Land Stewardship LIVE-WIRE, November 17, 2005
Hello:
This is the 29th 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) Lappe´ in Minneapolis Nov. 18
2) LSP Teams up with USDA to Expand Farm Beginnings
3) Backers of Mega-Dairy Put Plan on Ice
4) Call Congress Today About CSP
5) Voices of Minn. Farm Women Packets Available Dec. 1
6) LSP's Western Office Goes Hollywood--Check it out Dec. 15
7) White Bear Lake Open House Dec. 15
8) Holiday Gift Baskets go on Sale Nov. 21
9) The Mythology of Industrial Ag
10) Thompson Featured in Audubon Magazine
11) Food For Folk Benefit Dinner
12) S.E. Minn. Green Tourism
13) Help Farmers Left in Katrina's Wake
14) Check the Calendar
15) Give the Gift of Stewardship
16) Worth Repeating
17) Worth Repeating II
18) Join LSP
1) LAPPE´ IN MINNEAPOLIS NOV. 18
Internationally recognized activist and author Frances Moore Lappé will talk about how local democracy can help communities deal with hunger, conservation and justice issues during a special presentation Friday, Nov. 18, at Saint Joan of Arc Church, 4537 Third Avenue South, Minneapolis. This event, which is a fundraiser for the Land Stewardship Project, will begin at 7 p.m. Seating
is limited, so get there early! For more information, see http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/pr/05/newsr_051101.htm.
2) LSP TEAMS UP WITH USDA TO EXPAND FARM BEGINNINGS™
One of Minnesota's most successful beginning farmer programs is expanding its outreach to people from a greater diversity of social and economic backgrounds. LSP's Farm Beginnings™ program has received a $70,000 grant from the USDA's Risk Management Agency. For details, see http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/pr/05/newsr_051027.htm.
3) BACKERS OF MEGA-DAIRY PUT PLAN ON ICE
Investors in a proposed mega-dairy for Dodge County, Minn., have announced their intent to withdraw from the project. This is a major victory for local democracy and township rights. For three years, LSP members in the county have organized to stop this operation, which, if built, would have been one of the largest dairies in the state. These farmers and other rural residents battled big money
and powerful political backers along the way. For details, see LSP's statement at http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/pr/05/newsr_051102.htm. More on how these citizens took on this mega-dairy is available in the July/Aug/Sept. 2003 Land Stewardship Letter.
4) CALL CONGRESS TODAY ABOUT CSP
Earlier this month, the U.S. Senate voted 52-47 to pass the 2006 Budget Reconciliation Bill. The bill makes $39 billion in cuts to programs that serve millions of people and allows for $70 billion in tax breaks to wealthy Americans. Severe cuts to conservation were included in the final Senate bill. In fact, the Conservation Security Program (CSP) was slashed
so severely that there would be no new enrollments after 2006 (see http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/pr/05/newsr_051019.htm for details).
But it's not over yet. The U.S. House has yet to pass the budget reconciliation bill. If it doesn't pass one, there would actually be a decrease in the overall budget deficient by between $16 billion and $35 billion, because tax breaks would not be implemented. A vote in the House on the bill could come as early as today.
Call your U.S. Representatives today at 202-225-3121 and tell them to vote against the 2006 Budget Reconciliation Bill. Remind them that the proposed cuts would pull the plug on the farm-based and job-creating Value-Added Producer Grants and the Renewable Energy programs, while ending new enrollments in CSP after this year. For details, read LSP's statement on the budget reconciliation bill
at http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/pr/05/newsr_051108.htm. For more on CSP, see the cover story in the July/Aug./Sept. Land Stewardship Letter.
Thanks to all who made calls, attended meetings, sent e-mails and faxes, signed postcards or helped in the Policy Program office during this payment limitation campaign. We have built a solid platform to further push for commodity reform in the 2007 Farm Bill. LSP will carry forward reforms to commodity programs while supporting a bigger and better CSP and other initiatives that help small-
and moderate-sized family farms. For more information, contact LSP's Adam Warthesen at 612-722-6377 or adamw@landstewardshipproject.org.
5) VOICES OF MINN. FARM WOMEN PACKETS AVAILABLE DEC. 1
Educational packets for use in programs featuring LSP's film documentary, Voices of Minnesota Farm Women, will be available by Dec. 1 from the White Bear Lake office (651-653-0618). LSP is seeking volunteers to present programs in their communities this coming winter and spring. Training and materials will be provided. To volunteer or for more information, contact Dana Jackson at 651-653-0618
or danaj@landstewardshipproject.org.
6) LSP's WESTERN OFFICE GOES HOLLYWOOD--CHECK IT OUT DEC. 15
LSP's western Minnesota office has moved to the historic Montevideo Depot. This is the same train depot that's featured in the movie Sweet Land (http://www.builtbybeautiful.com), which was recently filmed in the area. The new address is: 301 State Road, Suite 2, Montevideo, MN 56265. The telephone number (320-269-2105) and fax (320-269-2190)
remain the same. Check out the new star-studded office on Thursday, Dec. 15, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., during LSP's holiday open house for western Minnesota. There will be a depot tour, treats and a drawing for half-a-hog. For more information, contact Michelle Skogrand at 320-269-2105 or lspwest@landstewardshipproject.org.
7) WHITE BEAR LAKE OPEN HOUSE DEC. 15
Okay, LSP's White Bear Lake office isn't something you'll see featured on the big screen anytime soon, but it's still pretty cool. See for yourself on Dec. 15 when that office hosts its own holiday open house. There will be a silent auction, a prize drawing, and a showing of the Voices of Minnesota Farm Women film--and treats of course! The office is located at 2200 Fourth Street in downtown
White Bear Lake, just upstairs from Sherburne Jewelers. You can see the entrance to LSP's office from the parking lot behind the jewelry store. The open house will be from 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. For more information, contact Louise Arbuckle at 651-653-06187 or lspwbl@landstewardshipproject.org.
8) HOLIDAY GIFT BASKETS GO ON SALE NOV. 21
Pride of the Prairie, a local foods initiative LSP's western Minnesota office is working with, will be offering holiday gift baskets for sale again this year. There are three types: breakfast, chuck roast and bison roast. To order a basket, contact Michele Skogrand between Nov. 21 and Dec. 9 at 320-269-2105 or lspwest@landstewardshipproject.org.
9) THE MYTHOLOGY OF INDUSTRIAL AG
The Land Stewardship Letter's popular "Myth Busters" series is now on the web. These fact sheets address some of the misrepresentations circulated by supporters of corporate-controlled industrial agriculture. To download them, visit http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/resources-myth.html.
10) THOMPSON FEATURED IN AUDUBON MAGAZINE
That's LSP member-farmer Tony Thompson slogging through a slough (and wearing some of it) on page 58 of the November/December issue of Audubon magazine. The southwest Minnesota crop farmer is profiled as part of the magazine's special package of stories on how working farms can benefit the environment. On the Internet, you can read Audubon's "Green Acres" stories at http://magazine.audubon.org/features0511/workingLands.html.
11) FOOD FOR FOLK BENEFIT DINNER
Food for Folk is hosting a benefit salmon dinner this spring in the Twin Cities metro area. The April/May/June 2005 Land Stewardship Letter featured an article about the initiative, which is working to get local, high-quality food to low-income people. The benefit dinner will not only raise awareness and money for the Food For Folk Project, but also
be a great way to enjoy a night of fabulous food, great music and enlightening speakers on sustainable farming. Food For Folk is looking for volunteers to help organize this benefit dinner. To help out, contact Gary Brever of Ploughshare Farm at gjbrever@midwestinfo.net or 218-267-5117. Further information is also available from Sheila Barsness at
320-763-3191 (ext. 5) or Sheila.Barsness@rcdnet.net.
12) SE MINN. GREEN TOURISM
A tourism initiative called "Southeast Minnesota Green Routes" is being launched. It's an effort to direct people to places where they can get locally grown food and locally made products as well as participate in other attractions, such as canoe routes, hiking and biking trails, birding sites, art events and other amenities in the area. Farms, businesses and organizations committed
to promoting environmental stewardship and sustainable economic development are eligible to apply for participation in Green Routes. The geographical area is Dodge, Fillmore, Goodhue, Houston, Olmsted, Wabasha and Winona counties. The application deadline is Dec. 9. For more information, contact Peggy Hanson at 507-467-2620 or mjhanson@acegroup.cc. On
the Internet, visit http://www.renewingthecountryside.org.
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 homes, crops, livestock and facilities. Losses like that are enough to finish off a farming career. Help is still needed in the devastated region. To make a contribution, visit http://www.farmaid.org,
or call 1-800-FARMAID.
14) CHECK THE CALENDAR
For the latest on meetings, field days and more excitement than you can shake a stick at, check out the LSP calendar at http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/index-calendar.html. Details on events can also be found on our Press Releases page at http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/news-pr.html.
15) GIVE THE GIFT OF STEWARDSHIP
As 2005 winds down, consider giving stewardship gifts in honor of your friends and family:
-Give a gift of hope to your loved ones -- and to beginning farmers eager to make a living on the land.
-In the name of your favorite cooks, invest in work to produce more healthful food for our communities.
-Honor those active citizens in your life with a gift that empowers people to fight for family farms and the environment.
Make a donation to LSP of any size and we'll send your loved ones beautiful, personalized certificates notifying them of your gifts and giving them more information about the work your gift helps accomplish in their honor. With gifts of $35 or more, we will give them a one-year membership in LSP. More information is available at http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/index-joinus-gift.html.
You can print out an order form to mail in at http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/gifts/gift_form.html, or do your shopping securely on-line at http://www.applyweb.com/public/contribute?lspmemb.
16) WORTH REPEATING
"We can't control the rain. But we can turn its impact on the land into something positive for the people who farm that land and for everyone who pays farmers for good food and clean water." -- LSP staffer Caroline van Schaik, writing in Agri News (http://www.landstewardshipproject.org/itn/05/051103.htm)
17) WORTH REPEATING II
"I want to have the smallest ecological footprint possible, but to some extent the nature of my job requires a large footprint." -- Minnesota crop farmer and LSP member Tony Thompson, quoted in Audubon magazine (http://magazine.audubon.org/features0511/workingLands.html)
18) 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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