You may unsubscribe if you no longer wish to receive our emails. |
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Renewing the Countryside Newsletter
December 2006
----------------------------------------------------------------------
In This Issue
-- This Month's Featured Stories
-- RTC News Flash
-- Resource Pick: Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education Service
-- Partner Pick of the Month: Edible Communities -- What We?re Reading: Hobby Farms & Hobby Farm Home Magazine -- Conference Pick: Upper Midwest Organic Farming Conference -- Where We're Going: Stelle Community (Stelle, Illinois) -- What Does RTC Do?
Welcome to the December Renewing the Countryside newsletter, designed to provide a monthly toolbox of resources, ideas and inspiration for your own efforts and interests in rural revitalization.
Thank you for your continued support of Renewing the Countryside as we celebrate our fifth anniversary this year. Please remember us in your holiday gifting by purchasing books from the Renewing the Countryside store or by making a tax-deductible contribution. Jan Joannides, Executive Director |
|
|
This Month's Featured Stories --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Darthia Farm: Horse-powered Homesteaders
Gouldsboro, Maine To some, gliding over new-fallen snow in a horse-drawn sleigh might seem like a wintertime fantasy -- or a scene from a Courier & Ives print. To Darthia Farm, a 50 acre homestead and certified organic farm in Gouldsboro, Maine, it's a way of life. Owned by Cindy and Bill Thayer, the farm grows a diverse assortment of fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers while also tending to small flocks of chickens, turkeys, goats and sheep as well as a few beef cows and Haflinger work horses. With annual sales topping $75,000, their farm-fresh and value-added food and fiber products are sold through their on- site Darthia Farm Store, mail-order catalog and, in the case of their packaged salad mix, to a local high-end restaurant in the summer.
Pebble Publishing, Katy Trail Bed & Bikefest and Mighty Mo
Canoe Rentals: Diversified, Sustainable Entrepreneurship
Drawn by the mighty Missouri River, the 225-mile-long Katy Trail and the quirky and scenic river town of Rocheport, Missouri, Brett Dufur and his wife Tawnee have crafted a diversified livelihood based on preserving, featuring and interpreting those very qualities that first attracted them to the area. They've adopted and began promoting ecotourism long before it became a mainstream buzzword. Together they run a regional publishing house, family-friendly bed and breakfast and a guided canoe rental operation. |
|
|
RTC News Flash --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2007 Appalachian Entrepreneur Policy Calendar Released
Renewing the Countryside, in partnership with over a dozen Appalachia-based organizations produced and distributed a 2007 Appalachian Entrepreneur Policy calendar. The calendar, which features 12 entrepreneurs in Central and Southern Appalachia, is being distributed to policy and decision-makers in the region. It is part of a broad public education campaign to increase awareness and support for rural microenterprises. If you would like a calendar, they are available at the RTC online store for $7 (the price of shipping and handling).
|
|
|
Resource Pick: Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education Service ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Resource Pick: Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education
Service
Continuing in their long-standing tradition of promoting sustainable and organic agriculture, the Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education Service (MOSES) recently launched a revised set of organic fact sheets, designed to provide easy to understand free material on organic certification, production and marketing. From a 26-page Guidebook for Organic Certification to a "Vote With Your Mouth" hand-out offering talking points to share with others in highlighting the advantages of organic production, these well-organized resources help those with a range of sustainable agriculture backgrounds and interests. |
|
|
Partner Pick of the Month: Edible Communities --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Edible Communities, Inc. connects people to their local food
system through a network of locally-owned, area-specific
publications. From ?Edible Cape Cod? in Massachusetts to
"Edible Ojai? serving California?s Central Coast
Region, each publication shares the common tagline and
philosophy of ?Celebrating the Abundance of Local Foods,
Season by Season.? With a mission to involve consumers with
local growers, retailers, chefs and food artisans, this values
conscious company provides a nationwide portal for showcasing
and growing the local foods movement.
|
|
|
What We?re Reading: Hobby Farms & Hobby Farm Home Magazine --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
With a mission of ?rural living for pleasure and profit,"
Hobby Farms is the magazine for rural enthusiasts ? hobby
farmers, small production farmers and those passionate about
the country. Caterings to all aspects of rural life ? from small
farm equipment, to livestock, to crops, Hobby Farms provides
tangible, accessible how-to information.
A new sister publication, Hobby Farm Home, highlights farmhouse-based activities such as cooking, crafting, collecting, pet care and the home arts -- wrapped in an appreciation and love for living the country lifestyle. |
|
|
Conference Pick: Upper Midwest Organic Farming Conference --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Cultivating Integrity" reigns the theme of the 2007 Upper
Midwest Organic Farming Conference (UMOFC), sponsored by
the Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education Service (MOSES).
With over 60 workshops and 130 exhibitors, this conference
held February 22-24, 2007 at the LaCrosse Center in downtown
LaCrosse, Wisconsin, has well-earned its reputation as one of
the largest and top-rated organic farming events in the country.
For those looking for a more in-depth organic tutorial, Organic
University (OU) offers detailed courses the day prior to the
UMOFC.
For more information on the Upper Midwest Organic Farming Conference
|
|
|
Where We're Going: Stelle Community (Stelle, Illinois) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Stelle (rhymes with bell) can be found amid the cornfields of
northeast Illinois, halfway between Chicago and Champaign,
Illinois. With roots back to 1973 when the community was
created based on a supportive environment and earth
stewardship, today the 44 households serve as a showplace for
self-sufficiency and self-reliance. Annual open houses and
on-site workshops share this community's story, residents and
resources with others.
|
|
|
What Does RTC Do? --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Renewing the Countryside is a 501(c)3 non-profit
that strengthens rural areas by championing and
supporting farmers, artists, entrepreneurs,
educators, activists, and others who are
revitalizing the countryside through innovative
endeavors. We build awareness and support for these
initiatives by collecting and sharing stories of
rural renewal, providing practical assistance and
networking opportunities for those working to
improve rural America, and fostering connections
between urban and rural people.
As always, you can support our work by purchasing books from the Renewing the Countryside store. We're grateful to the Beim Foundation, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the Emma B. Howe Fund of The Minneapolis Foundation, the Bush Foundation, The Brico Fund and North Central SARE, for contributing to our work. Find out more about Renewing the Countryside .
Please consider a contribution to Renewing the Countryside's work. |
|
|
Contact Information ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
email:
info@rtcinfo.org
phone:
1-866-378-0587
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
