Summit Reconnects the Region

Southern Vermont Economy Summit videos are now available online.

In May the Southern Vermont Economy Summit was held virtually over three days with 168 attendees. We gather each year to learn from one another, and from people like Majora Carter and Xusana Davis, two of the keynote speakers at the summit, who have been creating new solutions to the kinds of challenges we are taking on here in southern Vermont.

This year we began the Summit with a Brookings Institution scholar who gave us the big picture on rural policy, including what a new era of rural investment could mean for our communities.

In our lunch series, we met new Vermonters and learned about who they are, why they are here, what’s working, and how we can all play a bigger role in welcoming newcomers.

We met people from fascinating businesses that we never knew existed and found out that even when we’re talking about locally owned and operated businesses, an enormous amount of their revenues and our economy comes from selling products and services outside the state.

We met people from other communities who were making small-scale changes that are having long-lasting positive impacts on their community’s arts and culture, diversity, planning, and social capital.

Lastly, we closed the summit with the inspiration of the one and only Majora Carter who says “Nobody should have to move out of their neighborhood to live in a better one!” One of our attendees was so inspired, they said they would follow Carter into battle!

So many people – panelists, facilitators, and participants – gave generously of their time to be part of the summit. Let’s go out and apply what we’ve learned to create a thriving southern Vermont for all of us – those of us here today and those to come.

Summit by the Numbers:

3 days
9 sessions
15 hours on Zoom
80+ panelists, speakers, independent contractors,
facilitators, and sponsors
168 attendees
63 towns represented
113 organizations, businesses, municipalities represented

If you missed any of the sessions or were not able to attend at all, you can view all the recordings at www.sovermontzone.com/recordings-and-materials/

If you did attend, please take the time to provide us with feedback. We use the feedback to help shape next year’s summit: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CXV36YQ

A huge thank you to the USDA RCDI which makes the Summit possible, and to our many sponsors:

Summit Sponsors: The Bank of Bennington and Brattleboro Savings and Loan.

Economic Keynote Sponsors: People’s United Bank and Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development.

Community Keynote Sponsor: MSK Engineering, Stevens & Associates, and M&S Development.

Lunch Session Sponsors: VELCO and Green Mountain Power.

Base Level Sponsors: The Richards Group, Vermont Community Loan Fund, AARP VT, VSAC, Vermont Futures Project, and Efficiency Vermont.

Community Sponsors: Front Porch Forum, Five Maples Development Communications, Peak Radio, New England Newspapers, Inc.

About the Southern Vermont Economy Summit

The Southern Vermont Economy Summit is an initiative of the Brattleboro Development Credit Corporation’s Southern Vermont Economy Project (SVEP). SVEP works to stabilize, improve and expand the rural economic and workforce development network in Southern Vermont. Its goal is to increase capacity and collaboration among partnering organizations and communities. SVEP is funded by the USDA Rural Community Development Initiative, as a program of BDCC & SeVEDS. For more information on the summit, please visit: www.SoVermontZone.com/summit