31 Clinch River Valley Initiative: Using Community Based Collaboration to Build Local Economies And Create Change in Appalachian Virginia Christine Gyovai, Dr. Frank Dukes, Abigail Ness, Lucas Lyons, Allison Spain The Clinch River Valley Initiative (CRVI) is a consensus-based, grassroots effort that unites a broad group of stakeholders to establish Southwest Virginia’s Clinch River Valley as a global destination based on its unique biodiversity, natural beauty, cultural attractions and outdoor opportunities. By working at a watershed level with multiple partners, this grassroots effort has developed significant ownership and momentum that may serve as a model for other communities in Appalachia and beyond. In this paper, we discuss the structure and function of CRVI in comparison with other consensus-based efforts that utilize community-based collaboration. We identify challenges that CRVI faced, detail its successes to date, and analyze how well the initiative is meeting its goals. Background Christine Muehlman Gyovai is the Principal of Dialogue The Clinch River Valley Initiative is a pioneering + Design Associates and an Affiliated Associate at the UVA effort to build local economies while enhancing natural Institute for Environmental Negotiation. resources in the coalfields of Southwest Virginia, focusing on the Clinch River Valley—one of the most biodiverse Frank Dukes, Ph.D., is a mediator, teacher, and researcher river systems in North America. This grassroots effort who directs the Institute for Environmental Negotiation at the has developed significant support and momentum University of Virginia. throughout the region. Utilizing a consensus-based approach, diverse project partners—including citizens, Abigail Ness is on the Collaborative Planning and Design not-for-profit organizations, and business and community Team at Skeo Solutions, an environmental planning firm in leaders—have developed a robust vision and goals around Charlottesville, VA that specializes in reuse planning for outdoor recreation, healthy ecosystems, and revitalized Superfund sites. communities. This group seeks to establish Southwest Virginia’s Clinch River Valley as a global destination Allison Spain is a recent graduate of the Urban and based on its unique biodiversity, natural beauty, cultural Environmental Planning master’s program at the University attractions and outdoor opportunities. of Virginia. She now serves as a program manager for the CRVI emerged following a forum called Building Department of City & Metropolitan Planning at the University Local Economies in Southwest Virginia in September of Utah. 2010, initiated with community partners and convened and facilitated by the Institute for Environmental Negotiation, Lucas Lyons graduated from the Urban & Environmental University of Virginia (IEN). At that session, a highly Planning program at the University of Virginia in 2013. He diverse group expressed their desire to encourage localized now serves as a mobility manager for a paratransit agency in and environmentally responsible economic development, Charlottesville, VA with a focus on outdoor recreation and downtown 32 Gyovai, Dukes, Ness, Lyons, Spain revitalization — and what shortly after became known economic development officials, representatives from as the “Clinch River Valley Initiative,” or “CRVI,” was state and local agencies, elected officials and citizens. born. As of March 2014, with a contact list of 350 people, Participants include water quality monitoring groups, CRVI includes five productive action groups, an attentive power companies, tourism development corporations, steering committee, and numerous enthusiastic and local schools and universities, state agencies, and the dedicated community leaders from diverse organizations. local governments of Russell, Scott, Tazewell and Wise By working at a watershed level with multiple partners, Counties, as well as the towns of St. Paul, Cleveland, this largely grassroots effort developed significant Dungannon, and others in the Clinch River Valley. Early ownership and momentum that may serve as a model in in the initiative, participants created an organizational other communities in Appalachia and beyond. structure of five action groups, each with its own chair The Clinch River, which flows through Russell, or co-chairs, corresponding to the five goal areas that had Scott, Tazewell and Wise counties in far southwestern been developed by CRVI participants. Virginia, supports more rare species of freshwater mussels and fish than any river system in the United States (The • Goal 1: Develop a Clinch River State Park. Nature Conservancy 2012). The Nature Conservancy has designated the Clinch River Valley as a biodiversity • Goal 2: Develop and Integrate Access Points, Trails hotspot and “one of the last 20 greatest places on Earth” and Campgrounds along the Clinch River. because of the valuable, yet imperiled, Clinch River aquatic ecosystems (The Nature Conservancy 2012). The • Goal 3: Enhance Water Quality in the Clinch River. Clinch is lined by farms, small towns, old mines, mills • Goal 4: Develop and Enhance Education and fishing camps, and is well loved by residents in the Opportunities for all Community Members in the region. Community members have been baptized, learned Clinch River Watershed. to swim, and fished in its waters, and walked its shores for generations. • Goal 5: Connect and Expand Downtown When CRVI began, residents expressed the desire Revitalization, Marketing and Entrepreneurial to protect the river while encouraging regional economic Development Opportunities in the Clinch River growth. With facilitation and coordination assistance from Valley. IEN, they embraced an asset-based development strategy — building economies and strengthening communities Since then, the action groups have developed their based on the natural and cultural assets of the region - as own goals and metrics to measure their progress. a way to meet broad community goals. After a few initial Each of the action groups meets regularly outside of meetings in the town of St. Paul, Virginia, a youth-led panel initiative meetings and maintains its own communications. inspired participants to craft a shared vision and goals for The groups often collaborate on projects as well. As the the initiative, which eventually became the following: effort became larger and more complex, participants By 2020 the Clinch River Valley will be a global decided to create a steering committee to help guide destination based on its unique biodiversity, natural the overall structure and function of CRVI, provide beauty, cultural attractions and outdoor opportunities. oversight of funding requests, and coordinate action This collaboration will bring measurable economic, group initiatives. The committee has no authority over the environmental and social benefits to the region’s decisions of individuals or action groups; rather, it ensures communities while protecting the Clinch’s globally rare communication between action groups in order to take species. advantage of available resources and to prevent duplicative The University of Virginia’s Institute for activities. The CRVI Steering Committee was created in Environmental Negotiation (IEN) has been involved since spring 2012 and includes 25 members who are citizens, CRVI’s inception as convener, facilitator, and coordinator. community leaders, and action group chairs. Steering IEN was founded in 1980 as an affiliate of the Department Committee decisions are made by consensus. of Urban and Environmental Planning at the University of Virginia. With a mission of “empowering communities Role of the Facilitator to create shared solutions,” IEN specializes in conflict As CRVI developed over time, IEN provided resolution and consensus building to create ecologically, facilitation, coordination and technical support, including socially and economically sustainable communities. Frank addressing conflict and challenges as they arise. As Dukes and Christine Gyovai serve as CRVI facilitators and the facilitator and convener of the Clinch River Valley coordinators, with assistance from a number of graduate Initiative, IEN plays a unique part in its operation and planning students. success. IEN attempts to convene CRVI participants through face-to-face meetings when possible, as this leads Clinch River Valley Structure and Participants to positive and effective consensus-based groups (Innes The Clinch River Valley Initiative has an unusually and Booher 2010). diverse membership of non-profit leaders, activists, IEN plays many roles, including some that go well Carolina Planning Volume 39 Clinch River Valley Initiative 33 beyond those of traditional facilitators. One of its major must work together to solve challenges, meet shared goals, roles has been coordinating logistics and facilitating and develop consensus. quarterly meetings and monthly group conversations Despite initial skepticism of the community-based for the Steering Committee. IEN wrote grants, recruited collaboration framework, CBCs today are internationally participants, and helped strategize next steps. IEN maintains recognized for their effectiveness in making institutions the website, continually updates the living CRVI Action and decision-making processes more adaptive and efficient Plan, and takes on individual projects as necessary. While in handling multi-dimensional issues regarding the use and doing this, IEN also promotes best practices for consensus- development of natural resources (Dukes,