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FROM THE CHAIR by Linda Salmonson
Suzanne Morse has written an excellent guide to community revitalization, Smart Communities, in which she outlines the steps towns can take to make a difference, for today and for the future. I heartily recommend Smart Communities to any local development volunteer or professional who is open to a fresh perspective.
 Morse has listed seven steps that seem to be critical to keeping communities strong or improving the prospects of any town. These are the steps she recommends:
- Smart communities invest in themselves. Places that care about the future put their money where their mouth is and invest in their community. It could be an entrepreneurial fund, a revolving loan fund or a leadership program.
- Smart communities grow leaders. Sometimes a program like LeadershipPlenty is the key, but something needs to be done in every town to nurture the next generation of leaders. Are you including all age groups? Giving younger volunteers positions of responsibility that will enable them to grow as leaders?
- Smart communities work together. Teamwork and cooperation is not as easy as it sounds, especially when people are not always on the same page, economic development-wise. But unless we pull together, our communities will be pulled apart by the realities of modern economics and demographics.
- Smart communities build on community strengths. Every town has them, but sometimes it takes a little looking to find your unique community strength. It could be local suppliers, value-added agriculture, or a business ready to grow, with a little help. Once you find your strength, pour on the support.
- Smart communities practice democracy. We’re all living in a democratic society, right? Not unless decision-making is shared, people feel included and all groups are properly represented in town government and economic development choices.
- Smart communities preserve what’s important. While all of us may applaud the economic success of Silicon Valley, not many of us want our hometowns to become places where costs are high, homes are non-existent and you need a master’s degree in cybernetics to get a job. Realizing what’s valuable about the place you live and retaining those values while encouraging growth is vital.
- Smart communities invent a brighter future. It’s partly analysis, partly confidence and mostly hard work. Every community that wants to make a difference for the future prepares a vision, a positive outlook that forecasts what could happen. Then everybody pitches in to make it happen.
These seven steps are not as easy as they look on paper. But if you start your community conversations with these ideas, who knows where your community can end up?
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