Author: Patricia Miguel

Watershed Wiggles / Meneando por la cuenca

| Patricia Miguel

English  |  Español

The Chesapeake Watershed is home to a diverse array of animals, plants, and other living creatures. It also provides a place for human community members to swim, fish, and enjoy the lively and beautiful nature environment. We want to celebrate all the watershed has to offer by going on bike ride and learning about the importance of caring for the environment.

Join us for a free beginner friendly bike ride to discuss stormwater pollution and the impact of biking on the environment. This 5.6 mile bike ride will start at Bladensburg Waterfront Park, head upstream on the Northeast Branch Trail, arrive at Riverdale Park, and bike back. This event is in partnership with the Hispanic Access Foundation’s Latino Conservation Week; a week dedicated to supporting the Latino community getting into the outdoors and participating in activities to protect our natural resources. 

Bikes and helmets will be provided. This event is open to kids 10 years old and up and families. Participants must be prepared to ride a bike continuously for 20 minutes. Registration is required. Please wear comfortable clothing and shoes and bring water. Masks are highly encouraged while biking and required while in close proximity to one another.

Trouble viewing this form? Click here.

By participating in a WABA Event, you are agreeing to our Event Code of Conduct. / Al participar en un evento de WABA, usted acepta nuestro Código de conducta del evento.

La cuenca de Chesapeake es el hogar de una gran variedad de animales, plantas, y otras criaturas vivientes. También proporciona un lugar para que los miembros de la comunidad humana naden, pesquen y disfruten del entorno natural vivo y hermoso. Queremos celebrar todo lo que la cuenca tiene para ofrecer paseando en bicicleta y aprendiendo sobre la importancia de cuidar el medio ambiente.

Únase a nosotros para dar un paseo en bicicleta gratuito para principiantes, hablar sobre la contaminación de las aguas pluviales y el impacto del ciclismo en el medio ambiente. Este paseo en bicicleta de 5.6 millas (9.01 km) comenzará en Bladensburg Waterfront Park, se dirigirá río arriba en Northeast Branch Trail, llegará a Riverdale Park y regreso en bicicleta. Este evento se realiza en asociación con Latino Conservation Week de la Hispanic Access Foundation; una semana dedicada a apoyar a la comunidad latina a salir al aire libre y participar en actividades para proteger nuestros recursos naturales.

Se proporcionarán bicicletas y cascos. Este evento está abierto a niños de 10 años en
adelante y familias. Los participantes deben estar preparados para andar en bicicleta de forma continua durante 20 minutos. Es necesario registrarse. Por favor use ropa y zapatos cómodos y traiga agua. Se recomienda encarecidamente el uso de mascarillas mientras se anda en bicicleta y se requiere cuando se está muy cerca uno del otro.

This event is in partnership with / Este evento se realiza en asociación con Prince George’s County Department of the Environment and The Chesapeake Bay Trust

Watershed Wiggles / Meneando por la cuenca

| Patricia Miguel

Español abajo

The Chesapeake Watershed is home to a diverse array of animals, plants, and other living creatures. It also provides a place for human community members to swim, fish, and enjoy the lively and beautiful nature environment. We want to celebrate all the watershed has to offer by going on a bike ride and learning about the importance of caring for the environment.

Join us for a free beginner friendly bilingual Spanish/English bike ride to discuss how plants, soil, and more work to treat and control stormwater (commonly called green infrastructure). This 5.8 mile bike ride will start at West Hyattsville Metro Station (2700 Hamilton St Hyattsville, MD 20782), head downstream on the Northwest Branch Trail, arrive at Bladensburg Waterfront Park, and bike back. Throughout the event we will be taking breaks to look at different cool green infrastructure and how/why they work.

Bikes and helmets will be provided. This event is open to families (15 years old and up). Participants must be prepared to ride a bike continuously for 20 minutes. Registration is required. Please wear comfortable clothing and shoes and bring water. Masks are highly encouraged while biking and required while in close proximity to one another.

Trouble viewing this form? Click here.

By participating in a WABA Event, you are agreeing to our Event Code of Conduct. / Al participar en un evento de WABA, usted acepta nuestro Código de conducta del evento.

La cuenca de Chesapeake es el hogar de una gran variedad de animales, plantas, y otras criaturas vivientes. También proporciona un lugar para que los miembros de la comunidad humana naden, pesquen y disfruten del entorno natural vivo y hermoso. Queremos celebrar todo lo que la cuenca tiene para ofrecer paseando en bicicleta y aprendiendo sobre la importancia de cuidar el medio ambiente.

Únase a nosotros para un bilingüe Español/Inglés paseo en bicicleta gratuito para principiantes y discutir cómo las plantas, el suelo, y otros elementos funcionan para tratar y controlar las aguas pluviales (comúnmente llamada infraestructura verde). Este paseo en bicicleta de 5.8 millas comenzará en la estación de metro West Hyattsville, se dirigirá río abajo por el sendero Northwest Branch, llegará al Bladensburg Waterfront Park y regresará en bicicleta. A lo largo del evento, tomaremos descansos para ver diferentes infraestructuras verdes geniales y cómo y por qué funcionan.

Se proporcionarán bicicletas y cascos. Este evento está abierto a familias (15 años en adelante). Los participantes deben estar preparados para andar en bicicleta de forma continua durante 20 minutos. Es necesario registrarse. Por favor use ropa y zapatos cómodos y traiga agua. Se recomienda encarecidamente el uso de mascarillas mientras se anda en bicicleta y se requiere cuando se está muy cerca uno del otro.

This event is in partnership with Prince George’s County Department of the Environment and The Chesapeake Bay Trust

Call For Moderators for our Women & Bicycles Facebook Group

| Patricia Miguel
Two women with folding bikes laugh together in front of a red brick wall.

The Washington Area Bicyclist Association’s (WABA)Women & Bicycles Program is looking for two volunteer moderators for the Women & Bicycles Facebook group. The 9,000+ member group is a virtual space for women/trans/femme/non-binary folks to ask questions and seek support about biking in the region. The group was created in 2013 and has continued to grow in size with ~3 member requests per day and ~9 posts per day. Since its inception, the group has been run by WABA staff and supported by volunteer moderators. 

Moderators will be responsible for spurring conversation, moderating posts, and ensuring member adherence to the group guidelines. In addition to the support from other volunteer moderators, moderators will receive support from the WABA Outreach staff. Particularly challenging moderation will be reserved for WABA Outreach staff. Moderators are required to have some amount of capacity/time for online engagement and must serve a 6-month term commitment. 

RESPONSIBILITIES – 

The Women & Bicycles Facebook Moderators, with support from the WABA Outreach staff, will moderate the group with a thoughtful lens focused on supporting and growing the women/trans/femme/nonbinary bicycling communities in the Washington, DC region.

The five moderators (total) will collectively:

  • Spur and contribute to group engagement in the online space.
  • Approve and admin of group membership requests on a twice a week basis. This includes direct messaging reminders to people who haven’t answered all of the required questions.
  • Moderate posts and conversations in accordance with group guidelines. This includes notifying members who break group guidelines (commonly, compliance with housing availability, for sale posts, and job descriptions). 
  • Notify the WABA Outreach staff in a timely manner (within 24 hours after seeing said engagement) when an engagement needs further staff attention.

QUALIFICATIONS –

  • Experience with Facebook and its capabilities.
  • Some amount of capacity/time for internet engagement a few times a week. We would like to have 5 people online Monday through Friday and 2 people online Saturday through Sunday. The specific time is not as important as general coverage of moderation duties Monday through Sunday. 
  • Must be able to take on a 6-month term commitment (with the possibility of extension).
  • Some or lots of experience riding a bike for a variety of reasons including that we are looking for a moderator or two to join the moderation team who does not have much bicycling experience. We acknowledge that this is a great knowledge base for engaging with folks with similar experience levels.
  • Knowledge of intersectionality as a concept and framework for moderation.
  • Ability to read written conversations of a diverse community and be able to moderate with an understanding of how the context of power, privileges, and lived experience might be occurring in conversations. This is a shared responsibility and all moderators are expected to call out harmful behavior.  *Caveat: really challenging moderation will still be staff only*
  • Experience with having conversations about race, gender, and mobility justice.
  • A strong commitment to WABA’s mission, vision, and diversity, inclusion, and equity goals.
  • A commitment to respect, include, and be kind to all. 

Useful experience and skills:

If you have this experience or these skills, let us know.

  • Experience with social media management.
  • Experience with online platform or group moderation.
  • Prior membership in the Women & Bicycles Facebook group.
  • Limited experience with riding a bike is a valuable knowledge base that we look for especially when connecting with those with similar experiences.
  • Varied experience with biking whether for transportation, recreation, employment, or otherwise.
  • Knowledge of some history and/or present realities of biking in the Washington, DC metropolitan region will be helpful for providing context to discussions about the built environment. 

SUPPORT 

  • There will be a mandatory virtual orientation for moderators in which the WABA Outreach staff will facilitate introductions, walk moderators through administrative duties, and discuss the level of thoughtfulness we expect when moderating.
  • The group guidelines provide moderators and members with a baseline of precedent for group operations.
  • The WABA Outreach staff will be available to help answer questions and provide comments when asked and ensure moderator tasks are intentional with respect to equity and inclusion amongst the group. 
  • The WABA Outreach staff will handle responding to particularly heated or otherwise complex posts in the Women & Bicycles Facebook group.
  • Other moderators will be available to answer questions, provide comments, and carry out assigned moderator responsibilities.
  • The WABA Outreach staff will provide a schedule to act as a reminder and accountability tool so that moderators can share equal responsibility of approval and admin of group membership requests.

BENEFITS 

  • At the end of the first month (of the 6-month commitment), moderators will receive a one-year WABA classic membership that they can use for themselves or gift to someone. Moderators will receive the same benefit after any additional 6-month commitments.

ABOUT 

WABA empowers people to ride bikes, build connections, and transform places. We envision a just and sustainable transportation system where walking, biking, and transit are the best ways to get around.

HOW TO APPLY 

Fill out this application and we will be in touch within two weeks of the application closing at midnight on July 4. We anticipate virtual orientation happening the week of July 11. 

If you have any questions or need additional support applying, please feel free to email Patricia at womenandbicycles@waba.org

Women & Bicycles: Maintenance Workshop

| Patricia Miguel
In Person Registration
Zoom Registration


We are proud to partner with expert bike mechanics and members of Women & Bicycles, Laurie Lemieux and Kate Schrock, for a workshop on bike maintenance. The conversation will be geared towards people who might be new(er) to biking and interested in learning about basic upkeep for their bike. Some of the topics we’ll be covering include going over different parts of the bike, how to adjust your brakes, and how to clean your chain and apply chain lube.

This is a hybrid event where participants can either register to participate in person (at Proteus Bicycles) or virtually via Zoom. 

In response to the on-going covid pandemic, masks are required and we are limiting the number of spots to 15 for in person participation. Laurie and Kate will not be providing hands-on maintenance to participant’s bikes. Please use the table below to register for an in-person ticket.

In person registration

Trouble viewing this form? Click here.

Zoom registration

The workshop will also be hosted on Zoom with closed captioning. Please click the registration link below to register for a virtual (Zoom) ticket.

Click here


Note – This event is apart of WABA’s Women & Bicycles program and is only open to those who identify as woman/trans/femme/nonbinary. If that’s not you, we have plenty of other events you should check out at waba.org/fun. Know someone who should come? Please share this event with them! If you need accommodations, have questions about access or the event, send us an email at womenandbicycles@waba.org.

Earth Day Bike Ride

| Patricia Miguel

The DC Trail Rangers are kicking off the Mayor’s Office of Latino Affairs’ Pachamama Day. Pachamama Day is a celebration of the Earth and giving thanks for all of its beauty. And since bikes help reduce one’s impact on greenhouse gas emissions, we want to share the joy of biking with you!

The bike ride will begin at Takoma Metro Station, meander down the Metropolitan Branch Trail*, and end at Alethia Tanner Park for a full day of celebration provided by the Mayor’s Office of Latino Affairs and the District Department of Parks and Recreation. The route is less than 6 miles and participants are required to bring their own bike, helmet, and register in advance. Masks are highly encouraged while biking and required while in close proximity to one another. 

Call For Moderators for our Women & Bicycles Facebook Group

| Patricia Miguel
Two women with folding bikes laugh together in front of a red brick wall.

Application deadline has been extended to November 14

The Washington Area Bicyclist Association’s (WABA)Women & Bicycles Program is looking for five volunteer moderators for the Women & Bicycles Facebook group. The 9,000+ member group is a virtual space for women/trans/femme/non-binary folks to ask questions and seek support about biking in the region. The group was created in 2013 and has continued to grow in size with ~3 member requests per day and ~9 posts per day. Since its inception, the group has been run by WABA staff and supported by volunteer moderators. 

Moderators will be responsible for spurring conversation, moderating posts, and ensuring member adherence to the group guidelines. In addition to the support from other volunteer moderators, moderators will receive support from the WABA Outreach staff. Particularly challenging moderation will be reserved for WABA Outreach staff. Moderators are required to have some amount of capacity/time for online engagement and must serve a 6-month term commitment. 

RESPONSIBILITIES – 

The Women & Bicycles Facebook Moderators, with support from the WABA Outreach staff, will moderate the group with a thoughtful lens focused on supporting and growing the women/trans/femme/nonbinary bicycling communities in the Washington, DC region.

The five moderators will collectively:

  • Spur and contribute to group engagement in the online space.
  • Approve and admin of group membership requests on a twice a week basis. This includes direct messaging reminders to people who haven’t answered all of the required questions.
  • Moderate posts and conversations in accordance with group guidelines. This includes notifying members who break group guidelines (commonly, compliance with housing availability, for sale posts, and job descriptions). 
  • Notify the WABA Outreach staff in a timely manner (within 24 hours after seeing said engagement) when an engagement needs further staff attention.

QUALIFICATIONS –

  • Experience with Facebook and its capabilities.
  • Some amount of capacity/time for internet engagement a few times a week. We would like to have 2-3 people online Monday through Friday and 2 people online Saturday through Sunday. The specific time is not as important as general coverage of moderation duties Monday through Sunday. 
  • Must be able to take on a 6-month term commitment (with the possibility of extension).
  • Some or lots of experience riding a bike for a variety of reasons including that we are looking for a moderator or two to join the moderation team who does not have much bicycling experience. We acknowledge that this is a great knowledge base for engaging with folks with similar experience levels.
  • Knowledge of intersectionality as a concept and framework for moderation.
  • Ability to read written conversations of a diverse community and be able to moderate with an understanding of how the context of power, privileges, and lived experience might be occurring in conversations. This is a shared responsibility and all moderators are expected to call out harmful behavior.  *Caveat: really challenging moderation will still be staff only*
  • Experience with having conversations about race, gender, and mobility justice.
  • A strong commitment to WABA’s mission, vision, and diversity, inclusion, and equity goals.
  • A commitment to respect, include, and be kind to all. 

Useful experience and skills:

If you have this experience or these skills, let us know.

  • Experience with social media management.
  • Experience with online platform or group moderation.
  • Prior membership in the Women & Bicycles Facebook group.
  • Limited experience with riding a bike is a valuable knowledge base that we look for especially when connecting with those with similar experiences.
  • Varied experience with biking whether for transportation, recreation, employment, or otherwise.
  • Knowledge of some history and/or present realities of biking in the Washington, DC metropolitan region will be helpful for providing context to discussions about the built environment. 

SUPPORT 

  • There will be a mandatory virtual orientation for moderators in which the WABA Outreach staff will facilitate introductions, walk moderators through administrative duties, and discuss the level of thoughtfulness we expect when moderating.
  • The group guidelines provide moderators and members with a baseline of precedent for group operations.
  • The WABA Outreach staff will be available to help answer questions and provide comments when asked and ensure moderator tasks are intentional with respect to equity and inclusion amongst the group. 
  • The WABA Outreach staff will handle responding to particularly heated or otherwise complex posts in the Women & Bicycles Facebook group.
  • Other moderators will be available to answer questions, provide comments, and carry out assigned moderator responsibilities.
  • The WABA Outreach staff will provide a schedule to act as a reminder and accountability tool so that moderators can share equal responsibility of approval and admin of group membership requests.

BENEFITS 

  • At the end of the first month (of the 6-month commitment), moderators will receive a one-year WABA classic membership that they can use for themselves or gift to someone. Moderators will receive the same benefit after any additional 6-month commitments.

ABOUT 

WABA empowers people to ride bikes, build connections, and transform places. We envision a just and sustainable transportation system where walking, biking, and transit are the best ways to get around.

HOW TO APPLY 

Fill out this application and we will be in touch within two weeks of the application closing on *November 14. We anticipate virtual orientation being late November. 

If you have any questions or need additional support applying, please feel free to email Patricia at womenandbicycles@waba.org

Women & Bicycles Maintenance Workshop

| Patricia Miguel

We are proud to partner with expert bike mechanics and members of Women & Bicycles, Laurie Lemieux and Kate Schrock, for a workshop on bike maintenance. The conversation will be geared towards people who might be new(er) to biking and interested in learning about basic upkeep for their bike. Some of the topics we’ll be covering include: different parts of the bike, how to adjust your brakes, and how to clean your chain and apply chain lube.

This workshop will be hosted on Zoom with live captioning on Wednesday, July 21st from 7:00PM to 8:15PM. Click the registration button to register for this free event and share it with your friends!

Register

Note: This event is a part of WABA’s Women & Bicycles program and is only open to those who identify as woman/trans/femme. If that’s not you, we have plenty of other events you should check out at waba.org/fun. Know someone who should come? Please share this event with them! If you need accommodations, have questions about access or the event, send us an email at womenandbicycles@waba.org.

This program is sponsored by New Belgium Brewing

Washington English Center’s Community Services and Health Fair

| Patricia Miguel

Join the Washington English Center for their virtual Community Services and Health Fair on June 4 from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM. The Washington English Center is bringing together local organizations across the region to share information about free and lost cost health, child care, housing, and other services available to the community. WABA will be there answering all your bike-related questions so be sure to come say hello!

Register

Please direct all questions to rmckie@washingtonenglish.org

Women & Bicycles – Planning Your Route Webinar

| Patricia Miguel

Whether it’s the warmer weather and the desire to explore new places or going back to work and the need to adopt new travel habits, you might be wondering how to get from point A to point B. Join us on Saturday, June 12th at 12:00PM for an encore of the previously hosted Women & Bicycles Planning Your Route webinar where we’ll show you resources for how to plan your route.

We acknowledge that a “safe” route means different things for different people and is often connected to one’s race/ethnicity, gender, and other identities. That’s why we’ll be focusing on how to get from place to place by offering a variety of resources that filter for common concerns such as elevation, duration, and type of path. And while we won’t have time to give specific route recommendations for everyone, we do invite people to come with general questions and tips about how to get around and plan your route. Click the registration button to register for this free Zoom event and share it with your friends!

Register 

If you’re unable to join us for the event, here are the Google Slides from the presentation that you can review on your own time.

Note – This event is a part of WABA’s Women & Bicycles program and is only open to those who identify as woman/trans/femme. If that’s not you, we have plenty of other events you should check out at waba.org/fun. Know someone who should come? Please share this event with them! There will be English captioning. If you need accommodations or have questions about access or the event, send us an email at patricia.miguel@waba.org. 

Women & Bicycles – Planning Your Route Webinar

| Patricia Miguel

Whether it’s the warmer weather and the desire to explore new places or going back to work and the need to adopt new travel habits, you might be wondering how to get from point A to point B. Join us on Tuesday, April 20th at 6:00PM for a webinar where we’ll show you resources for how to plan your route.

We acknowledge that a “safe” route means different things for different people and is often connected to one’s race/ethnicity, gender, and other identities. That’s why we’ll be focusing on how to get from place to place by offering a variety of resources that filter for common concerns such as elevation, duration, and type of path. And while we won’t have time to give specific route recommendations for everyone, we do invite people to come with general questions and tips about how to get around and plan your route. Click the registration button to register for this free Zoom event and share it with your friends!

Register 

Note – This event is a part of WABA’s Women & Bicycles program and is only open to those who identify as woman/trans/femme. If that’s not you, we have plenty of other events you should check out at waba.org/fun. Know someone who should come? Please share this event with them! There will be English captioning. If you need accommodations or have questions about access or the event, send us an email at patricia.miguel@waba.org.