SPRING 2015 NEWSLETTER

Little League of Manufacturing

Crosses the River

Treading More Lightly in Hartland and Beyond

Tom Roberts: A New Leader for

Vital Communities

SPRING 2015 CONTENTS

Working together, we make the Upper Valley region a great place to live, work, and play.

VitalCommunities.org

195 North Main Street White River Junction, VT 05001

Phone: 802.291.9100 Email: Info@VitalCommunities.org Staff: Firstname@VitalCommunities.org

StaffTom Roberts, Executive Director, x101Aaron Brown, Transportation, x111Phil Bush, Finance, x104Stephanie Carter, Database, x108Bethany Fleishman, Transportation, x113Emily Gardner, Events, Corporate Relations, Local First Alliance, x115Stacey Glazer, Leadership Upper Valley, Web Media, x102Nancy LaRowe, Valley Food & Farm, x106 Carole Petrillo, Bookkeeping, x103 Allison Rogers Furbish, Communications and Energy, x114Beth Roy, Valley Food & Farm, x105 Sarah Simonds, Energy, x109Becka Warren, Valley Food & Farm, x112Lauren Whittlesey, Valley Quest and Volunteers, x107

Printing: Compliments of Dartmouth Printing Company of Hanover, New Hampshire. Printed on Forest Stewardship Council certified paper.

Design: Nomad Communications of White River Junction, Vermont.

Photography: Staff nless indicated otherwise.

• Maria Glorioso, - inside front cover, second from top - page 2

• Mt. Washington Auto Road, page 6

Building a Better Outreach Campaign: Lessons from Solarize SARAH SIMONDS

Little League of Manufacturing Crosses the River STACEY GLAZER

Growing Local Farms and Consumers BECKA WARREN

Quest Into Spring LAUREN WHITTLESEY

Treading More Lightly in Hartland and Beyond AARON BROWN

New Growth in Local First Alliance EMILY GARDNER

Tom Roberts: A New Leader for Vital Communities ALLISON ROGERS FURBISH

Spring 2015 Events Calendar

Letter from the Executive Director TOM ROBERTS

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Last month, I started as the new Executive Director of Vital Communities. I have been spending my time getting to know the excellent staff and Board as well as focusing more deeply on Vital Communities’ projects and role in the community. I am enjoying the opportunity to listen and learn, and I look forward to expanding the circle of conversation and focus as we move into the spring.

I am delighted to have the chance to take on this role. My family moved to the Upper Valley 13 years ago for two main reasons. First, we wanted to provide a better quality of life for our family. The Upper Valley has lived up to its reputation as a great place for Lorie and me to raise our kids (now off at college) and for us to work, recreate, and participate in the broader community at so many levels. Second, we moved to live at Cobb Hill Cohousing in Hartland, a place where we could express our interests in building community, improving the environment, and supporting farming.

The opportunity to lead Vital Communities, to join with others to help make the Upper Valley a better place for all to live, work, and play, and to bring people together to work on challenging issues throughout the Upper Valley—this is work I am thrilled to be doing! From building stronger connections between farms and consumers, to encouraging more renewable energy in the region and engaging local schools through several of our programs, I look forward to adding my experience and passion to the extraordinary work of this organization.

In the months ahead, I plan to continue learning about Vital Communities’ efforts in the community, and to meet and hear from all those who express their care for the Upper Valley and this organization by volunteering on committees, attending events, or contributing in other ways to our work.

We all wish outgoing director Mary Margaret Sloan the best of luck with her new endeavor as director of Positive Tracks, and we want to thank Hilde Ojibway for stepping in to serve as interim executive director from October through transition time with me in early February.

I look forward to working together!

SPRING 2015 CONTENTS

Tom Roberts, Executive Director Tom@VitalCommunities.org 802.291.9100 x101

Letter from the Executive Director

Page 1SPRING 2015

TIP #1: NARROW YOUR FOCUS

Start with a project you know you can tackle. You’ll gain the credibility, traction, and public interest you need to take on bigger projects and broader issues. Solarize focuses on residential solar. Now many past Solarize communities are pursuing municipal and community-scale solar projects.

TIP #2: PROMOTE AN ACTION

What is one action you want every resident to take after hearing your message? During Solarize, we want residents to request a free site visit. Our campaign message leads with that call to action, and the opportunities for community education follow naturally.

TIP #3: REACH NEW AUDIENCES

It’s easy to get your message out to people who already care about what you have to say. Think about who you might be missing and how you might reach those people. Solarize volunteers set up tables at grocery stores and the town transfer station, send information home in school newsletters, present for local community groups, and attend existing local events.

ENERGY

Building a Better Outreach Campaign:Lessons from Solarize

BY SARAH SIMONDS

TIP #4: SET A DEADLINE

During our Solarize campaigns, two days are more important than all the rest: the launch and the deadline. Each launch event is promoted for weeks in advance and results in more than 100 attendees and dozens of site visit sign-ups. The deadline spurs action, with more than 51 percent of residents handing in their solar contracts during the last week of the campaign.

Tabling at local events is a great way to get the word out.

DRUMROLL, PLEASE… Congratulations to the dozens of hard-working volunteers who made Round Two a success this winter. Thanks to their efforts, 181 more Upper Valley homes are going solar.

Look for launch events in new Solarize communities this June, and learn more at VitalCommunities.org/Solarize.

Over the past year, Vital Communities helped volunteers in 15 towns run successful Solarize outreach campaigns promoting solar energy. More than 1,200 residents explored

whether solar could work for their homes, and 301 decided to invest in solar energy. People often ask what makes Solarize so successful. The secret is in our approach. Lessons

learned from Solarize can be applied to any outreach campaign on any topic.

Page 2 VitalCommunities.org

LEADERSHIP

Last year, while consulting for the Green Mountain Economic Development Corporation (GMEDC), Mollie learned that the local manufacturing sector was having difficulty attracting workers. As she was reaching out to companies to learn how to help, she discovered a potential solution at the LUV Education Day session.

John Olson, president and CEO of Whelen Engineering, told the group that his successful manufacturing plant in Charlestown, N.H., was struggling to find workers. To combat this problem, he and Jacqui Guillette, superintendent of the Grantham school district, developed the Little League of Manufacturing.

Little League of ManufacturingCrosses the River

BY STACEY GLAZER

The Little League of Manufacturing is a place-based learning experience that teaches students manufacturing from beginning to end: how to

dress and behave in a factory, the manufacturing process, and the value of local production.

John and Jacqui wanted to show students that manufacturing was no

longer the “dirty job” of the past, but rather something that takes place in a clean environment, involves computer technology, and pays well. Jacqui connected John with schools and developed a curriculum to show students where the local jobs are, how to perform them, and how to apply. They were creating a pipeline for regional employers.

Mollie heard in John’s words a viable solution to a very real problem. She brought the idea back to GMEDC Executive Director Joan Goldstein. The two began to work with Jacqui to build new educational partnerships.

Because of their mutual experience in LUV, Mollie and Jacqui had trust that helped them hit the ground running. With Joan and John, they introduced the program to regional vocational-technical programs; the Woodstock, Windsor, Randolph, Bethel, and Royalton school districts; and organizations like North Hartland Tool, GW Plastics, the American Precision Museum, and the Vermont departments of labor and education. This January, Randolph High School began a 14-week program with GW Plastics.

Mollie’s participation in Leadership Upper Valley helped her positively impact students, schools, local employers, and the region’s economy.

Mollie Naber connecting with classmate Michael Kenney from Dartmouth-Hitchcock at the opening session of LUV.

“Leadership Upper Valley graduates are the pollinators

of ideas in our region.” —Mollie Naber

One important aspect of the Leadership Upper Valley (LUV) program is building a network of regional leaders. This network enabled Mollie Naber ’14 to carry the

Little League of Manufacturing across the river from New Hampshire to Vermont.

Apply now at VitalCommunities.org/LeadershipUV.

Page 3SPRING 2015

We see lots of exciting opportunity in these findings. In the next two years, we will continue to connect consumers and farms by developing new marketing materials, with the support of a USDA Farmers’ Market Promotion Program Grant. One of our favorite ways to connect with farms is still as fresh as it was 14 years ago—Flavors of the Valley! We hope you’ll join us and 1,000 other Upper Valley consumers and food producers there on April 12.

Growing Local Farms and ConsumersBY BECKA WARREN

LOCAL AGRICULTURE

Can you spot Jenny from Edgewater Farm among the Simon Pearce staff hrilled with their veggie delivery?

TIDBITS FROM THE MARKET ASSESSMENT

• “Freshness” is the Upper Valley’s top priority when shopping.

• Of residents surveyed, 38 percent are “very committed” to buying local foods.

• Consumers want to buy more local veggies and fruits, while stores and restaurants want to increase their local meat purchases.

• More than 60 percent of consumers indicated that one major barrier is that “locally grown foods are less available in the winter.”

• Most farmers surveyed said they want to increase their direct sales to consumers.

Valley Food & Farm grew out of community desires to increase the connections between—and numbers of—local consumers and local farmers.

That was 15 years ago, and we all have seen amazing changes in the local food system. Vermont now has a Farm to Plate Strategic Plan, and New Hampshire is planning a local foods strategy. The number of farms is growing in our service area, and Vermont’s Orange and Windsor counties have increased the acreage of land in farms. But there is still work to do, and we’ve invested significant time in the past year ensuring that we know how we can best support it.

We appreciate the 550 area residents who invested their time to take our local foods survey last fall. Consumers, food businesses, and farmers answered the basic question: How can we make our local foods scene even better?

The results of the surveys are on our website, and they are fun, inspiring, and useful. Farms want to expand, restaurants and stores want to support fellow small business owners, and consumers value knowing where their food comes from. The findings will shape our efforts in the coming years, and we hope they will help food businesses and other nonprofits focus their work.

Learn more at VitalCommunities.org/Agriculture.

Page 4 VitalCommunities.org

SENSE OF PLACE

Quest Into SpringBY LAUREN WHITTLESEY

The beginning of mud season signals the return of Questing season here at Vital Communities. The promise of warmer spring days has me thinking about the ways we renew our Valley Quest program, the longest-running program of Vital Communities, each year.

One of the most exciting ways we enhance the Valley Quest program is through partnerships with local schools. We recently finished a major overhaul of the Valley Quest curricula—offered to area teachers to help them add place-based education to their classrooms—to bring it in line with the Common Core standards schools must follow. Four complete curricula are available on our website, completely free and downloadable. The lessons help teachers write Quests with their classes.

One Quest curriculum transports students to colonial New England, where they examine the settlement of their hometown and learn about the first colonists. In the Civil War Quest curriculum, students become historians and research people in their local community who contributed to the Civil War both on the battlefield and at home. Budding scientists can learn about their connection to the ocean through a Watershed Quest.

Each project culminates with writing a treasure hunt so that students can share their findings with

their classmates, families, and the broader community by publishing their Quests on our website. We’re excited to share two new Quests this year written by students in Sharon, Vermont, and Lebanon, New Hampshire. If you know teachers who would like to bring Questing to their classrooms, send them our way.

In addition to schools, dedicated community members help us refresh and grow by writing new Quests and updating old ones, introducing newcomers to the program, and much more.

Questing is a fun way for students to get outside and explore local history, ecology, and culture.

Questing provides students with opportunities for investigation, interdisciplinary learning, and

critical thinking. Students make observations, ask

questions, gather information, construct new knowledge,

share their work, and reflect.

Each summer, Super Quest brings Questers to unique and interesting

locations, with a new theme and a new puzzle to solve—this year featuring our

region’s general stores.

Learn more at VitalCommunities.org/ValleyQuest.

Page 5SPRING 2015

TRANSPORTATION

Treading More Lightlyin Hartland and Beyond

BY AARON BROWN

Aaron Brown: What’s your vision for Hartland? What barriers stand in the way?

Karl Kemnitzer: My vision is to help Hartland become more self-reliant and to support local agriculture, businesses, and energy. I want residents to meet many of their needs locally. Economics is probably the biggest obstacle. People have to drive more than they want to access work, goods, and services.

A: What is the community’s vision and how can we support that with more

transportation options?

K: Hartland has its master plan, which fosters smart growth. Transportation systems that tread more lightly will become necessary. Making biking and walking more comfortable in town would help establish a foundation.

Hartland Energy Committee member, solar-electric cargo bike enthusiast, and Smart Commute Hartland head volunteer Karl Kemnitzer has long supported Vital Communities’ efforts toward a more sustainable Upper Valley. I sat down with him

recently to learn more about his passion for sustainable transportation.

Karl Kemnitzer rides an electric-assist cargo bike up Mt. Washington.

A: Tell us about your solar-powered electric-

assist cargo bikes.

K: My cargo bikes are a blast! I get to be a kid again while reducing my environmental and economic costs. I have ridden 24 miles to meetings in street clothes without sweating, and then done my grocery shopping on the way home. Transportation accounts for 38 percent of Vermont’s fuel use and 47 percent of its emissions, costing $1.5 billion

dollars each year. These bikes use an incredibly small amount of energy (equivalent to 2,600 miles per gallon), are a fraction of the cost of a car, and have made me feel healthier.

A: What are the benefits of bikes and other non-motorized travel?

K: A sense of place is key. We bring down boundaries to our surroundings and better match our evolutionary and cultural needs when we use non-motorized travel. Better physical health from mild exercise and better mental health from slowing down also result.

Learn more about regional transportation options at VitalCommunities.org/UVTMA.

Page 6 VitalCommunities.org

Twenty-eight LFA businesses throughout the region participated, joining Norwich businesses to raise $231,208 and 4.77 tons of food for the Haven. Impressed with the campaign’s progress, by mid-December the Byrne Foundation increased its matching donation to the Haven from $50,000 to $75,000.

We also tied the effort to our Valley Quest program, sending shoppers on the 19 Days Quest to participating businesses to promote the diversity of gifts and services available locally.

What firsts await us in 2015? Only time will tell, but we look forward to more LFA members and new initiatives that benefit the local economy and community.

After our successful Upper Valley High School Communications Competition with students at the Hartford Area Career and Technology Center (HACTC), we ended the last fiscal year with an 11 percent increase in Local First Alliance (LFA) membership. The students’ dynamic and eye-catching public service announcements highlighted their exceptional talent and the importance of supporting our local businesses.

In December we took on another new project, working with LFA members to grow the “19 Days” local buying and giving campaign beyond Norwich. Started in 2013 by Dan Fraser of Dan and Whit’s, this holiday campaign promotes shopping locally for a cause. Participating businesses donated proceeds during December to the Upper Valley Haven. It was an exciting opportunity to reinforce the message of LFA, reinvest in our community, and increase local spending with a festive spin.

“People are slowly realizing that supporting local business matters. When your organization is looking for a donation, they come to the local

businesses, restaurants, and shops. We are able to donate because we are supported by our customers. Money spent locally stays locally.” —Dan Fraser, LFA member, owner of Dan &

Whit’s, and founder of The 19 Days of Norwich.

New Growth in Local First Alliance

BY EMILY GARDNER

LOCAL ECONOMY

To see what we’re up to this spring and summer or find a local business member, visit our online directory at VitalCommunities.org/LocalFirst.

The Upper Valley Food Co-op is a proud member of Local First Alliance.

As we bid goodbye to winter and welcome the green of spring, it’s exciting to look back on 2014—a year full of firsts.

Page 7SPRING 2015

One of the most exciting new developments at Vital Communities early this year is our new Executive Director, Hartland resident Tom Roberts. While we were sad to say goodbye to Mary Margaret Sloan, who led the organization through three years of tremendous growth, and we appreciated the leadership of Interim Executive Director Hilde Ojibway during the intervening months, our staff and Board of Directors alike are thrilled to move ahead under Tom’s thoughtful guidance.

Tom has more than a decade of successful leadership experience in Upper Valley nonprofits, most recently as a Senior Philanthropic Advisor at the Vermont Community Foundation, and prior to that as Executive Director at the Ottauquechee Health Foundation in Woodstock.

Before moving to the Upper Valley in 2002, Tom worked as an attorney both in a small litigation and government practice firm, and for the Homeless Advocacy Project with the Bar Association of San Francisco.

Tom Roberts: A New Leader for Vital Communities

BY ALLISON ROGERS FURBISH

He has worked in the private, public, and nonprofit sectors on issues of justice, housing, children, and healthcare, including as homeless coordinator and housing department manager at the San Mateo County Human Services Agency and director at the East Bay Community Foundation of the Oakland Fund for Children and Youth. He holds a B.A. in English from Stanford University and a law degree from the University of California’s Boalt Hall School of Law.

Tom also has a strong personal commitment to the values and mission of our organization. He is a resident of Cobb Hill Cohousing, a 270-acre property that hosts a variety of local food enterprises, where he participates in community life including work days, community meetings, and finance and other committees.

Beyond home, he participates in the ReThink Health initiative, is a member of the Board of Directors at the High Meadows Fund, is an alumnus of the Vermont Leadership Institute, and volunteers in the community. Tom enjoys spending time outdoors and is looking forward to hiking the Appalachian Trail from one side of the Vital Communities service area to the other.

Tom’s skills as a fundraiser, facilitator, leader, and

community voice will serve Vital Communities well.

Page 8 VitalCommunities.org

2015 Spring Events

For more information, see the calendar at VitalCommunities.org or sign up for our e-newsletter at VitalCommunities.org/Newsletter.

14TH ANNUAL FLAVORS OF THE VALLEY

what: Meet local farmers and restaurateurs at our premier tasting expo for locally grown food.

when: Sunday, April 12, 11 am–3 pm. Admission is $10. Children 6 and under free, $30 family max.

where: Hartford High School, White River Junction, VT

8TH ANNUAL ENERGY COMMITTEE ROUNDTABLE

what: A gathering of representatives of the Upper Valley energy committees.

when: Tuesday, April 28, 5–8 pm

where: Montshire Museum of Science, Norwich, VT

VALLEY QUEST SEASON & GENERAL STORES SUPER QUEST

what: Follow our newest Super Quest to discover 12 charming general stores and solve our puzzle.

when: May 1–November 1

where: Throughout the Upper Valley region

WAY TO GO! CHALLENGE

what: Bike, bus, carpool, or walk to work for a chance to win prizes. Register online at WayToGoVT.org.

when: May 4–15

where: Throughout the Upper Valley region

4TH ANNUAL HEROES & LEADERS DINNER

what: Celebrate with us as we honor Upper Valley visionaries who have changed our region for the better.

when: Thursday, May 7, 5:30–9 pm

where: Quechee Club, Quechee, VT

LEADERSHIP UPPER VALLEY

what: Apply for the Class of 2016 now at VitalCommunities.org/LUV.

when: Applications accepted on a rolling basis until June 1

where: Throughout the Upper Valley region

7TH ANNUAL TREK TO TASTE

what: Celebration of local food and local trails including the Upper Valley Farm to School showcase.

when: Saturday, June 6, 10 am–3 pm

where: Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Park, Woodstock, VT

TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION MEETING & AWARDS

what: Annual meeting followed by awards honoring commuter and workplace of the year.

when: Thursday, June 18

where: TBD

Page 9SPRING 2015

Hartford High School, White River Junction, VT

$10/person or $30/family (free for children 6 and under)

Remember to bring your plate, cup, utensils, shopping bags, and checkbook or cash!

BUY LOCAL FOOD • SAMPLE TASTY TIDBITS • MEET FARMERS & CHEFS

14th Annual

Flav rs oF the valleyThe premier expo for locally grown food in the Upper Valley.

SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS!

Sunday, April 12, 2015 11 am–3 pm