Mother Nature Says Clean Up Your Room!
It's been a good week for Mother Nature! The Green Revolution is happening in a big way in Ashland and throughout the Rogue Valley! The Local Food Security Conference initiated by The Wellness Guide and conducted at Bellview Grange was a huge success! Two days of expert presenters offered incredible and practical information on permaculture, neighborhood gardening projects, biodynamic and whole systems farming, heirloom seed breeding, wild foods and an array of topics related to living sustainably and boosting new and enviromentally sound economic growth in our region.
A panel of local elected officials and City Staff including Ashland Mayor John Stromberg, who ran on a Sustainability platform and has made himself accessible, and perhaps invaluable, to progress, were in attendance. The Public Representatives responded to questions from the audience and created a supportive bond with those present which will help address the challenges of water, jobs, planning, communication, inventory of resources and engaging and informing citizens. Over 20 presenters and officials and 100 conference participants moved many steps closer to mobilizing to keep Ashland and its residents and visitors healthy, strong and moving in positive direction.
Visioning sessions conducted by Ashland's Transitions Town Team and Spontaneity Quest created opportunity for attendees to network and identify areas where they will be bringing their expertise, knowledge, interest, passion or desire to learn to concrete projects that will expedite the conversion of our economy to a more efficient, if not totally self-sustaining, loop.
It's a shock to learn that in the fertile Rogue Valley, known throughout the world for its bio-diversity and fertile abundance, Ashland is importing approximately 97% of its food! Cheap oil and a strong dollar until recently have made it possible and less expensive to truck in huge amounts of food shipped from California, Mexico, South America, China, India and other
far-removed locales. That picture has rapidly shifted and coming into focus is the reality that we need to grow more of our own food.
The Local Food Conference attracted the general public, local growers, sustainable farmers, seed growers and seed savers, permaculture teachers, planners, educators, local gardeners and people of all ages who want to learn more about increasing product of local grown food and products. How to address the economic and environmental realities of our times by thinking in new ways and learning new skills was a Conference goal. Planning what's needed to re-localize our food production was a central theme.
In the visioning sessions 16 distinct areas for future work were identified and projects and ideas such as re-building a cannery and food preservation system, "growing" soil by creating a Citywide composting effort, finding ways where water bills could be reduced for individuals doing home food garden plots, educating and activating youth, tool sharing and seed saving
projects, conducting inventories to learn what's in the works, are just a few of the identified projects.
A panel of local elected officials and City Staff including Ashland Mayor John Stromberg, who ran on a Sustainability platform and has made himself accessible, and perhaps invaluable, to progress, were in attendance. The Public Representatives responded to questions from the audience and created a supportive bond with those present which will help address the challenges of water, jobs, planning, communication, inventory of resources and engaging and informing citizens. Over 20 presenters and officials and 100 conference participants moved many steps closer to mobilizing to keep Ashland and its residents and visitors healthy, strong and moving in positive direction.
Visioning sessions conducted by Ashland's Transitions Town Team and Spontaneity Quest created opportunity for attendees to network and identify areas where they will be bringing their expertise, knowledge, interest, passion or desire to learn to concrete projects that will expedite the conversion of our economy to a more efficient, if not totally self-sustaining, loop.
It's a shock to learn that in the fertile Rogue Valley, known throughout the world for its bio-diversity and fertile abundance, Ashland is importing approximately 97% of its food! Cheap oil and a strong dollar until recently have made it possible and less expensive to truck in huge amounts of food shipped from California, Mexico, South America, China, India and other
far-removed locales. That picture has rapidly shifted and coming into focus is the reality that we need to grow more of our own food.
The Local Food Conference attracted the general public, local growers, sustainable farmers, seed growers and seed savers, permaculture teachers, planners, educators, local gardeners and people of all ages who want to learn more about increasing product of local grown food and products. How to address the economic and environmental realities of our times by thinking in new ways and learning new skills was a Conference goal. Planning what's needed to re-localize our food production was a central theme.
In the visioning sessions 16 distinct areas for future work were identified and projects and ideas such as re-building a cannery and food preservation system, "growing" soil by creating a Citywide composting effort, finding ways where water bills could be reduced for individuals doing home food garden plots, educating and activating youth, tool sharing and seed saving
projects, conducting inventories to learn what's in the works, are just a few of the identified projects.
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