Our warmest thanks to everyone who could attend our 2023 summit, NEK Together. The event was a smash hit. Despite weather warnings of icy conditions, our hardy audience came out in droves to fill the Burke Mountain conference center with good company and warm intents.
Whether you missed this important event, or simply want to go over your notes one more time, we’ve uploaded each of our speaker’s slideshow presentations, below, so that you can be sure you don’t miss a beat. For those interested in a summary of the event as a whole, feel free to check out our NEK Together 2023 report→, which includes information like speaker list and session highlights.
Jennifer Carlo, NEK Collaborative Executive Director
Jennifer Carlo has served as the executive director of the Northeast Kingdom Collaborative since 2021. She opened the conference with a brief presentation on the Collaborative’s mission and programs; she also shared some of the Collaborative’s highlights of 2023. The Collaborative will engage in a strategic planning process in 2024, and Jen invited participants to give input into that process.
Kevin Chu, Vermont Futures Project Executive Director
Kevin Chu is the executive director of the Vermont Futures Project. The question "How can we use data to support the evolution of Vermont's economy towards a thriving future with opportunity for all?" isn’t as simple as it might seem! Major cultural and political factors have parts to play in our understanding of the future of Vermont. In this address, Kevin Chu outlines what Vermont’s best futures need, and gives a detailed understanding from a variety of statistical and cultural perspectives.
Katie Buckley, VT League of Cities and Towns &
Annie McLean, NVDA
Katie Buckley is the director of the Federal Funding Assistance Program at the Vermont League of Cities and Towns, and Annie McLean is the Community and Economic Recovery Specialist at the Northeastern Vermont Development Association (NVDA). Through their presentations, attendees of NEK Together ‘23 learned about opportunities to build municipal capacity by coordinating with other Federal, State, and Local funding sources and collaborating with community and state leaders.
NEK Broadband
Kitty Ufford-Chase, NEK Broadband’s community relations manager and Erik Townsend, GIS Specialist and Project Manager, presented on the past year’s progress toward the goal of bringing high-quality broadband to all residents of the NEK. They also shared more about the next steps planned for the year to come.
