CommunityMatters07 Conference

CommunityMatters07 will be held October 23 - 25 in Burlington, Vermont -- right on the Lake Champlain Waterfront.

The three-day event, sponsored by Orton Family Foundation and PlaceMatters, "will showcase planning technologies and methods, foster discussions and collaboration among citizens and professionals, and improve the way communities make decisions about their futures. "

Featured speakers include James Surowiecki, author of the national bestseller, The Wisdom of Crowds, and Michelle Long, Executive Director of Sustainable Connections, a northwest Washington State network of nearly 600 local businesses, organizations, and community leaders.

There will be three "tracks" of workshops during the Conference: 21st Century Issues; Community Heart & Soul; and -- of particular interest to planners -- Decision Making Tools, from "traditional planning tools like charrettes and GIS applications, [to] new social networking technologies, community arts, digital innovations, and new twists on old ideas."

For details on CommunityMatters07.

Note from PCJ Editor Wayne Senville: I will be posting brief reports during the Conference here on the PCJ +plus blog. If you'll be attending, please email or call us (802-864-9083) -- we welcome visitors to our nearby office (about six blocks away from the Conference site), and, time & schedule permitting, either I or Betsey Krumholz (our General Manager) would look forward to saying hello.