{"id":23233,"date":"2024-09-26T12:14:52","date_gmt":"2024-09-26T16:14:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/?p=23233"},"modified":"2025-05-15T13:55:33","modified_gmt":"2025-05-15T17:55:33","slug":"kalamazoo-read-along","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/kalamazoo-read-along\/","title":{"rendered":"Thailand Lessons Influence Student, Kalamazoo’s First Read Along"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\"Emerson
Emerson Wesselhoff ’25 is working in an internship with the city of Kalamazoo, where she is leading the city’s first Imagine<\/em> Kalamazoo Reads effort through the book <\/em>“Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design” by journalist Charles Montgomery about urban design and happiness.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\"Emerson
Wesselhoff (left) sits with one of her host families and a fellow student in the Maetha agricultural co-op village. The younger Thai woman is Pi Pui, the expert seed saver for the village. The older Thai woman is her mom, Mae Sawn.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\"Wesselhoff
Wesselhoff works with elementary school students during her internship in Thailand with Kiaow Suay Hom, which translates to Green, Beautiful and Fragrant in English.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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A study-abroad experience, a passion for sustainability and a love for her city have helped a Kalamazoo College Heyl scholar<\/a> leave her mark on Imagine Kalamazoo 2035, the city\u2019s newly launched master plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Emerson Wesselhoff \u201925 is an outreach and engagement intern working with City Planner Christina Anderson \u201998. She was among the officials at an open house September 19 when the city shared some of its successes from the previous master plan and discussed with residents what they can expect over the next year with the new plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, as a part of Imagine Kalamazoo 2035, Wesselhoff will lead the city\u2019s first Imagine Kalamazoo Reads effort, a community read along and discussion with clubs, community groups and residents. Together, they will have meaningful conversations about Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design<\/em>, a book by award-winning journalist Charles Montgomery beginning Monday, September 30. The book combines urban design and an emerging science of happiness that will help participants analyze some of the world\u2019s most dynamic cities, while brainstorming what residents want in Kalamazoo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI first read the book at K through a class I took sophomore year,\u201d Wesselhoff said, speaking of a seminar led by Anderson, City of Kalamazoo Chief Operating Officer Laura Lam \u201999 and then-Mary Jane Underwood Stryker Center for Civic Engagement Director Alison Geist. \u201cWe want Individual citizens, book clubs, organizations, boards, shops and institutions to read it, and every month we will host a community-led discussion of the book. I\u2019ve put together a big toolkit<\/a> that provides summaries, links to the author\u2019s TED talk<\/a>, and discussion questions to guide thoughts and processes. We want to get people thinking about how the city makes us happy and what happiness means in our lives.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wesselhoff\u2019s opportunity is a relatable follow-up to a reading-focused experience she led when she studied abroad in Thailand last year. She concluded her time overseas with a six-week climate engagement internship through a non-government organization called Kiaow Suay Hom, which translates to Green, Beautiful and Fragrant in English. There, she studied the benefits of green spaces in fighting pollution and particulate matter (PM 2.5) as smoke and smog cause health risks such as heart attacks, cancer and respiratory issues in Thailand. The organization had created a children\u2019s book about PM 2.5 that was central to the outreach Wessselhoff performed as part of her internship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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How to Participate
in the Read Along<\/h3>\n\n\n\n