What would it mean to build a Northern Virginia that is democratic, sustainable, and inclusive – and what tools do we already have to get there? These were the guiding questions behind the 2025 Democratizing NOVA Summit: Building Community Power, Growing Community Wealth, hosted at George Mason University on the final weekend of April.
The Summit brought together more than 100 participants – including students, faculty, community leaders, and local government officials – from across Northern Virginia (NOVA) for a weekend of panels, workshops, and dialogue. At the heart of the gathering was a shared commitment to community-engaged research and democratic practice. These values have long guided the work of Next System Studies and the Center for Social Science Research (CSSR) at George Mason University (GMU).
Faculty, students, and community members shared findings that challenge extractive models of development and reimagine what local governance and regional economics can look like.
The second DNOVA Summit came together around community wealth building, an economic development model that seeks to transform local economies by giving communities direct ownership and control of community assets. First articulated in 2005 by our partners at The Democracy Collaborative, community wealth builds the economic future of our communities through progressive elements like community land trusts, worker cooperatives, and public banking. The Summit showcased a range of alternatives to the dominant economic model, including solidarity economies, democratic technologies, and various forms of community and worker ownership. At the Summit, however, we considered the idea that wealth encompasses more than just money; it also includes relationships, knowledge, land, institutions, and the lived experiences of community members.
Another key theme that ran through the Summit was the reciprocal relationship between research and practice. DNOVA, as part of George Mason University, fosters engagement across academia and within and between communities. At the summit, faculty, students, and community members shared findings that challenge extractive models of development and reimagine what local governance and regional economics can look like.
The DNOVA Summit emphasized bridge-building between the university and the community, across disciplines, and among generations. Academic researchers were in direct conversation with community members and local leaders, underscoring the university’s role as a collaborative partner in building systems that are democratic, sustainable, and inclusive.
The keynote session, “Food for Thought: Towards a Post-Capitalist Vision of Democratic Economy”, showed just how powerful the alliance between academic researchers, community members, and local leaders can be. Law Professor Anthony Cook laid out a partnership between Georgetown University, philanthropy, and social investment capital to build a multisite cooperatively owned grocery store, not only serving the residents of Washington D.C. 's Wards Seven and Eight with healthy food but also incorporating community participation into its very fabric. The goal, as Professor Cook explained, is to ensure that the success of Rosie’s Grocery is intimately linked to the success of the surrounding community.
As the DNOVA Summit closed, attendees left with a renewed sense of what’s possible when regions, municipalities, communities, and universities act together. The Summit reaffirmed the necessity of interdisciplinary scholarship, democratic pedagogy, and long-term relationships in shaping a Northern Virginia that truly works for everyone.
May 07, 2025