August 19, 2008
Sustainable agriculture is rooted in stories. The ingredients are an explanation of the product, but the stories are the depth–the people and places, care and consciousness—that create a meal. Dan Barber, chef and co-owner of Blue Hill Restaurant and Blue Hill at Stone Barns has become one of the best storytellers for a new agricultural system. … Continued
July 17, 2008
Local economies purposefully restrict the region from which we source the goods we need. Instead of relying on cheap transportation to import the skills of others—in the form of products—we are required to cultivate and nurture the necessary skills in our neighbors. Nothing illustrates this point more poignantly than a local food system. The one … Continued
July 9, 2008
BerkShares, a local currency, has circulated in the southern Berkshire region of Massachusetts since September of 2006. One million, seven hundred and twenty thousand BerkShares have been issued from eleven branches of five participating banks. Issue occurs when citizens exchange their federal dollars 90 to 100 for BerkShares. Federal dollars remain in the bank accounts … Continued
June 6, 2008
From the first read through of participants for the 2008 Building Sustainable Local Economies Seminar it was obvious that we had collected a special group. Susan said that never before had she experienced having such a talented and involved group collected for a Schumacher Center seminar. Attendees included community organizers, educators, farmers, social investors, and … Continued
May 8, 2008
An important event is occurring this week in Athens, Greece. Senior Euro-Mediterranean government officials, international civil servants, corporate leaders, financiers, academics, and energy and environmental market analysts are meeting to forge understanding of climate change and energy security and to develop a plan for achievable sustainability targets for the region. The summit culminates in officials … Continued
April 22, 2008
The New York Times calls the products of The Garden Project—the fruits and vegetables—”metaphors for what went wrong in a prisoner’s troubled past, lessons about how to live a healthy and honorable life…” Since 1992 Cathrine Sneed has been helping those incarcerated and recently released from prison find the value and joy of gardening. The … Continued
April 10, 2008
Charles (‘Chuck’) Turner’s presentation at the 2007 Building Sustainable Local Economies Seminar helped tie together the entire event. After discussion of developing and implementing community land trusts, local financing structures, and worker owned enterprises, the question remained, Where to begin? Chuck’s passion has led him to organize tenants, the unemployed, anti-racist demonstrations, and transitions to … Continued
March 31, 2008
Developing appropriately scaled economic institutions comes with the need for appropriate technological solutions. Communities with the ability to produce and distribute their own goods have the ability to provide for their basic needs—shelter, food, clothing, and energy. This means both a pump for agricultural irrigation in Sub Saharan Africa and cannery for preserving the harvest … Continued
March 28, 2008
E. F. Schumacher, Summer 1974 We have just added a lecture by Fritz Schumacher to our collection. This talk—given to the Lindisfarne Association—is a compelling example of his small is beautiful philosophy, the metaphysical and theological roots of decentralist economics, and right livelihood. His lecture is part of the Lindisfarne 1974 Summer Conference entitled “Planetary … Continued
March 26, 2008
We recently published the lecture pamphlet for Majora Carter’s 2007 talk entitled “Sustainable South Bronx: A Model for Environmental Justice“. As with all of our published lectures the full text is available to read for free on our website. Founded in 2001 by Dr. Majora Carter, Sustainable South Bronx addresses land-use, energy, transportation, water and waste … Continued
March 21, 2008
The Schumacher Center has a significant impact for an organization its size. Part of the reason for its broad influence is the combination of rich content and practical action developed over its twenty-eight years. Fritz Schumacher’s ideas about appropriate scale and the importance of producing locally for local consumption seemed contrarian when he presented them … Continued
March 3, 2008
Can your community build a regionally based and democratic economy? And what is required to provide affordable access to land for farming and housing, capital for new business development, and meaningful work for local residents? Important capacities in the face of a changing world economy. For twenty-eight years the Schumacher Center has envisioned and implemented … Continued