Marlboro gets space to create community: Library and long-awaited community center set to open in meeting house

In 2010, VCRD brought its Community Visit process to Marlboro where residents identified a number of action ideas for future progress in town. “Develop a Marlboro Community Center Building” was one of the ideas the community identified. This article shares the great work going forward on that effort! ——————– By Wendy M. Levy as seen…

Dan Smith: A new generation of local leadership

By Dan Smith, VCRD board member and president and CEO of The Vermont Community Foundation, as seen in vtdigger.org: https://vtdigger.org/2018/09/04/dan-smith-new-generation-local-leadership/ Vermont faces a set of economic and demographic challenges that, if left unaddressed, will continue to erode communities, widen the gap between regions and stretch the distance between poor families and wealthy families in our…

“Making It Happen: Local Leadership for Vermont Communities” Summit to Take Place October 1 at Castleton University

The Vermont Council on Rural Development (VCRD) has launched registration for a statewide one-day summit focused on supporting emerging and existing local leaders working to improve life in their communities across the state. The summit is happening October 1 at Castleton University.  Vermonters can find out more and register here: https://www.vtrural.org/Summit18 Summit organizers believe that in democratic…

Randolph Region Re-Energized (R3) next meeting June 11 – VTC President Patricia Moulton to serve as initiative chairperson

RANDOLPH – The Randolph Region Re-Energized (R3) initiative will convene on June 11 as four task forces focused on community priorities meet to develop action plans. Joining these conversations will be a resource team of issue-area experts from around Vermont who will provide technical advice and help to identify resources important for success. The task force meetings…

Pownal farms put out the welcome mat

By Cherise Madigan, as seen in the Bennington Banner: http://www.benningtonbanner.com/stories/pownal-farms-put-out-the-welcome-mat,539776? POWNAL — Are you ready to discover Pownal? With a slew of events planned for this summer — including farm tours and workshops, an Independence Day picnic, and a fall harvest festival — a Pownal initiative is working to make the town’s farms and food…

Randolph Picks Its Missions: ‘Re-Energized’ Project Inches Toward Goals

By Tim Calabro, as seen in the Randolph Herald: https://www.ourherald.com/articles/randolph-picks-its-missions/ Though the volume of people filling the RUHS cafeteria Monday night was slightly less impressive than the hundreds that took part in the first round of the Randolph Region Re-Energized project, scores of Randolph-area residents turned out to take part in the initiative’s second phase…

Conquering Climate Change One Business at a Time

By Terri Hallenbeck, as seen in Seven Days: https://www.sevendaysvt.com/vermont/conquering-climate-change-one-business-at-a-time/Content?oid=8281954 When Paul Costello and his team of organizers started putting together a conference on climate change a few months ago, they decided this one wouldn't be about politics or public policy. Instead, they opted to celebrate entrepreneurs who are trying to combat climate change while also…

Green business summit aims to spur national investment

By Kevin O’Connor as seen in vtdigger.org: https://vtdigger.org/2017/08/20/green-business-summit-aims-spur-national-investment/ Paul Costello doesn’t want to talk about the polarizing problem of climate change. He wants to talk about solutions. “We have smart, creative people advancing innovations around agriculture, clean energy, green building, transportation and wise use of resources, recycling and digital technologies,” says the executive director of…