The New Farmer Narrative Project
The library is pleased to host the first installation of the New Farmer Narrative Project exhibit, Journeys into Farming, Saturday May 19th to Saturday, June 2nd.
The exhibit features 20 new farmers who have started or taken over farms in Columbia County in the last ten years. It is based on in-depth interviews and farm tours conducted by the Hawthorne Valley Farmscape Ecology Program in 2012.
The exhibit highlights the stories and experiences of new farmers in their own words, pictures of their farms, and an exploration of the current context of new farms in Columbia County.
The exhibit will have an opening reception May 18th from 4-7pm at the Chatham Real Food Co-op before arriving at the Chatham Public Library to start a four month tour around the County.
The Farmscape Ecology Program is a research and outreach organization with a mission of helping people connect to the agricultural, ecological and cultural landscape of Columbia County. For more information about the New Farmer Narrative Project you can visit: www.hawthornevalleyfarm.org/fep/newfarmer.
The Greenhorns
The exhibit will conclude June 2nd at 6:30 pm with the film showing of The Greenhorns, a beautiful documentary featuring farmers from around the country, an original soundtrack and commentary by Eric Schlosser (author of Fast Food Nation) and Michael Pollen (author of The Omnivore's Dilemma).
The film was directed by local filmmaker, farmer, and activist Severine von Tscharner Fleming, who writes, "It will make you want to pick up a tool and run outside, wherever you are." The film is part of a larger national advocacy project, based in Hudson, NY, to recruit, support, and promote young farmers in America.
A new book by Tscharner Fleming and Paula Manalo entitled Greenhorns: 50 Dispatches from New Farming Movement is due out shortly. For more information on The Greenhorns, you can visit www.thegreenhorns.net.
