It Takes a Valley

My 3-day journey in rural Virginia

Diving deep into what “ecosystem” really means and how I, as a social impact professional, can be at the forefront of advancing systems change.

One of the things I love witnessing from visiting ecosystems and meeting with other practitioners is seeing how co-creating strategies with partners leads to not only considering multiple perspectives across the ecosystem but also collaborative, community-led strategies that increases the quality of services and programs provided (particularly entrepreneurship support and economic development). Bringing in mission-aligned partners leads to better input and ultimately trust which helps deepen relationships and creates that network effect that brings more to the table to implement the strategy. With this focus on systems level outcomes and learning, co-developing strategies with partners and the community closest to the problem creates space for actionable solutions and a flexible strategy that serves as a compass, not a map, so you can collaborate towards a clear direction but acknowledge its never a straight path but you are equipped to course correct along the way.

This trip also made my placemaking-loving heart so happy. Witnessing how these rural communities are actively bringing key players to the table to bring collective resources and enable a formation of dedicated team to progress projects was encouraging and I got to meet many entrepreneurs that have benefited from this strong and visible leadership and coherent (yet flexible) strategies to maintain that momentum.