Darius Gray, Community Organizer
Darius Gray is currently working toward acquiring his undergraduate degree Metro Urban Studies from Augsburg College. Darius has a special interest in art’s role in cities and its ability to impact change in the urban landscape. Darius also likes to explore different uses of the bicycle and how to make it a more effective mode of transportation.
Darius has conducted research on the bicycle as an economic tool on four continents, specifically in the U.S., Brazil, South Africa and Vietnam. During that time he not only studied the utility of the bicycle but also examined a large array of contemporary urban issues.
Darius has lived in the Twin Cities all his life. Calling the South Side of Minneapolis home for the past six years has helped him gain a deeper understanding of the Twin Cities. To complement his learning he has worked with a number of community organizations including: Intermedia Arts: Creative CityMaking; Twin Cities Community Radio; Face Forward Minnesota; H.E.C.U.A (Higher Education Consortium for Urban Affairs); Hamline-Midway Coalition and the Friendly Streets Initiative. Through his work he has worked with city planners in Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Darius joined the Friendly Streets Initiative because he sees the urgency for this kind of work. He believes in bringing voice to communities unrepresented in the planning process. He works with Friendly Streets Initiative with the hope of improving people’s urban mobility, ultimately making them and their communities healthier, more self-reliant, economically independent and upwardly mobile.