LET’S BE SHORE: A CONVERSATION ABOUT LAND AND WATER
at the Talbot County Free Library, Easton
September 23, 2012
On September 23rd, Let’s Be Shore partnered with the Chesapeake Film Festival and the Talbot County Free Library to host a facilitated community conversation around land use, agriculture, and water quality issues. It was the first in a series of three dialogues aimed at giving residents a platform to share their perspectives and opinions on the issues while listening to and learning about what their neighbors value.
A crowd of over 80 came together to view short films on farming and working the waters of the Chesapeake Bay. The films were followed by a panel discussion featuring environmental writer Tom Horton, poultry farmer Jennifer Rhodes, and filmmaker Ethan Goldwater and moderated by Easton filmmaker Doug Sadler. Audience members then gathered in small groups for dialogue led by trained facilitators from the Maryland Mediation for Conflict Resolution Offices on the issues raised in both the films and the panel discussion.
Panelists Tom Horton, Ethan Goldwater, and Jenny Rhodes take audience questions after the film screenings.
Here’s what we heard from participants about the conversations held at this program. If you would like to add or share your comments on the dialogue event or the responses below please do so here.
“When I meet a person in the flesh – it is much easier/better for me to understand them and also learn from them.”
“This expanded my understanding of the problems facing the bay.”
“Yes I could clearly see that we all have deeply held beliefs about the very same problems – but our foundational understanding is vastly different.”
View a photo album from the discussion on our Practicing Democracy Facebook page.
A word cloud created using words from the 9.23 dialogue about solutions for addressing water quality along the Eastern Shore.
