City: Nashville, Tennessee

Reporting to: Sr. Director of Sustainability & Resilience

The Challenge

Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County is experiencing rapid growth, yet its transportation infrastructure has not kept pace. With a car-centric system and no dedicated transit funding, residents—particularly those in historically underserved communities—face increasing barriers to affordable and reliable mobility. Furthermore, the region’s population is projected to grow from 2 million to 3 million in the next 20 years, adding significant pressure to an already strained system. Without strategic investment, Nashville risks worsening congestion, inequitable access, and missed economic opportunities.

Recognizing this urgency, 66% of voters approved Choose How You Move (CHYM) in November 2024, a half-penny sales tax initiative dedicated to building a more equitable, accessible, and sustainable transportation system. CHYM represents Nashville’s largest-ever transportation investment, with a bold 15-year implementation timeline. However, the city has never executed a project of this scale, and past failed transit efforts have eroded public trust in the government’s ability to deliver. Success will require not only delivering on commitments but also fostering transparency, accountability, and sustained collaboration with residents.

CHYM was shaped by extensive community feedback, and ongoing engagement will be critical to its success. Trust must be built in two primary ways: (1) demonstrating visible progress by delivering on commitments and (2) fostering an ongoing, transparent dialogue with residents. The city will implement a two-pronged engagement strategy—first, ensuring timely, accessible information on CHYM’s rollout, and second, gathering meaningful input to shape implementation. By embedding community voices throughout the process, CHYM will create a transit system that truly serves all Nashvillians.

Currently, the city has identified key internal and external stakeholders, including Mayor O’Connell; Metro (city and county) departments; local, state, and federal elected officials; community-based organizations (such as the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition and the Urban League of Middle Tennessee); Tennessee Department of Transportation; U.S. Department of Transportation; local businesses; and the community. Additionally, communication for project-specific engagement is slated to begin in April 2025, and the formation of a transportation advisory committee is pending mayoral appointments.

The fellow, under the supervision of the Sr. Director of Sustainability and Resilience, will conduct research and preliminary analysis to help answer the following key questions:

• What existing engagement efforts are already happening across departments, and what touchpoints currently exist?
• What community engagement is needed at this stage to rebuild trust and ensure CHYM’s rollout is grounded in community needs?
• What diverse engagement strategies can be used to foster open dialogue with the community and ensure broad participation?
• How can Metro maximize existing and new strategies to deliver inclusive engagement at both the department and multi-department level, and from both project-specific and programmatic perspectives?

What You’ll Do

To address these questions, the fellow will engage with residents, city hall departments, and identified partners to develop a preliminary community engagement strategy for CHYM. Through their engagement, research, and in consultation with promising practices of peer cities, the fellow will provide a strategic framework for engagement by the end of the summer.

Key deliverables will include:

• A draft inventory of existing community engagement touchpoints with the city, county, and key external organizations.
• A draft set of recommended engagement methods the city can use to foster dialogue and receive feedback from constituents.
• A Community Engagement Strategy Matrix outlining approaches, stakeholders, and implementation steps.
• A comprehensive communication document and presentation deck detailing roles and responsibilities for city departments in engagement efforts.
• Presentation of findings to the mayor and key stakeholders.

What You’ll Bring

• Data analysis and synthesis
• Stakeholder and community engagement experience
• Qualitative interviewing and analysis
• Policy analysis
• GIS mapping (strongly preferred)
• Design thinking
• Writing and editing