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photo: Samuel Oslund It's that time of year. The gifts are torn apart,the wrapping paper lays warm next to the dying tree, boots are on, and people are piling into cars, lining up at shops, trampling and fighting for deals, deals, deals! We're doing a little internal shopping. Check out the buy nothing catalogue, a […]

To Know the Dark  By Wendell Berry To go in the dark with a light is to know the light. To know the dark, go dark. Go without sight, and find that the dark, too, blooms and sings, and is traveled by dark feet and dark wings. Merry Holidays, y'all! Happy Solstice and New Year!

[vimeo 173969073 w=640 h=360] Unbroken Ground from Patagonia Provisions on Vimeo. Film maker Chris Malloy asks, how can different aspects of agriculture and our food economy alter to change our relationships to our land and our oceans.

Where does Dorn Cox find the time to get so much done? Dorn is a founding member and board president of farm hack, is director of Greenstart, and-- as his bio on their webiste totes-- on his 250-acre family farm in Lee, NH, "has worked to select effective cover crops, grains and oilseeds for food and […]

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqRxBjEaaKk] In 1967 Les Blank and Skip Gerson were hired to work in Thailand on a documentary about the B52 Bomber. There were some problems getting access to the planes. Weeks went by with Les and Skip on payroll, but with nothing to shoot. So they began traveling around the country shooting whatever they […]

Photograph: Stefan Rousseau/PA George Monbiot has something of reputation for discussing the more dire circumstances we face today, but in his latest article for The Guardian he presents some reasons not to despair. In particular, Monbiot hones in on the commons, which (as you may know) is the theme of this years New Farmers Almanac.

With a Trump administration looming in 2017, the best course of action for progressives and left-leaning individuals in this country may be at the local level. Although Trump grabbed headlines with an anti-globalization platform, proponents of localism are understandably skeptical of his motives, especially considering his recent cabinet appointees. Enter Richard Heinberg's recent article at resilience.org. […]

Thanks be to High Country News for this latest piece that brings us back to a much-needed review of the ins-and-outs of our representative federal form of government as they relate to the latest events at Standing Rock. Have you found yourself wondering over the past few months, how did we get here, why can this happen […]

You've probably heard of Vandana Shiva--Indian author, environmental activist, and founder of Navdanya. Now comes a new documentary film about her life titled The Seeds of Vandana Shiva. Watch the trailer below: [vimeo 133208432 w=640 h=360] To help fund this film, please consider a donation.

Live on Heritage Radio's Greenhorns Radio show this Tuesday, we'll interview farmer Erica Frenay of Shelterbelt Farm in Ithaca New York. Erica also works for Cornell's Small Farms Institute, and her bio on their page should give you an idea of how many rich topics of conversation this interview might follow. Erica began working for […]

How many times are you asked at the market (or anytime really) why people ought to support local, organic producers? Surely it happens often enough that you've got your own rote lines memorized. As consumers are increasingly questioning the economic chain that makes up the production of things, from food to garments, we're reminded that […]

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JDfr6KGV-k] What creates a high-engagement high-productivity work system? "Create an alignment of strengths that make the weaknesses irrelevant." This short video with Professor Cooperridder,  Professor of Social Entrepreneurship at the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University, has some powerful insights to offer. We wonder how this kind of thinking could be applied […]

Every little bit helps! These fifteen steps from Katie Singer are also good initiatives towards reducing energy usage, reconnecting with the physical world, and saving your sanity. I like number 5 the best: 5. Think of your mobile phone as a message-taker. Program it to let you know every two hours whether or not you’ve got a […]

Homecoming A new psychological thriller from Gimlet Media, starring Catherine Keener, Oscar Isaac, and David Schwimmer.   Latest episode 3. PHONY A road trip. A simulation. A pivot. Another road trip. A viper’s nest. November 30, 2016 [soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/295393074?secret_token=s-XzqLd" params="color=a6aca9&show_artwork=false&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /] 2. PINEAPPLE Belfast is in Dubai. Palm trees are in Florida. […]

[vimeo 103298566 w=640 h=360] Amanda Swimmer wild-harvests local seaweed in her home in British Columbia to sell for food and medicine. She talks to Greenhorns Radio about local foods, added value products, and the value of our ocean commons on the Heritage Radio Network this TUESDAY DEC 6 at 4:00 p.m.

photo cred: Danny Lyon Burn Zone, is Danny Lyon’s newest published work. Burn Zone is a Cri de Coeur directed at the artist community and our youth asking them to join the fight to save planet Earth. In it, photographer and filmmaker Danny Lyon, tells the story of his return to New Mexico after thirty […]

Seed Journey -- a project from the artist group Future Farmers-- is a seafaring voyage connected to a public art project. "Seed Journey moves people, ideas and seeds through time and space. This voyage—its crew and cargo—are agents that link the commons as they relate to local networks and a more global complex of seed savers and stewards […]

Between the Sky and the Earth In times of google maps are the evidences of detecting and viewing lands; we read them, we move according to them, we navigate with them, we get lost and we found ourselves with them.

Two James Cotto films available to stream.

Coverage of The New Farmer's Almanac on Takepart: The Greenhorns, a nonprofit dedicated to young agrarians, is updating one of America’s oldest ag publications. (Photo: Getty Images) Long before Martha Stewart printed her seasonal gardening chores on the first pages in each issue of Martha Stewart Living, The Old Farmer’s Almanac outlined the farm-related tasks […]

You may have missed this in the swamp of election news last week: In These Times published this excellent run-down of Agrarian Trust, the recent symposium, and the land use problems that challenge regional food systems. “Increasingly, communities recognize that a regional farm economy is more responsive, adaptive, resilient and culturally satisfying,” says von Tscharner Fleming. “We want more […]

Every other Tuesday, High Country News's Laura Jean Schneider publishes a new essay on her experience as new cattle rancher in New Mexico. In her pieces, we've found the most compassionate and insightful commentary on the Malheur Occupation to date, well-articulated thoughts on "The Era of the Landless Agrarian," and scores of compelling personal insights. Schneider and her […]

[vimeo 171389901 w=640 h=360] Ryan Wirick, a documentary filmmaker is looking for help supporting and funding his new feature-length documentary, The Need To GROW, a "solution-packed journey into the lives of those working to fix our broken food system in the US. It focuses on SOLUTIONS (activism, permaculture, farmer's markets and many many more), to localize […]

Respected Internet explorers and seekers of Harmony with Nature; welcome to this entry portal, introducing you to our work at the Ha’iku Aina Permaculture Initiative (also known as HAPI). The project, as we see it, is a way of applying principles of agroforestry and permaculture in an area of rainforest on this beautiful island in the South Pacific […]

Girls In Trees, primarily a photography and text exhibit curated by acclaimed novelist Rebecca Godfrey, gathers the work of over 33 renown and emergent artists (mostly from the Hudson Valley) exploring the moments that wilderness and girlhood collude.

  Two ways to listen to Severine speak on the Agrarian Trust and the ongoing symposium in Northern New Mexico in New Mexico. First, listen here to hear her on Santa Fe Public Radio's The Garden Show. Second, Severine is live today on Family Farm Radio! Get your listen on!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0kbwBrs6pkM] Finally! We've been waiting for ages for a one-woman musical about climate change, and this one is fantastic! See it live at the United Solo Theatre Festival in Manhattan on Friday, Nov. 18 at 9:00 pm!

Oh man, we just love this: Seven Lessons for Leaders in Systems Change. Great for educators, activists, community leaders, farmers, and-- generally-- everyone who gives a damn. Here's a taste, but please click-through to read the full piece at at the Center for Ecoliteracy. Lesson #1:  To promote systems change, foster community and cultivate networks. […]

Remember Adam and Johanna, the sweet song birds of Songbird Farm in Unity, ME? Good. Just to keep you abreast of their happenings: you can catch Adam's interview on the Greenhorns Radio here, order his CD here, and see him and Johanna live at the following shows! Fri. Oct 21st.  Contradance in Brooklyn, NY Sat.  Oct. 22nd.  CDNY Contradance.  Manhattan, NY. […]

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzj-CgSZBCE] Don't be fooled by the quaint title of this upcoming movie; Peter and the Farm is not your typical pastoral depiction of 21st century farming. There's no banjo music to be found here, just raw punk riffs. And though he wears flannel, the documentary's protagonist, Peter Dunning is a complicated, conflicted, and yet ultimately sympathetic […]

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u2EXTNEaU80] The whole video is enormously charming, but skip ahead to to 8:20 to have your mind completely blown. Ladies and gentlemen, life before chainsaws!

[vimeo 25260994 w=640 h=360] A cool theater group called Feral Theatre produces rad-eco-theater pieces, and maybe they hit pretty close to home...

This recently made its way into the Greenhorns inbox, and boy! Doesn't it just hit home for all of us? We love this! And we think that you'll enjoy it too. The author, Jeffery Davis, is a consultant, speaker, and author of the poetry collection Coat Thief  (Saint Julian Press) and The Journey from the Center of the […]

Besides laying claim to the coolest name we can imagine for a citrus fruit, the Yuzu, a small citrus hailing from Japan and China, is renowned for its ability to withstand temperatures as cold as 10 degrees F. In Japan, chefs use the tart fruit for quintessential condiments including the Ponzu sauce you dip your […]

Remember those song birds up in Maine that we wrote about a few weeks ago? (To refresh your memory: they play magical folk tunes with lyrics that will make any farmer smile, cry, and chuckle. We recommend them most for tapping your toes and stirring pots of chili after long crisp days of fall harvest.) […]

What is it about young farmers that makes them such fanatic podcast listeners? Is it the lonely nature of their tractor work? A need for brain food during otherwise mind-dulling tasks such as hand-weeding the parsnips? Do they have a desire to remain attune to the otherwise distant goings on of popular culture? Or is […]

Man! We're always asking the same question! Seriously though, this is a great episode, both for those looking for a good primer on the subject and a fascinating case study for those who already know a lot about it. The podcast delves into the soya market in Argentina, global ag subsidies as a whole, and, as […]

NPR's The Salt, on why the USDA is purchasing $20,000 worth of cheese to help US dairy farmers-- and why it doesn't really make a difference to the big dairy industry. If this piece whets your appetite to understand globalization and milk production, we recommend you keep on down the rabbit hole with this Modern Farmer […]

Artists and farmers alike, we know it ain't easy to maintain your art when you've got buns in and out of the oven. In fact, I'd say that between the sleepless nights of those early years to the struggle of raising kids on what are not famously-lucrative salaries, raising the next generation of beautiful, free-spirited, […]

The really fabulous feminist film buffs over at Reel Women host a monthly short film night that promotes the work of female filmmakers. On August 18, they are showing a night of films about food, and as part of this event, will be screening the Greenhorns's own The Solution to Pollution is Life." We are psyched […]