Thank you to EVERYONE who helped make this conference possible! It was a pretty incredible day at the Reggie Lewis Center, with about 250 people participating despite the October 18th SNOW! From powerful keynotes and empowering breakout sessions to scrumptious breads made of local wheat, delicious local harvest soups, and a new frontrunner for a local currency (Roxbury Rox), we hope that our attendees and participants got a small taste of what a relocalized Massachusetts might look like.

Frances Moore Lappé

Mel King

Bill McKibben

Mel King speaks to crowd

Crowd at the conference

Putting on this conference was no easy task, and part of the struggle was trying to get a grip on the mind-boggling array of grassroots initiatives that are underway doing the work of relocalization in this Commonwealth. We are convinced that the paradigm shift we've been looking for is happening, and the transformation to a sustainable, just future is underfoot. We learned so much from this process, and we look forward to learning more.

Bill McKibben and Maggie Zhou

Judith Foster fields questions for Bill McKibben

There have already been some exciting conversations about a 2010 statewide conference next fall, as well as smaller regional events leading up to it. But before we embark down this path, we want to hear from you all about what went right, what went wrong, what we missed entirely, and what you think would make our efforts in 2010 more helpful to the work you are doing and the transformation you'd like to see.

And before we can commit to a 2010 statewide conference, we need to demonstrate that there is indeed support for it. In addition to filling out our online survey and indicating whether or not you'd like to see a statewide conference next year, we hope that you will reach into your pockets and chip in for the cause. We hope to raise $5000 so that we can build on the energy we experienced at the Reggie Lewis Center. Please visit our donation button on the left side of the page!

And speaking of building, we at MCHC are looking to help build the institutions we need that will turn the converging crises of the day into a bridge to a secure green future. We believe it is critically urgent to thoughtfully build power right now because there is a dangerous vacuum created by shortsighted policies and outright corruption. In order to be able to address rapidly developing opportunities and to get involved with critical legislative issues, we need funding support directly from our members. That is why we need your help in establishing MCHC as a member-supported and member-driven organization. Please consider becoming an MCHC member today, so that we can help build the powerful grassroots network we need in order to swiftly relocalize, revitalize, and democratize Massachusetts.

If you attended the 2009 Massachusetts Relocalization Conference, please fill out this survey.

If you did not attend the conference, please fill out this survey.

And whether or not you were able to attend, please support our sponsors that helped make it happen!

Thanks for all you're doing to jumpstart the healthy communities and resilient local economies of our future, based on justice and sustainability.