Vermont Council on Rural Development

Council on the Future of Vermont

The Council on the Future of Vermont was a unique project for VCRD. At once a statewide public dialogue and a critical look at the state’s past and present, the Council on the Future of Vermont (CFV) project took two years to complete (2007-2009). VCRD looked back at a history of statewide dialogues in the state and determined that this time in our history was an important to time to re-engage Vermonters in thoughtful discussions about what will come next and what we want to keep. From the study by the Commission on Country Life in 1929 to the Commission on Vermont’s Future in 1988, these studies have engaged and united Vermonters, inspired leaders, and initiated practical gubernatorial and legislative initiatives. Such studies have often resulted in major findings about who we are as a people and the evolving assumptions and goals we share. They also have led us, as a state, to articulate a set of values that are embedded now in our special Vermont sense of place, dedication to community, and brand identity.

The CFV final report: Imagining Vermont: Values and Vision for the Future is now available. The Council members, chosen for their wide range of experiences, age, work and geography, wrote about what Vermonters want to see for our state in six areas of Vermont life. Each of these areas has specific recommendations for state and local decision makers, philanthropists, business leaders, non-profit organizations, and citizens about how we might make Vermont a special place together:

1. Vermont Community
2. Vermont Economy
3. Youth and Education
4. Vermont’s Landscape and Natural Resources
5. Health, Transportation and Public Safety
6. Vermont’s Civic Culture

With the publication of this report, the findings of the Council are no longer ours alone. The report is a contribution toward action. It is for the people of Vermont to use to move Vermont forward as they see fit. For more information on the Council on the Future of Vermont’s history: 

CFV Summary Statement

CFV Members

The structure of the Council on the Future of Vermont was also unique. This two year project included:

1. fourteen public forums, one in each county of Vermont (click here for Public Mtg Notes)
2. over 100 focus groups with nurses, farmers, teachers, students, seniors, veterans, inmates, low-income Vermonters, business leaders, school board members, advocates and regular working Vermonters.
3. testimony from over 40 state-wide organizations, such as the Center for Independent Living, the Associated Industries of Vermont, the Vermont Businesses for Social Responsibility, Refugee and Immigrant Service Providers Network and many others (click here for Organizational Interview notes)
4. statistical polling with UVM’s Center for Rural Studies (telephone and online) Looking Ahead: Vermonters’ Values and Concerns 2008
5. trendline research from St. Michael’s Center for Social Science Research, Vermont in Transition: A Summary of Social, Economic and Environmental Trends 2008
6. online input through the www.futureofvermont.org website and in creative partnerships, such as Art of Action (Vermont Arts Council) and a writing contest with the Young Writers Project.

All of these materials are available on the Project Elements page. 

In April 2009, the Council on the Future of Vermont presented the results of the project to Governor James Douglas, Speaker of the House of Representatives Shap Smith, Senate President Pro Tempore Peter Shumlin, gathered Vermonter legislators and the public at the Vermont State House.

In May 2009, VCRD hosted the Summit on the Future of Vermont, the culminating conference for the CFV project at UVM’s Dudley Davis Center. The Summit on the Future of Vermont had over 500 attendees, including business leaders, representatives from the agricultural community, Governor Douglas, Senator Bernie Sanders, and as keynote speaker, Dr. Garret FitzGerald, the former Prime Minister of Ireland. At the Summit, attendees learned the conclusions of the CFV project and spent the day discussing the strategic directions that current planning, policy and collaborative efforts would have to take to move towards the conclusions reflected from the CFV’s Imagining Vermont report. The final report from the Summit is available here and on the Reports page of this website.

In June-July 2009, the CFV final results were taken back to Vermonters across the state. Local presentations and community discussions have been held around the state: in Bennington, Brattleboro, Grafton, Burlington, Rutland, Middlebury, Hyde Park, St. Johnsbury, Newport, Barre, White River Junction, Island Pond, North Hero and Randolph. VCRD will also be presenting to organizations, associations or agencies who would like to learn more - contact us at cfv@sover.net if you're interested in a presentation for your community or organization.

The Council on the Future of Vermont project has completed, but its historic significance is clear. The purpose of the project was to learn from Vermonters about their hopes, aspirations and visions for the future of the state and to report the findings and conclusions back to the people of Vermont, providing an historical marker for Vermont in the 21st century and a platform of common values and priorities from which we can all work into the future.