A collaboration between Dartmouth College and Black River community organizations
At A Glance
- Monitored and cleaned 220 culverts, drains, and ditches in Cavendish, Vermont
- Facilitated four participatory mapping sessions on flood resilience with affected communities in the Black River Valley
Community Science: How community science collaborations build local resilience
Vermont towns facing repeat flooding events are watching their rivers, and approaching storms, closely. The Rural Rivers project aims to build out our understanding of flood impacts and proactive maintenance of stormwater infrastructure. With funding from the Natural Hazards Center in Boulder Colorado, we began an Atlas of Flooding and Community Resilience in spring 2024.
This summer, our research team held four participatory mapping sessions with Ludlow, Cavendish communities and began working with the Long Term Recovery Group. From spring to summer, Dartmouth students and community partners monitored and cleaned 220 culverts, drains, and ditches in Cavendish. The students designed a survey on Survey123, which is an Esri tool that sends the data to the web mapping platform ArcGIS Online. When these more hidden stormwater infrastructure stop working, much more damage occurs during large flood events.
Combined, we are mapping erosion, road breaks, water quality, critical infrastructure, resource hubs, and other sites of concerns identified by communities.
Our community partners include: Kelly Stettner of Black River Action Team, Margo Caulfield of Cavendish Connects, and Melissa Rockhill of the Good Neighbors Resource Board.
From Dartmouth College, Dr. Charis Boke is a Lecturer and Research Associate in Anthropology. Dr Sarah Kelly is a Lecturer and Research Associate in Geography, who runs the Energy Justice Clinic. Aletha Spang is a GIS Specialist with the Geography Department.
Several students have contributed to the project, including: Eben Desilva, Paulie Horvath, Zoe Johnson, Sereena Knight, Claire O’shaughnessy, Erin Parker, Harper Richardson, Sophie Reynolds, Anna Salafsky, Keelia Stevens, Holly Sullivan, Dafne Valenciano Coronado, and Andrew Wilson.
As a long time resident of the Black River Valley, Dr. Boke began this project with Dr. Sarah Kelly after doing mutual aid with these community partners during the Great Flood of 2023. The “Culvert Crawlers” program started in Spring Term with the Energy Justice course taught by Dr. Kelly. This summer, students worked as Community Resilience Fellows with the EJC and local collaborators to continue the culvert monitoring. This fall, students in Dr. Boke’s Anthropology of Disaster class will continue the monitoring in Ludlow, Vermont. The project’s ultimate goal is to continue improving this community science effort and adding interdisciplinary collaborations.
Our initial findings are shared with local towns and formatted to send to the Vermont Culvert Database and the Cavendish Local Hazard Mitigation Plan. Community Resilience Fellows Sophie Reynolds, Zoe Johnson, and Erin Parker with Dr. Kelly presented their findings to the Cavendish Selectboard in August, 2024. We will continue researching with the Long Term Recovery Group and developing a 3 year research project on flood impacts and community resilience in the Black, White, and Ottaquechee Rivers.
Community-based Research: Local Knowledge is Critical to Understand Contemporary Flooding
What’s Next: Stay Tuned for Updates
We will be holding community outreach meetings to share our draft Atlas of Flooding and Community Resilience in the Black River Valley. Students from Dr. Charis Boke’s course Anthropology of Disaster will be developing projects with community partners throughout the fall term, including continued culvert mapping.
Be in Touch
For questions, feedback, article ideas, or story contributions, email Dr. Charis Boke at Charis.Ford.Morrison.Boke@dartmouth.edu or Dr. Sarah Kelly at Sarah.H.Kelly@dartmouth.edu, and we’ll be in touch.
Follow us online or on instagram @ruralriversvt
