Close your eyes and imagine a city filled with community spaces where neighbors and children gather and share a beautiful winter afternoon; with buildings and alleys draped in murals; where biking isn’t just a leisure activity reserved for the weekends, but a major mode of transportation. Now, for a moment, imagine that city is Lansing.

“There are places in the world where people mainly get around by walking and biking, and they’re some of the fittest places in the world,” said Jessica Yorko, reflecting on the year she lived and studied in France. “[They] don’t have to worry about dieting because they’re active; people are fit and healthy.”

As a fit and healthy Lansingite herself, Yorko knows building an active lifestyle for our region doesn’t only serve the health aspect of our community; it serves many societal aspects as well. As a resident of the Genesee neighborhood in downtown Lansing, manager of the Westside Commercial Association and recently elected City Councilwoman, Yorko knows that active communities make for stronger cities, and Lansing is on the cusp of becoming just that.

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