The Alive
Alive People to Watch
By Brian Lindamood
July 17, 2008
If the young professional scene in Columbus has a mantra, it’s “attract and retain.” Mayor Michael Coleman, the Columbus Chamber and a slew of groups and agencies — both officially and unofficially — are working to show the world that this is a great place to call home. Of course, those of us who call Columbus home already know that. The challenge isn’t so much what this city needs, as what the world needs to know about this city and its enormous potential.
Which brings us to People to Watch. Every week in Alive we write about the local arts and music scenes, restaurants, fashion, green issues, Downtown development and networking groups that are connecting young professionals. Now we want to introduce you to the people who are actually making these things happen.
The following profiles of 11 current and future Columbus leaders — and the things they’ve accomplished, and the things they aspire to accomplish — are truly astounding.
The AliveBig Thinker: Walker Evans
By Chris DeVilleWalker Evans built an online forum for a niche community and watched it grow into Columbus’ catch-all hub for civic activism, networking and cultural conversation. Now the founder of ColumbusUnderground.com is stepping out from behind his keyboard.”In the past year I’ve been trying to get more civically involved … and kind of make that jump from being engaged online to being engaged in the process in real life,” Evans said. “I think people have gotten too comfortable with having a strong voice online but not being able to reach some people who are kind of important in the process and going through the traditional channels.”
As Underground has expanded its horizons, so has Evans. He traded the DJ gigs for roles in organizations ranging from the mayor’s Create Columbus Commission to the North Market’s board of trustees, and he has been a vocal advocate for Downtown development and revamped public transportation.
Congratulations on the superb write-up, Walker!