Trescott Property Social Impact Practicum

Anthropology 65 (Development and Conservation) created a strategy for the realization of the vision of the Trescott Property based on data we collected from key stakeholders of the property, conversations with local professionals in the field of conservation and development, surveys of Dartmouth students and faculty as well as the broader Hanover community. We spent time exploring the property and examining information available to us such as the current management plan, web, and social media pages. We understood current challenges with the property to be first and fore-most the protection of Hanover’s water source, resistance from property users on management decisions, disregard (or lack of knowledge) by public of land use rules, need for deeper community engagement, and uncertainty about future recreation on the multiuse property.

Strategy

Our strategy is intended to support the efforts of the Trescott Company, the Hanover Conservancy, and other stakeholders to maintain Trescott as a property available for the recreation of the local community while protecting the integrity of the Town of Hanover and Dartmouth College’s water source. For this to be successful, all of our recommendations for Trescott are in the spirit of nurturing a community culture of stewardship around the land. We imagine this to develop through specific language use regarding the property, increased transparency about management decisions, intentional infrastructure decisions, continued education on the history and ecology, and active engagement with both the Dartmouth and greater Hanover community. Our hope is that through these avenues, the community’s sense of ownership over Trescott can be developed in a way that promotes a sense of stewardship and care-taking, rather than entitlement.

Goals

Developed specific goals to support our strategy based foremost on current priorities on the property and subsequently what we identified from the information we collected on management issues, user experiences, and community engagement.

  • Prioritize the protection of water source above other land uses
  • Nurture a culture of stewardship and care-taking through multiple avenues
  • Increase transparency regarding management decisions to work toward a trusting relationship between management and the community
  • Actively engage greater Hanover community through social media outreach, community events, land maintenance involvement opportunities
  • Actively engage Dartmouth community through courses and extracurricular activities
  • Use language on any informational material that promotes investment in the care of the property and water sources
  • Facilitate appropriate and respectful recreational use through informational material, thoughtful infrastructure, and community engagement
  • Promote an educational visitor experience of Trescott’s history and ecology