Identifying Connections

There are many ways to use our map. One of the most useful and straightforward methods is to trace a path of connections. Identifiying these connections is the first step to bringing together potentially disjointed efforts and creating cohesion between people working to build resilience. We strive for cohesion because it allows efforts to advance further than any one project can accomplish in isolation. The example below shows how to start this process of tracing connections.

Our group, Spencer Petterson, Rebecca Wasserman, Molly Talbert, Onelissa Martinez and Jeremy Lessing, spent this semester building resilience in Vermont by mapping the many assets already working on this theme. We did this with Middlebury College, Elizabeth Courtney, and Vic Guadagno.

Step 1: Pick a starting point.

Step 2: Identify your goal.

Our goal was to reach out to as many people as possible working to build resilience in Vermont. To understand what resilience means from different perspectives, we wanted to connect to and hear from as many Vermonters as possible.

Step 3: Identify who can help.

During our time at Middlebury, we connected with alumnus Stu Fram. Now he works for the High Meadows Fund, which supports many of the resilience-building iniciatives in Vermont. Stu led us to the people and organizations you see in the figure on the left.

One of Stu Fram's connections is the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources. If we follow this connection, we see even more individuals and organizations with which we could start collaborations.

Step 4: Follow the connections.