Townsend on Rhody Festival weekend.
Organizers will be dressing up in bright pink and conducting brief surveys asking youths what it would take for them to live, work and succeed here. Visit RhodyRevolution.com and share your thoughts and opinions. For more information, visit www.jefferson.wsu.edu or call 379-5610, ext. 201.
