In a time of increasing disconnection, mental health challenges, and social division, gathering spaces matter more than ever. Whether we’re talking about healing circles, mutual aid meetings, professional trainings, or grassroots organizing, one thing remains clear: we need spaces where people can come together, safely and meaningfully.
Yet in many Vermont communities — even those with strong social fabric — truly accessible, community-centered spaces are hard to come by. That’s why we’ve helped create The Summit, a new nonprofit meeting and training space in Colchester designed specifically to serve the kinds of work we believe in: connection, collaboration, and collective care.
As mental health providers rooted in social justice, we’ve seen firsthand that healing doesn’t always happen in a therapy room. It happens:
- In living rooms transformed into peer support spaces
- Around folding tables during racial justice trainings
- In basements where folks brainstorm how to meet local needs
- At community forums where people feel seen and heard
But often, the barrier to creating these experiences isn’t lack of interest — it’s lack of space.
Even when physical venues exist, they can come with roadblocks:
- Rental rates that are out of reach for small grassroots groups
- Physical inaccessibility for people with mobility, sensory, or cognitive disabilities
- Restrictions on food, furniture, or tech that limit creativity and flow
- Lack of cultural safety — spaces that weren’t designed with diverse communities in mind
These conditions reinforce inequality. The groups most in need of space to organize, build, and heal are often the ones excluded from it.
We talk a lot in the mental health field about trauma, resilience, and belonging. But rarely do we talk about the role that physical space plays in these processes.
- Belonging is spatial. It’s created when people walk into a room and feel that it was designed with them in mind.
- Healing is collective. And collective work needs room to breathe — literally.
- Wellness is not individual. It’s embedded in systems, communities, and spaces that support connection.
Vermont has a long tradition of town halls, grange meetings, and public commons. But modern spaces for community healing and collective work are still catching up. As our state reckons with issues like racial injustice, mental health access, and economic inequality, we need to invest in spaces that reflect our values — spaces that are:
- Physically accessible
- Affordable or subsidized for marginalized groups
- Flexible and welcoming to diverse uses
- Centered in community ownership and shared purpose
We need more gathering places that don’t just hold events — they hold people.
What Can You Do?
- Support local venues that prioritize accessibility, inclusion, and affordability.
- Advocate for public funding of shared-use spaces in your town or city.
- Offer your space (if you have one) for community use on a sliding scale.
- Include space equity in your conversations about mental health and justice.
Because how we gather — and where we gather — shapes what becomes possible.
