In a rural county in northern Maine, there is a school bus driver who will not start the engine until he has greeted and made eye contact with every child on the bus.

In Philadelphia, a woman who suffered years of sexual abuse by her father learns to dance out her rage and shame in movement therapy workshops offered at her neighborhood health clinic.

And in Walla Walla, Washington, an alternative high school has seen suspensions plummet since staff started approaching kids with a new question in mind—not “What’s wrong with you?” but “What happened to you?”

The original ACE (Adverse Childhood Experiences) study, published in 1998, confirmed what physicians, psychologists, social workers, substance abuse counselors and school principals had long suspected: that abuse, neglect and trauma in early childhood have a lifelong impact on health and behavior. But the study surprised even its authors, Drs. Robert Anda and Vincent Felitti, in showing how many people—even among a mostly white, well-educated, medically insured cohort of California adults—were touched by adverse experiences.

What do we mean when we say adversity, toxic stress or resilience? To have a conversation that crosses disciplines—medicine, mental health, social service, juvenile justice, education—and includes everyone from health policy experts to grass-roots organizers, we need to be clear about our terms.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Adverse Childhood Experiences Study, first published in 1998, measured 10 types of childhood trauma. Five types were the usual suspects: physical, sexual and verbal abuse and physical and emotional neglect. Five were family dysfunction: a member of the household who is addicted to alcohol or other drugs; a household member who is in prison; a household member with a mental illness; a mother who is a victim of domestic abuse; and loss of a parent due to separation or divorce. There are, of course, other types of adversity—for instance, witnessing a sibling being abused, being bullied at school, witnessing neighborhood violence, experiencing a natural disaster—but those were not measured. Some subsequent surveys have included other types of trauma.

Nine stories of communities, both large and small, engaged in the work of preventing/treating trauma and promoting resilience, are profiled here. These stories include the inspiration, the vision, the key ingredients that are bringing forth the emerging ideas, promising approaches and flourishing models.

These stories provide specific, richly detailed examples of how different communities have approached the challenge of responding to ACEs and fostering resilience. They discuss challenges and obstacles, mis-steps and lessons learned, “aha” moments and successful outcomes. These stories will be updated as they each further their work and new community stories will be added.