‘Wildly Cooperative’ officially underway with first set of meetings completed; Check out upcoming dates, locations to participate
Members of the Wilds Cooperative of PA have begun gathering to share insights and feedback on the network, officially kicking off the Wildly Cooperative engagement process underway this fall. For those who missed the first four sessions held Oct. 17-19 across four counties, don’t worry! There is still time to attend a meeting and share your thoughts about how the Wilds Cooperative of PA (WCO) network could better serve your needs as a business.
The PA Wilds Center for Entrepreneurship, the nonprofit that leads the regional PA Wilds strategy and manages the WCO network, selected a consultant to conduct outreach and help develop a plan for an evolved governance structure for the Wilds Cooperative of PA network, now 640+ businesses strong. Jenny Totten and Spencer Moss of Alchemy Accompanied, a firm based out of West Virginia that specializes in working with nonprofits across rural Appalachia, are leading the effort.
The first meeting took place at the Maker’s Warehouse in Saint Marys, Elk County, on the evening of Thursday, October 17. On Friday, October 17, two more Wildly Cooperative meetings were held: one in the afternoon at the PA Wilds Conservation Shop in Marienville, Forest County, and another in the evening at the Wilds Sonshine Factory in Kane, McKean County. The final round of the first cluster of meetings took place on Saturday, October 19 at Bent Run Brewing Company in Warren, Warren County.
During each engagement session, Totten worked through several exercises with the participants that helped them to explore more about what it means to be a member and to dive deeper into what they could see the network doing to best support participating businesses.
Valuable insights were gained at all four of these first meetings. The meetings welcomed WCO members who call those counties home, as well as members who found the meeting dates and locations convenient for their schedules. While members commonly share many of the same challenges and feedback, they each have unique experiences specific to their business and their location. Their insights can help inform how the WCO is set up to meet the needs of the community it serves.
“It was wonderful to hear from the members about what they see as super valuable within the program and what they hope to see in the future,” said LaKeshia Knarr, Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Director at PA Wilds Center. “The first few meetings have already highlighted some potential trends and uncovered some new ideas. Our whole team is excited to continue this process to see the fuller picture of what members want most from the network and how they want to be engaged going forward.”
These were just the first four of many upcoming meetings being held throughout the 13-county Pennsylvania Wilds region this fall, all with the goal of engaging WCO members and hearing their thoughts. An in-person session is being held in each county. In addition, virtual sessions are planned for partners and businesses not able to make an in-person session, surveys are being sent out, and one-on-one interviews are taking place.
The Alchemy Accompanied team will continue conducting online surveys, virtual interviews, and in-person meetings with Wilds Cooperative of PA members and core stakeholders to gather confidential feedback on how the network supports their needs and how they can be engaged and supported better.
In the New Year, based on their evaluation of outreach, data collection, and research, Alchemy Accompanied will define what an evolved WCO governance structure could look like and make recommendations for how it could function and how to better engage stakeholders. Findings and recommendations will be provided in a final report in early 2025 that will help guide the direction of the WCO over the next decade.
Keep up to date with activities at www.WildsCoPA.org/governance.
Save the dates for these next meetings!
Join Us Tioga, Potter + Cameron Counties!
Meeting details have been finalized for the second set of in-person outreach events!
November 14, 6-8 PM – Deane Deane Center for Performing Arts, 104 Main St., Wellsboro, PA
November 15, 1-3 PM – PA Lumber Museum, 5660 US Route 6 West, Ulysses Township, PA
November 16, 10 AM-noon – Cameron County Artisan Center, 24 West Fourth St., Emporium, PA
Join Us Virtually!
Can’t make any of the in-person dates? Check out the virtual option!
December 5, 7:30-9:30 PM – Virtual Session for any WCO Members and stakeholders unable to attend an in-person events
More meetings
While specific meeting details have not been finalized yet, the following dates have been selected for in-person outreach events, with a goal to hold one event in each county:
November 20-21 → Lycoming, Clinton + Centre
November 22-23 → Clearfield, Jefferson + Clarion
Learn more about Wildly Cooperative: Imagining and Evolving the Network’s Future
The goal of Wildly Cooperative: Imagining and Evolving the Network’s Future is to launch a process to establish an evolved governance structure for the Wilds Cooperative of PA and to evaluate how to better leverage partner strengths to help businesses in the network thrive. Visit the WCO Governance page here to learn more.
Learn more about the Wilds Cooperative of PA
The Wilds Cooperative of Pennsylvania (WCO) is a network that connects and promotes the products, services and experiences only found in the rural Pennsylvania Wilds region. It is free to join for small businesses, organizations and communities. It is the backbone of the PA Wilds Center’s growing entrepreneurial ecosystem, which supports the rural small businesses involved in the region’s tourism and outdoor recreation sectors through professional development, referrals to other service providers, commerce platforms to reach new markets, marketing and branding, and other tools and networks. The ecosystem is tied to a 20-year collaborative effort to grow the region’s nature tourism industry as a way to diversify rural economies, attract investment, inspire stewardship, improve quality of life and retain population. Local, state and federal partners from the public and private sectors are involved in the regional strategy.
ABOUT THE PA WILDS
The Pennsylvania Wilds is a 13-county region that includes the counties of Cameron, Clarion, Clearfield, Clinton, Elk, Forest, Jefferson, Lycoming, McKean, Potter, Tioga, Warren, and northern Centre. The PA Wilds Center for Entrepreneurship, Inc., is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to integrate conservation and economic development in a way that inspires the communities of the Pennsylvania Wilds. The PA Wilds Center promotes the region and its 2+ million acres of public lands as a premier outdoor recreation destination as a way to diversify local economies, inspire stewardship, attract investment, retain population and improve quality of life. The PA Wilds Center’s core programs seek to help businesses leverage the PA Wilds brand and connect with new market opportunities, including: the Wilds Cooperative of PA, a network of more than 575 place-based businesses and organizations, and the PA Wilds Conservation Shop, a retail outlet primarily featuring products sourced from the WCO. For more information on the PA Wilds Center, visit www.PAWildsCenter.org. To learn more about the WCO, visit www.WildsCoPA.org. Explore the PA Wilds at www.PAWilds.com. Find regionally made products at www.ShopThePAWilds.com.
Media Contact
Britt Madera | Communications Manager
PA Wilds Center for Entrepreneurship, Inc.
bmadera@pawildscenter.org | 570-948-1051
