Greetings!

Welcome to the Renewing the Countryside's second monthly newsletter! Read on for our favorite stories this month, along with a few project updates, our must-have resource recommendation, the monthly book review, and a raving restaurant recommendation. Enjoy!

Jerry Spencer is an entrepreneur. So it was with a sense of adventure that this chiropractor of 20 years--a man who had never in his life grown a single tomato plant much less a garden--dug up his front lawn one day and planted a vegetable plot far bigger than what would feed his family of eight. That was 1996. By 1999, after a few years selling surplus veggies to Birmingham restaurants, expanding his garden and adding a flock of laying hens, Jerry enlisted 40 people to join his fledgling Community Supported Agriculture program. If big, his goal is simple: to reverse the statistic that over 80 percent of the food eaten by Alabamans is grown out of state.

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Jim Dooley acknowledges that Forest Concepts' product line, despite its careful engineering and serious purpose, has a rather playful association for most newcomers. "Everybody that comes in here calls it Tinker Toys for adults," he laughs. But Forest Concepts' toys are larger scale than Tinker Toys, made from the long skinny trees that now dominate western forests. When put together, they make structures used for watershed and habitat enhancement.

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We're very excited to announce the newest addition to the Renewing the Countryside book collection: Renewing the Countryside: Washington, produced in partnership with the non- profit organization Sustainable Northwest! Learn how Washington's citizens are restoring the land and cultivating a new ethic of stewardship and cooperation in the Pacific Northwest.

Renewing the Countryside: Washington, Paperback: $29.95, ISBN 0-9713391-8-X Hardcover: $39.95, ISBN 0-9713391-7-1

http://www.sustainablenorthwest.org. 503-221-6911 http://store.rtcinfo.org. 866-477-1521.

Order Renewing the Countryside Washington!

RTC staff Jan Joannides and Brett Olson traveled Appalachia's scenic byways this month, on their way to and from a series of events and meetings throughout the region. One major high point was the International Rural Network Conference in Abingdon, Virginia, where 200 people from around the world shared examples of rural development initiatives. Jan and Brett were also thrilled to meet with folks from great "kindred" organizations throughout the region, including: MACED (The Mountain Association for Community Economic Development) (Berea, KY), Center for Rural Strategies, (Whitehall, KY), Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project (Asheville, NC), Handmade in America (Asheville, NC), Kentucky Artisan Heritage Trails (Richmond, KY), Tennessee Overhill Heritage Association (Etowah, TN),and Donna Sue Groves, initiator of the Adams County Ohio Barn Quilt Squares project that's catching on to communities across the country.

Keep an eye out later this summer for two new Green Routes brochures in Minnesota, as well as a website to help you find your way to some little known hot spots around the state. Already, Green Routes is making its mark; anticipating increased interest in locally grown foods by Green Routes travelers, Jake's Pizza in Montevideo, MN recently introduced a chorizo (sausage) pizza made with locally raised meat. In East Central Minnesota, Farmers markets will be opening in Sandstone and Isle, Minnesota, this summer in part due to energy surrounding the Green Routes initiative in that region. We're looking forward to seeing more great connections like these pop up across the state in the coming year.

In an effort to depart from the "get big or get out" approach to agriculture, farmers and ranchers across the country are diversifying their family-scaled operations. By employing risk management strategies, many farmers have overcome inherent risks of failed crops and, in some cases, now glean greater profits per acre than their large-scale neighbors. Read about some of the creative ways these farmers and ranchers are renewing the countryside in 65 new stories at www.renewingthecountryside.org.

Read the stories!

Read New Farm's Review of Agrarian Landscapes...

ATTRA's website is the authoritative source for information on nearly every aspect of sustainable agriculture-whether you're concerned about arsenic in poultry litter, or you just want to know: What IS sustainable agriculture, anyway? Highlights of the site include the "Ask a Sustainable Agriculture Expert feature," an extensive "Breaking News" section, and a thorough database of internships and apprenticeships on sustainable farms. Much of the site is also available in Spanish. ATTRA is funded by the United States Department of Agriculture.

Visit ATTRA

Sustainable Northwest has witnessed the growing schism between rural and urban communities-and is determined to reverse the trend. That's one reason why the organization was such a great fit for a Renewing the Countryside book. As exhibited in the new Renewing the Countryside: Washington book, Sustainable Northwest is rooted in a network of innovative conservation, restoration, and agriculture initiatives. The organization's goal is "to find solutions to the environmental, economic, and social challenges faced by citizens, leaders, and communities." In other words, they believe that people and the environment can healthfully coexist, and their "5 strategic initiatives" are a giant leap in the right direction.

Learn more about Sustainable Northwest!

Even if you don't live in Minnesota-and heck, even if you never come here, this book will make you feel like Minnesota is home. Angry Trout Café is a restaurant in Grand Marais, Minnesota, on the shore of Lake Superior, that serves fresh fish and all sorts of innovative dishes made with seasonal, local ingredients.

The book, like the café, is colorful, whimsical, and friendly. In it, owner George Wilkes gives his personal and well- informed take on the issues surrounding sustainability. He also leads an entertaining tour of the restaurant's innovative ways of promoting social and environmental equity: such as using reusable to-go containers, cloth napkins, and plant-based plastics, and providing a living wage to employees. And of course, the book is full of soon-to-be-your-favorite recipes.

Order the Angry Trout Café Notebook

The Black Powder Biscuits are reason enough to road trip to Boulder, Utah-home of Hell's Backbone Grill. Served hot while you're daydreaming over the feast to come, the biscuits are a spunked-up old favorite (kind of spicy!), served with butter that's tenderly mixed with freshly-clipped chives.

But it's not just the divinely fresh ingredients that make this restaurant worth planning your whole vacation around (like I did last month). Black Spalding and Jen Castle also make a point of infusing the food with gratitude, grace, and a sense of humor. And they'll swear that you can taste the difference (I can attest).

Hell's Backbone Grill also has a setting like you've never seen; it's on the grounds of Boulder Mountain Lodge, a favorite resting place for people enjoying the out-of-this-world hiking in nearby Zion, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands and Capital Reef National Parks.

Set at an elevation just high enough to guarantee gentle breezes in the hottest months of the year, the Grill and Lodge have a larger-than-life view of the surrounding canyons' beautiful, sinewy curves. You'll find yourself talking about the colors almost as much as the food: from the rubiest red rocks to the greenest Ireland-caliber vegetation.

But ultimately, it's the taste of the place you'll remember, represented through flavors that were born and raised in Boulder. I'm still dreaming about the Goat Cheese Fondue, Honey-Thyme Carrots, Spicy Cowgirl Meatloaf (local beef), Cornmeal-Pecan Breaded Trout (farm-raised), and (who could forget?), the famous Chocolate Chile Cream Pot. You have to eat it to believe it.

--Review by Andi McDaniel, RTC's well-fed Program Associate

Hell's Backbone Grill just released a beautiful book, With A Measure of Grace: The Stories and Recipes of a Small Town Restaurant, which gives away enough of their kitchen secrets to be well-worth the price--but features such awesome photography and narrative that you'll have to go back for the real thing. You can find Blake and Jen and other Canyon Country visionaries, in our book, A New Plateau: Sustaining the Lands and Peoples of Canyon Country.

Find Out More About Hell's Backbone Grill