The mission of Braided River is to Grow the Innovation Ecosystem in the Susquehanna Valley. That mission must remain as our flagship. This parameter is heavily weighted because a project that does not meet the mission should be very difficult to make happen for Braided River. If it is an important project, but doesn’t fit this mission, we should find another organization to do it.

Building upon our inheritance as a Commonwealth, Braided River believes that our work must improve the wellbeing of all people as well as the land we share. It is our belief that projects in true alignment achieve these goals all at once; one does not have to be sacrificed for the other.

To be honest in our work, we acknowledge that many of the structures that we historically built and currently maintain keep some people “in” and some people “out.” We believe in taking responsibility for those actions, moving forward from that knowledge, and building different structures to shift outcomes.

Braided River is a liminal organization between the nonprofit and for profit worlds. Our work is regenerative when projects support themselves. As is often said: There is no mission without margin. In an ecosystem the inputs and outputs are circular. Money is a key input and output in the structures humans have created, if a project drains too much away it is inherently not circular.

There is value in stewarding projects that support a character for our region. A significant need for the Susquehanna Valley is creating a message about who we are together. The project’s ability to draw attention to our region is critical to our long term success.