Contact: Caroline van Schaik, LSP, 507-523-3366

10/22/03
LEWISTON, Minn.-A book reading event featuring The Farm as Natural Habitat: Reconnecting Food Systems with Ecosystems will be held Thursday, Nov. 6, from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., at the Land Stewardship Project (LSP) office,180 East Main Street, Lewiston. Cake and coffee will be provided at this free event. For more information, call 507-523-3366.

Since it was published by Island Press (http://www.islandpress.org) in 2002, The Farm as Natural Habitat has been highly praised for its writing and content. Various contributors to the book lay out the concept of developing farms that are economically and socially sustainable, as well as ecological gems. Several southeast Minnesota farm families are featured in the book, including Mike and Jennifer Rupprecht of Lewiston, Dan and Muriel French of Dodge Center, Joe and Bonnie Austin of Wykoff, Art and Jean Thicke of La Crescent, and Ralph Lentz of Lake City.

The Farm as Natural Habitat has received positive reviews in such diverse publications as the journal Science and the environmental magazine Sierra. Farmer/author Wendell Berry wrote of the book: "It's the most necessary book I've read in a long time. I hope it can be the start of a conversation between the farmers and the conservationists…."

This book reading event will feature Land Stewardship Project (LSP) Associate Director Dana Jackson, who co-edited the book, and Tex Hawkins, an LSP member and wildlife biologist from Winona who wrote one of the chapters. Also on hand will be Brian DeVore, editor of the Land Stewardship Letter and a contributor to the book. Copies of The Farm as Natural Habitat will be available for purchase.

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