Innovative Methods

Talking about a sense of place is one thing, but actually feeling and experiencing a connection to the place where you live or visit is another. Communities need opportunities and regular occasions to celebrate themselves and fully realize their potential and expand the senses of those who inhabit them. Numerous methods exist to assist communities in this endeavor. Selected tools we will provide a more in-depth look at are: regional media sources, community branding, event based community festivals, and community publications.

Regional media sources -such as newspapers, magazines, websites, blogs, regional forums, radio, and television -appeal to our senses of sight and sound. These media outlets "tell the stories of local people and places, valuing them, honoring their complexities, creating opportunities to connect with them." Through opinionated, thoughtful dialogue, residents have a way to express their sense of place with what matters to them about where they live.

As an example, KVMR FM radio in Nevada City, California is a volunteer-based, listener-supported radio station fostering positive social change by entertaining, informing, and educating their community through the presentation of diverse music, cultural, news, and public affairs programming. This station provides an example of a regional media source that has now expanded to include Truckee and North Tahoe into their listening area.

Community branding is another method for creating, building upon, and celebrating one's sense of place. Two prominent yet very different examples of this are the Calaveras County Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee and the PlacerGROWN program in Placer County. Mark Twain's, The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County was first published in November 18, 1865 and has since been taken on as the "mascot" of Calaveras County. Out of this gold rush era short story has come the Calaveras County Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee as well as numerous other events, organizations, and publications centered on the history and heritage of the county.

PlacerGROWN is a nonprofit, membership organization formed to assist Placer County farmers and ranchers with the marketing of their produce and farm products. A goal of the organization is to bring farmers, ranchers, and community members together to maintain and enhance the viability of agriculture in Placer County.

The four objectives of the PlacerGROWN program are:
* Develop expanded demand for locally grown and processed foods;
* Increase agricultural production profitability and opportunity;
* Create and enhance a more sustainable community; and
* Enhance and increase economic development and stability in Placer County.

This program serves to build pride and excitement in Placer County around the food that the county produces as well as providing economic benefits to the agricultural producers. Appealing to all five senses, locally grown foods reflect the work and heritage that help people realize their sense of place.

PlacerGROWN has been funded out of the Placer County general fund for the last 16 years. Their major publication, The Placer County Agricultural Guide, is published annually, costing approximately $26,000 with approximately that amount coming from advertising sponsors. PlacerGROWN also puts on an annual farm conference along with numerous other seasonal festivals.

Event-based community celebrations, festivals, and programs provide citizens the opportunity to connect with the places they live and the people with which they share those places. Throughout the Sierra, communities are finding innovative ways to invest in the places they live and celebrate their uniqueness. The Lone Pine Film Festival celebrates the community's heritage and history while presently promoting investment and tourism for the economy. Other events, such as Farmer's Markets, appeal to all our senses (sight, taste, smell, touch, and sound) and provide a great early morning meeting place for residents. Lastly, community days, such as Truckee River Day, celebrate the Town of Truckee's most important natural feature and call on the public to give back, invest in and help restore the river for this and future generations to enjoy. Truckee River Day is a community based restoration workday. Each year 400 - 800 people come out to celebrate the Truckee River and engage in hands on restoration activities such as re-vegetation, erosion control, and fish habitat enhancement.

Publications that speak to the quality of life and the values embodied by a community are valuable tools for helping newcomers get accustomed to their new surroundings and understand the heritage and the history that has shaped their new homes. Booklets, such as the San Miguel County Code of The West, help new in-migrants and visitors understand life in rural areas and be better prepared for the changes in lifestyle brought about by country living. Fashioned after the unwritten code of conduct that the first western United States settlers lived by, the Code of the West stresses integrity, self-reliance and accountability when dealing with neighbors and other society members for finding non-partisan solutions to environmental and other related issues. The issues and ideals embodied in these booklets helps citizens understand their sense of place in new communities and new environments, which allows them to better, and more quickly adapt. Codes of the West have been adopted across the Intermountain West in communities from Colorado to Montana to Arizona.

The famous western writer, Zane Grey, first chronicled the Code of the West. Here is a sampling of some of the codes from communities across the west and a partial list of communities who have adopted their own “codes.”

• Sometimes it may seem we’re still in the days of the Pony Express. Don’t expect the same urban efficiency with regards to mail, newspaper and other delivery services. – Gallatin County, Montana

• Agriculture is an important business in Chelan County. If you choose to live among the orchards, farms and ranches of our rural countryside, do not expect county government to intervene in the normal day-to-day operations of your agri-business neighbors. In fact, Washington has “Right to Farm” legislation that protects farmers and ranchers from nuisance and liability lawsuits. It enables them to continue producing food and fiber. – Chelan County, Washington

• Telephone communications can be a problem, especially in the mountain areas of Larimer County. From time to time, the only phone service available has been a party line. If you have a private line, it may be difficult to obtain another line for fax or computer modem uses. Even cellular phones will not work in all areas. – Larimer County, Colorado

Communities with adopted “codes of the west” - Colorado: San Miguel County, Gunnison County, Larimer County, El Paso County. Montana: Gallatin County, Arizona: Coconino County Washington: Chelan County, Stevens County.