Welcome to the July 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.

Jan Joannides, Executive Director
Renewing the Countryside

When Bob Kauer purchased thirty-six acres of an historic farm east of Durango, Colorado, in 2001, he wanted to live a dream. He would have Gaited Morgan horses frolicking in pastures (which he got), and he would raise a bountiful organic garden beside the Florida River. Even more, he desired a place where the community could tend and harvest copious amounts of produce, with enough left over to give away to charities. Thus, Bob provided an acre of land and the water for a garden where work and produce are shared. Today, over forty households participate in Shared Harvest Community Garden, showcasing this operation as an inspiring model for community gardens everywhere.

Read the rest of the story...

Hell's Backbone Grill
Boulder, UT

The place is the small town of Boulder, high on the Aquarius Plateau overlooking the slickrock wilderness of southeast Utah. The restaurant is Hell's Backbone Grill, named for the narrow nearby bridge that first linked Boulder to the outside world in the 1930s. In many ways this restaurant is an unusual and unexpected surprise in this sparsely settled region. The owners are two women, Blake Spalding and Jen Castle. Both were motivated to start the business by a strong commitment to providing delicious, healthful organic food with lots of heart and soul. "Our aim," they profess, "is to be a restaurant with a conscience."

Read the rest of the story...

RTC will once again coordinate the Healthy Local Foods portion of the "Eco Experience" at the Minnesota State Fair from August 23 through September 3. Scheduled events for the Healthy Local Foods area this year include chef and farmer demonstrations, many great food samples, a Food Facts wheel game and Local Food Hero playing cards. Click here for more information on the Eco Experience.

The Fair will again be the site for the 5th Annual Minnesota Cooks event on August 28, co-presented by Renewing the Countryside, Minnesota Farmers Union and Food Alliance Midwest. Renowned local chefs will share their skills and stories by creating an array of dishes made with ingredients from local farms.

A beautiful 16- month calendar will be distributed at the show that includes the recipes the chefs prepared as well as inspiring food and farm photographs. Look to an upcoming newsletter for calendar ordering information.

September Release for RTC Wisconsin Book

Thanks to organizational partners, the University of Wisconsin Press and a generous grant from the Milwaukee-based BRICO Foundation, the next book in the RTC state series -- Renewing the Countryside: Wisconsin -- will be released this September. This book includes 39 inspiring stories of sustainable Wisconsin businesses, initiatives and entrepreneurial organizations. The book is a result of a partnership of the Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education Service (MOSES) and the Northern Center for Community and Economic Development (University of Wisconsin - Superior and University of Wisconsin - Extension). Advance discount bulk orders are currently being accepted before the September release. Contact RTC for advance ordering and special pricing information.

RTC Joins National Rural Assembly

RTC joined over 300 rural leaders from across the nation for the first annual National Rural Assembly, sponsored by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the Ford Foundation. This Assembly aimed to help strengthen rural America by providing leaders a platform to be heard, raising the visibility of rural issues, organizing a national network of rural interests, and developing specific rural policy initiatives.

"It is an honor for RTC to be included as a leadership voice in the planning and policy initiatives of this Assembly," comments Jan. "With our interviews and grassroots initiatives, RTC brings a fresh perspective on the wealth of successful entrepreneurial ventures in rural America."

Click here for more information on the National Rural Assembly.

Click here for more information on Rural People, Rural Policy.

The Center for Agriculture & the Environment partnered with RTC to produce the book "Values of Agrarian Landscapes Across Europe and North America," taking a photo-driven journey through farm landscapes as varied as the olive groves of the Mediterranean, the windswept reindeer farms of the Arctic, and the fruit, nut and flower farms of the Hawaiian Islands. Click here for more book ordering information through the RTC store.

Learn more about the Center for Agriculture and the Environment . . .

"The Great Neighborhood Book" is a project of the Project for Public Spaces, a non-profit organization focusing on building community through creating and sustaining use of public place.

For more on The Great Neighborhood Book and the Project for Public Spaces:

For more information on the Kickapoo Country Fair. . .

For more information on the Alan Chadwick Garden . . .

As always, you can support our work by making an online donation or 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 .

Do you like what we do? Contributions from people like you are an important source of our funding. Please consider a contribution to Renewing the Countryside's work.