Queen City Resiliency Salon
(Formerly Queen City Sovereignty Salon)
A community place for real conversation in uncertain times.
The Salon brings people together to examine how small cities can stay strong, adaptable, and connected.
Our focus is practical resiliency, the everyday capacities that help communities weather disruption and support one another.
Next Gathering
Saturday March 14, 2026· Staunton Public Library · 1:30–4:30 PM
Join us for a hands-on introduction to Mesh Networks, a low-power, long-range radio communication system that allows people to send messages directly to one another: no cell towers, no internet, no central authority required.
Everyone is welcome.
Wednesday March 18, 2026· Staunton Public Library · 6:30–8:30 PM
5:45–6:00 PM – Room setup
6:00–6:30 PM – New to Resiliency Salon?
Optional orientation and overview of who we are and why we’re building this.
6:30 PM – Official Meeting Begins
Virtual guest speaker from the Charlottesville TimeBank & Repair Clinic program sharing how their model works and what we can learn from it.
7:30–8:30 PM – Salon Hour
Mix, mingle, and open discussion with neighbors.
Everyone is welcome.
Current Focus
The Resiliency Salon is an ongoing, participatory process. Notes from each meeting including photos of working boards, transcribed ideas, and action items are captured and updated as capacity allows.
→ See what’s underway
Have thoughts to share?
Questions, ideas, or follow-ups related to the Resiliency Salon can be emailed to: s i g n a l @ k a m r e s e a r c h . g l o b a l
Messages may inform future discussion or action items.
How to Join / What to Expect
Attendance is open. No membership, no fees.
Each gathering typically includes:
- Thoughtful, facilitated conversation
- A brief educational segment
- Collaborative work toward practical initiatives, such as repair networks, time banking, or local economic literacy
Come as you are. Curiosity and goodwill are the only requirements.
Why Resiliency?
Modern life depends on systems that are powerful but fragile.
When a single authority or server controls a basic need, the whole community feels the impact when that system falters.
Recent examples make this plain:
- When centralized agencies handle food assistance, a shutdown can interrupt support for thousands of families.
- When our internet depends on large corporate servers, an AWS outage can disrupt businesses, schools, and emergency communication.
- Network shutdowns, whether accidental or intentional, can isolate entire regions at once
These moments reveal a simple truth: centralization concentrates both capability and vulnerability.
A Practical Alternative
Resiliency is not isolation; it is independence supported by community.
An individual can’t thrive alone and doesn’t need to. What matters is cultivating a community that:
- Trades locally
- Repairs rather than replaces
- Shares skills and resources
- Maintains multiple channels for communication
- Can function even when larger systems stumble
A community with its own capacity is a community that endures.
Resiliency is the practice of building that capacity together: steadily, cooperatively, and with confidence in our shared resilience.
Stay Connected
Email: s i g n a l @ k a m r e s e a r c h . g l o b a l