Resiliency has taken over our thinking and conversations at the Island Institute. Such a simple idea in many ways, but with far-ranging implications and applications. Each discussion, each new resource, each new connection made yields insight and excitement about how resiliency thinking can benefit our communities.

The Island Institute has long celebrated and promoted the literary arts as a means of exploration into the nature of vital communities. To that end, we’ve shared the substance of the Sitka Symposium and our Resident Fellows program for almost two decades through our journal, Connotations.

But in anticipation of and following our Roundtable on Resilient Communities (which took place July 18-20, 2012), we want to not only share ideas and results, but start a dialogue.  We want to examine aspects of resilience thinking ahead of our gathering in order to ignite our summer conversations. We want to solidify our understanding of what questions need to be asked in this effort to recognize and cultivate resiliency and human ingenuity in our communities. We want to share personal stories of celebration and acknowledge the trials inherent in this work. We want the ideas developed in Sitka to spread, to take root, to grow.

This blog is a step in creating that larger conversation around and celebration of resilience.  We imagine its use and the stories told here will shift and grow as our programs unfold.  Initial posts introduced our Roundtable Core members as they shared their thoughts and posed questions to help kick-start our summer discussions. In the future, posts will highlight ideas and inquiries from both our Roundtable Core members and Participants. You will also hear from us at the Island Institute with our thoughts, follow-ups on the Roundtable, and resource and partner profiles.

We hope this serves as a useful resource and as a site of insight and inspiration for those both committed to and interested in the work of building resilience. Let the dialogue begin!

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Interested in contributing to the blog?  Contact us with a proposal or draft post.  We will follow up by the end of August.