About Burlington Geographic

Burlington Geographic creates opportunities for fostering a sense of place and a sustainable future for the City of Burlington, Vermont. By giving voice to diverse stories, showcasing partnerships and sustainability initiatives, connecting educators with local experts, and infusing energy and ideas, Burlington Geographic aims to engage the whole community in a celebration of place. Over the past year, PLACE staff has worked closely with community members to develop an integrated series of presentations, field workshops, and web-based resources designed to deeply explore Burlington's cultural heritage, natural history, and ecological potential.

Burlington Geographic, and this unfolding story of Burlington's place-based identity, is the current focus of the  PLACE (Place-based Landscape Analysis & Community Engagement) Program, an initiative of The University of Vermont and Shelburne Farms. Since 2001, the PLACE Program has worked with 16 communities in Vermont and beyond to explore the intersection of natural and cultural history, and to deepen the connection between people and the landscape in which they live.

Schools are integral to the PLACE Program model. We work closely with local teachers to plan and provide rich opportunities for students to explore and learn about their community through the lenses of cultural and natural history.

Deepening the relationship between the City of Burlington and the University of Vermont is at the heart of this initiative. The City is an outstanding classroom and source of mentoring for students and faculty from across the university, and tremendous opportunities exist for UVM to make meaningful contributions to sustainability and quality of life in Burlington. This synergy will continue to manifest in the coming year though a community engagement series, a diversity of service-learning courses, and numerous place-based research projects.

Burlington Geographic is a cross-city collaboration of several institutional partners, including:

• The University of Vermont
• Shelburne Farms
• Burlington Department of Parks, Recreation, and Waterfront
• Regional Educational Television Network (RETN)
• Main Street Landing

Burlington Geographic is additionally supported by the expertise of:

• Burlington Department of Public Works - Water Resources
• Burlington Electric Department
• Vermont Agency of Transportation
• Burlington Edible History
• Vermont Urban and Community Forestry Program
• Burlington School District

Burlington Geographic is made possible by support from the Henry David Thoreau Foundation

PLACE Program and Burlington Geographic Staff:

• Sean Beckett – Program Coordinator (sbeckett@uvm.edu)
• Inés Berrizbeitia – Graphic/Web Designer (ines.berrizbeitia@gmail.com)
• Diana Gurvich – PLACE Intern
• Ryan Morra – Education for Sustainability
• Walter Poleman – PLACE Program Director (walter.poleman@uvm.edu)

For general questions, contact PLACE@uvm.edu