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Renewing the Countryside Newsletter
October 2007
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In This Issue
-- This Month's Featured Stories
-- RTC News Flash
-- Resource Pick: Nature Friendly Tools
-- Partner Pick: League of Rural Voters -- What We're Reading: Food Not Lawns by Heather C. Flores -- Event Picks: Small Farm Trade Show & Conference -- Where We're Going: Last of the Season Farmers' Markets -- What Does RTC Do?
Welcome to the October 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 |
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This Month's Featured Stories --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bakter's Vineyard and Winery
Navoo, IL With a 12-acre vineyard and wine-making plant, Brenda and Kelly Logan are preserving a family tradition that dates back to 1857 when Kelly's great, great grandfather planted the first grapes on this west central Illinois farm. The couple is also helping to preserve the history of Nauvoo, a community whose past is steeped in the drama of religious clashes and prohibition. Read the rest of the story . . . .
Pottery and Pumpkins: Partnering for
Prosperity
"Can't get more landlocked than Beach, North Dakota," grins an area resident. That and the name bring a smile to one's face. Such positive community spirit fuels partnerships and pertinence among Beach's 1,100 residents. New lines of communication, particularly between youth and older residents, have blossomed through the formation of a Youth Advisory Committee. A student council representative from each high school class now brings local input to the committee meetings, which are held early in the morning to accommodate students' schedules. "These kids keep so active and involved," smiles an adult organizer, "it's the only time they could meet." Improving connections between local businesses and teens came up as a community need, particularly in communicating job openings for the summer tourist season. |
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RTC News Flash --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wisconsin Book Hot Off the Press
RTC is pleased to announce the release of its latest book: Renewing the Countryside - Wisconsin. Capturing the pulse of Wisconsin's vibrant rural heartbeat, this book continues in the RTC tradition of sharing the inspiring stories of sustainably grown food, environmentally responsible businesses, and home- grown, forward-looking answers to the challenges facing today's rural economy and communities. Showcasing thirty-nine creative, hard-working people, organizations and businesses that represent energetic, innovative visions for Wisconsin's countryside, this photography rich book features stories ranging from arts and culture, farming, green business, conservation, tourism, community development, and education. Distributed by University of Wisconsin Press, this unique project is in partnership with the Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education Service (MOSES), the Northern Center for Community and Economic Development (UW-Superior and UWEX) and RTC. Click here for more information on the Renewing the Countryside - Wisconsin project, including book ordering information through the RTC store.
Sow the Seeds Harvesting Support In the September RTC newsletter we mentioned a flood relief fund had been set up for sustainable farmers in SE Minnesota, SW Wisconsin and NE Iowa through Sow the Seeds, an initiative of the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy in partnership with area food co-ops and other organizations. Applications have been coming in from farmers and the devastation is heart-breaking. Millions of dollars in produce, livestock, equipment, fencing and topsoil has been lost. The silver lining is that Sowing the Seeds has already raised $260,000 and people, organizations and businesses continue to contribute. As soon as community partners realized the severity of the floods, word spread quickly and donations poured in. Midwest food co-ops and restaurants have demonstrated incredible leadership, raising thousands of dollars from members, shoppers and diners. And all of these remarkable grassroots efforts have led to larger corporate donations. The first checks, a total of $50,000 went out to farmers last week and applications are being considered on an ongoing basis. Click here for more information on Sow the Seeds Fund and how you can help.
Got Local? Farmer Chef Connection Workshops RTC, Minnesota Grown, MISA, Heartland Food Network and Food Alliance Midwest, in partnership with local sponsors, are hosting three Farmer Chef Connection workshops on January 7, 2008 (western Twin Cities suburbs), January 14, 2008 (Winona) and January 28 (Little Falls). These workshops will assist farmers and food buyers to make connections and explore best practices in working together. If you are a farmer interested in getting your product into a restaurant, grocery store or institution (school, hospital, etc.), a food buyer for one of these entities, or someone working in food systems and would like to attend, please call 612 -871-1541 or e-mail Lindsay at lindsay@rtcinfo.org.
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Resource Pick: Nature Friendly Tools ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Nature-Friendly Tools provides citizens and
professionals practical tools to incorporte
conservation strategies into local planning efforts as
unbridled development consumes more and more of
America's natural land and habitats. From "Ten
Steps to Creating a Nature-Friendly Community" to
case studies on what successful communities across
the country are doing to preserve natural landscape,
Nature Friendly Tools promotes preservation through
pragmatic action and collaboration. Nature Friendly
Tools is a project of the Consortium on Biodiversity
and Land Use, a partnership of Island Press,
Defenders of Wildlife, Environmental Law Institute,
and NatureServe.
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Partner Pick: League of Rural Voters --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Since 1985, the League of Rural Voters has helped
rural Americans work to create change by harnessing
the power of the ballot box. Through a grassroots
approach, the League of Rural Voters provides
information, communication and organizational tools
to a growing network of rural advocates. Projects
include campaigns to raise awareness of rural
policies that have led to current economic
challenges, online advocacy tools, and bringing
rural issues to the forefront of the presidential
campaign. Upcoming events include the National
Summit on Agriculture and Rural Life in Ames, Iowa
on October 27.
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What We're Reading: Food Not Lawns by Heather C. Flores --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Certified permaculture designer and author Heather
C. Flores
advocates planting home and community gardens
as the key to creating an ecologically friendly
lifestyle. In her book, Food Not Lawns: How to Turn
Your Yard into a Garden and Your Neighborhood
into a Community, Flores details a range of small,
easy lifestyle changes that connect the politics of a
personal garden with the broader politics of waste,
consumption and sustainability.
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Event Picks: Small Farm Trade Show & Conference --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The largest annual small farm show in the country
celebrates it 15th anniversary this November 1-3,
with over 60 talks, 150 exhibitors, a poultry
demonstration and demos. Located at the Boone
County Fairgrounds in Columbia, MO, this event
provides valuable information and resources for the
small farm at an affordable price: $5 per day
admission (preregistration) or $8 at the door.
For more information on the Small Farm Trade Show & Conference . . .. |
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Where We're Going: Last of the Season Farmers' Markets --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For most parts of the country living in four-season
climates, these last weeks of October mark the final
farmers' markets of the year. Rather than mourn over
the loss of fresh abundance, celebrate the fall
abundance and stock up on autumn produce. If
carefully stored, goodies such as apples and hard
squashes can tide you over into the new year -- when
spring asparagus and spinach greens will be
abundant once again.
Local Harvest provides a database of farmers' markets nationwide. . . |
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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 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.
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Contact Information ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
email:
info@rtcinfo.org
phone:
1-866-378-0587
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