Land Stewardship LIVE-WIRE, September 27, 2005
Hello:
This is the 27th issue of "Land Stewardship LIVE-WIRE," the Land Stewardship Project's e-mail newsletter. We send this out periodically to provide an update on activities and information related to LSP's work. We hope you enjoy this service, and are looking for feedback. Please send your comments to Brian DeVore at bdevore@landstewardshipproject.org.
If you prefer not to receive this newsletter, please e-mail lspwbl@landstewardshipproject.org and write, "remove LIVE-WIRE" in the subject line.
IN THIS ISSUE
1) Farm Beginnings Course Deadline Oct. 1
2) 'Farming with the Wild' Oct. 1
3) River Arts Crawl/CURE River Revival Sept. 30-Oct. 2
4) Pasture Livestock Production/Marketing Oct. 8
5) Landscape of Your Dinner Plate Oct. 9
6) 'Dine Fresh Dine Local' Oct. 11 in Twin Cities
7) Jackson to Give Shivvers Lecture in Iowa Oct. 19
8) Vote for LSP at the Wedge in October
9) Congress to Act on Conservation & Nutrition in October
10) Lappe´ in Minneapolis Nov. 18
11) 'Inside Tips' Farm Credit Workshops in November
12) LSP Holiday Open House Dec. 15
13) Help Farmers Left in Katrina's Wake
14) LSP Members Among Top Pork Producers
15) LSL Headed to Your Home
16) Check the Calendar
17) Worth Repeating
18) Worth Repeating II
19) Join LSP
1) FARM BEGINNINGS COURSE DEADLINE OCT. 1
The application deadline for the 2005-2006 edition of the Land Stewardship Project's Farm Beginnings course has been extended to Saturday, Oct. 1. For details, see
http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/pr/05/newsr_050909.htm.
2) 'FARMING WITH THE WILD' OCT. 1
LSP and the North Star Chapter of the Sierra Club are sponsoring an organic farm tour and hike Saturday, Oct. 1 at Philadelphia Community Farm near Osceola, Wis. Philadelphia Community Farm (http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/csa.html#philadelphia) is a
Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm that is also dedicated to educating children, youth and adults and working with people who have special needs. The farm is part of the innovative 1,200-acre Standing Cedars Community Land Conservancy (http://www.standingcedars.org). There is no fee for this event, but participants should bring
a sack lunch. Please reserve a spot by calling 612-659-9124 or e-mailing
mbrower@edelamanmn.com. Carpools will leave from Stillwater and Minneapolis.
3) RIVER ARTS CRAWL/CURE RIVER REVIVAL SEPT. 30-OCT. 2
Several LSP members will be featured at the 2nd Annual Upper Minnesota River Arts Crawl and CURE River Revival in western Minnesota from Sept. 30 to Oct. 2. Get the skinny at 877-269-2873 or http://www.curemnriver.org.
4) PASTURE LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION/MARKETING OCT. 8
Raising and direct marketing pasture-raised livestock will be the focus of a special field day Saturday, Oct. 8, near the western Minnesota community of Kerkhoven. The field day, which runs from 10 a.m. until approximately 3 p.m., will be held at Pastures A' Plenty Farm. For more information, see
http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/pr/05/newsr_050919.htm.
5) LANDSCAPE OF YOUR DINNER PLATE OCT. 9
LSP staffer Caroline van Schaik will give a presentation on the connections between local food production/consumption and ecological health Sunday, Oct. 9, at Christ United Methodist Church in Rochester, Minn. Her presentation will highlight a local foods meal being hosted by the church, which is at 400 5th Avenue Southwest. The event will run
from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., and tickets are $15; prepaid reservations must be made by Sept. 29. Call 507-250-0170 for more information or to make reservations.
6) 'DINE FRESH DINE LOCAL' OCT. 11 IN TWIN CITIES
For six years Tracy Singleton has been working hard to serve locally produced food to her customers at the Birchwood Café in Minneapolis. It hasn't always been easy, but the restaurateur has pulled it off with the help of farmers like Greg Reynolds of Delano. During the past decade, a growing number of Twin Cities area restaurants have built such
relationships with local farmers. Celebrate the tasty results of these restaurant-farmer partnerships during the second annual "Dine Fresh Dine Local" event on Tuesday, Oct. 11. This special one-day culinary event will take place at 16 restaurants across the metropolitan area. For the latest on this event, including a link to a profile of Singleton and
Reynolds, see http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/pr/05/newsr_050922.htm.
7) JACKSON TO GIVE SHIVVERS LECTURE IN IOWA OCT. 19
LSP member Laura Jackson will present the 2005 Shivvers Memorial Lecture on Wednesday, Oct. 19, at Iowa State University in Ames. Jackson will speak on how agriculture can coexist with natural habitat. She and LSP Senior Program Associate Dana Jackson co-edited the 2002 book, The Farm as Natural Habitat: Reconnecting Food Systems with Ecosystems.
For more information on the lecture, call 515-294-3711 or visit
http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/news/newsreleases/2005/jackson_092005.htm.
You can read excerpts of the book in the April/May/June 2003 issue of the Land Stewardship Letter.
8) VOTE FOR LSP AT THE WEDGE IN OCTOBER
Members of the Wedge Community Co-op in Minneapolis have a chance to support LSP in October through the WedgeShare program. This initiative gives Wedge members an opportunity to cast votes to determine which organizations get grants and gifts from the co-op. LSP's "Sustainable Farmers, Prosperous Communities Project" is on the ballot.
Ballots need to be mailed in by Oct. 23, or can be dropped off at the Wedge by 5 p.m. on Oct. 27. Ballots will also be accepted at the co-op's annual meeting until 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 27. For more information, see
http://www.wedge.coop/membership/membership-wedgeshare.html.
9) CONGRESS TO ACT ON CONSERVATION & NUTRITION IN OCTOBER
Congress is expected to take up debate in October over how to cut $3 billion from the 2006 federal agriculture budget. Unfortunately, conservation programs -- including the Conservation Security Program (CSP) -- are on the chopping block. In addition, there are attempts to severely cut nutrition programs for low income Americans. Ironically,
these cuts to stewardship and nutrition programs may be executed at a time when agribusiness interests and commodity groups are fighting to preserve massive crop subsidies for a handful of mega-farms that receive over $250,000 annually in payments.
It is critical that you call your representatives in Congress today and tell them:
--Make no cuts to CSP.
--Limit cuts to food support and nutrition programs.
--Put in place real payment limits on commodity crop programs.
To get the telephone number for your U.S. Senators and U.S. Representatives, call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121. For more information, contact LSP's Policy Program at 612-722-6377 or marks@landstewardshipproject.org. More information is also available on LSP's Action Alerts.
10) LAPPE´ IN MINNEAPOLIS NOV. 18
Author/activist Frances Moore Lappe´ will be returning to Minnesota for a special LSP event on Friday, Nov. 18. If you missed her when she spoke in Winona in February, here's your chance to hear Lappe´' thoughtful insights on how strong local democracies can help alleviate hunger and encourage land stewardship around the world. Her latest book,
Democracy's Edge, is coming out in November, so her visit will be timely. Lappe´'s presentation will be at 7 p.m. at St. Joan of Arc Church, 4537 Third Ave. South, in Minneapolis. For more information, contact LSP's Mike McMahon at 612-722-6377 or
mcmahon@landstewardshipproject.org. Learn more about Lappe´'s work by checking out the Jan./Feb./March 2005 issue of the Land Stewardship Letter (page 19), or visiting http://www.smallplanetinstitute.org.
11) 'INSIDER TIPS' FARM CREDIT WORKSHOPS IN NOVEMBER
"Insider tips" workshops on successful farm credit have been scheduled for Friday and Saturday, Nov. 4-5, in Lewiston, Minn., and for Nov. 11-12 in Montevideo, Minn. The workshops will address aspects of both record keeping and loan applications, with a goal of better preparing farmers to manage their farm as a business and feeling confident when
they enter a bank. Workshops like this are critical for farmers seeking credit to finance their sustainable farming methods. Find out why at http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/pr/03/newsr_031017.html. The eight-hour training costs $20 per family for LSP members, or $25 per family for non-members. The fee includes materials, snacks and lunch Saturday.
Pre-registration is required, with priority given to Farm Beginnings graduates. For details, contact Caroline van Schaik in LSP's Lewiston office at 507-523-3366; caroline@landstewardshipproject.org; or Michelle Skogrand in our Montevideo office at 320-269-2105; lspwest@landstewardshipproject.org.
12) LSP HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE DEC. 15
LSP's western Minnesota office will be holding its holiday open house Thursday, Dec. 15, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, contact Michelle Skogrand at lspwest@landstewardshipproject.org or 320-269-2105.
13) HELP FARMERS LEFT IN KATRINA'S WAKE
When Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast in September, it wasn't only New Orleans that suffered. Family farmers throughout the region lost omes, crops, livestock and facilities. Losses like that are enough to finish off a farming career. After the storm, Patchwork Family Farms teamed up with Farm Aid and the Campaign for Family Farms to donate
3,500 pounds of sustainably-raised pork products to the relief effort. Patchwork is a cooperative effort of mid-Missouri hog farmers and an economic development project of the Missouri Rural Crisis Center. Both the Missouri Rural Crisis Center and LSP are founding members of the Campaign for Family Farms. Help is still needed in the devastated
region. To make a contribution, visit http://www.farmaid.org, or call 1-800-FARMAID.
14) LSP MEMBERS AMONG TOP PORK PRODUCERS
Niman Ranch recently honored farmers who produced the "highest quality pork" for the company during the past year. Several LSP members were among the honorees, including: Arvid and Lois Jovaag of Austin, Minn.; Glen Bernard of Rushford, Minn.; Dave and Diane Serfling of Preston, Minn.; and the VanDerPol family of Kerkhoven, Minn. Niman Ranch markets pork that is raised without antibiotics
in outdoor systems and in deeply bedded pens. The pork is produced by 445 family hog farmers in 13 states. Niman is looking for more producers of natural pork to fill its needs. For more information, call 641-998-2683 or visit http://www.nimanranch.com.
15) LSL HEADED TO YOUR HOME
The latest Land Stewardship Letter is on its way to your mailbox. This issue features a special report on the Conservation Security Program, a feature on local foods booster Alyce Fust, an analysis of two major LSP cultural programs, our latest Fresh Faces-Fresh Farming installment, and much more. You can download archived issues of the LSL at
http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/news-lsl.html.
16) CHECK THE CALENDAR
As this edition of the LIVE-WIRE shows, things are busier than a leaf-counter in an October windstorm. For the latest on meetings, field days and other activities, check out the LSP calendar at http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/index-calendar.html.
17) WORTH REPEATING
"I have a relationship with these [farmers]. I wouldn't want to do it if I couldn't do it that way." -- Tracy Singleton, owner of the Birchwood Café and a participant in the 2005 Dine Fresh Dine Local event (http://www.dinefreshdinelocal.com/profiles/birch_river.htm)
18) WORTH REPEATING II
"Scary, isn't it?" -- Soil scientist Jerry Hatfield, commenting in the latest Land Stewardship Letter on research showing soil erosion rates could increase as much as 95 percent (see item 15)
19) JOIN LSP
The work of LSP, including the LIVE-WIRE, is supported by the donations of people like you. To become a member, give a gift membership, or donate an extra gift above your membership, see http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/index-joinus.html. If you have
questions about membership, contact cathye@landstewardshipproject.org.
LSP_LIVE-WIRE is Land Stewardship Project's e-mail newsletter. To unsubscribe or to change your options or password visit: http://www.communityforum.net/mailman/listinfo/lsp_live-wire.
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