As a part of my research, I have been conducting several interviews with organizers and members of alternative land and housing models. One of the most fascinating and arguable successful models is the community land trust, of which the Champlain Housing Trust (formerly Burlington Community Land Trust) is one of the best examples. To find out why, listen to the interview I conducted with Chris Donnelly, the Director of Community Relations here.
In this interview, I ask questions following a research instrument that I created along with one of my supervisors, but as you will be able to hear, my go-with-the-flow structure and staying on the quieter side i.e. allowing for potentially awkward silence (a trick that I learnt from the wonderful Becky Amato!) allows Chris to talk about several other aspects of the CLT that go gloriously beyond my questions.
Such a great, informative interview! I found Chris so inspiring, particularly in the way they have balanced their position as an established and respected institution (across political parties) with their commitment to responding to the grassroots, as in their homeless advocacy. I wonder if the only criticism they receive has to do with getting away from the grassroots as they continue to grow (they have an endowment!) or if there’s more. I’m also super-interested in the political affiliations of those who live on the CLT. Is this an example of an institution that functions across the partisan divide? Or maybe I’m just desperate to find such things these days!