People are always talking about working with neighbors to "improve the neighborhood for everyone". But how do you actually do that? Well, joining your neighborhood association is certainly one way.

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Here are some ideas for being a responsible neighborhood association member:

1. Represent the full neighborhood, not just yourself. While you don't need to abandon your personal viewpoint and desires, responsible board members also think of the views and needs of the entire neighborhood before weighing in. Or at least make that distinction clear when they discuss an issue. From a board perspective, you're probably going to get more buy-in from the rest of the neighborhood later in the process, and probably more members, if you think of them first.

2. Create and enforce a policy of zero tolerance for discriminatory language. Seriously. It's easy to joke about all kinds of groups of people, including ones of which you're a member. But keep in mind that even well-meant jokes can scare people away from speaking up, because they feel unwanted. Board and committee chairs will facilitate better, more creative discussions and problem-solving if everyone feels comfortable participating. Reminding people of this policy at the beginning of each meeting, or having it on the agenda, will help you with enforcement.

3. Recuse yourself from culturally sensitive votes. This is hard to phrase correctly, so I'll just give an example. Earlier this year there was a discussion about a sensitive issue about development on Castro Street, a primarily and legendary gay area of San Francisco. I believe that the Castro should remain gay (and am aware of the griping about gentrification in the area), so though I had strong feelings about the issue, I recused myself from the vote because I thought it was inappropriate for me to impose my straight viewpoint on the area. I just didn't think that I could speak on behalf of the gay residents and business owners of the area.

4. Create project review guidelines, and use them. This ties in with number one. The biggest time and mental drain of any neighborhood association is reviewing the piles and piles of development or street change proposals. Even when you have very conscientious board members, it can easily dissolve into a discussion of personal preferences simply out of tiredness as the night drags on. You'll make your job easier, and be more likely to reflect the true view of the neighborhood if you create written development review guidelines (or a worksheet) for real estate projects and/or street change proposals (or anything else that comes up frequently). Many groups have done this, and I'll post some examples in the future.

*This guide was originally written by Kit Hodge of the Neighbors Project; republished with permission.