Colby-Sawyer College to Host 'Going Local' Forum with Focus on Local Food, Business and Skills
The Kearsarge Valley Transition Initiative Task Force and Colby-Sawyer College's Environmental Science and Environmental Studies students will host “Kearsarge Valley Going Local: Local Food, Local Business, Local Skills” with a presentation by certified transition trainer Tina Clarke on localized solutions to the global issues of economic insecurity, environmental instabilities and dependence on non-renewable energy.
The free event will take place on Saturday, March 30, from noon to 5 p.m. in Wheeler Hall at Colby-Sawyer College's Ware Student Center. All are welcome.
The event sponsors hope to draw on area residents' ideas, skills and experiences to develop positive local solutions that address the regional impacts of larger global issues such as economic insecurity, environmental instabilities, and dependence on non-renewable energy. The day will begin with an optional brunch at noon with live music from one of the area's favorite folk artists, Click Horning. The brunch is $6 for adults and $3 for children 8 and under.
After Tina Clarke's 1 p.m. lecture, participants will have the opportunity to develop strategies to sustain health and well-being, create a strong regional food system, support a vibrant local economy and increase resilience in the Kearsarge Valley. Attendees will also have an opportunity to network and learn more about food, human and energy resources in the local area.
Walk-ins will be welcome, but please RSVP to transition.town@colby-sawyer.edu, visit Going Local Event or contact Jenisha Shrestha '15 at (205) 482-2699.
About the Guest Speaker
Guest speaker Tina Clarke, a certified transition trainer, is a resident of Turner Falls, Mass. In her 25 years as a trainer, program director and consultant, she has worked with more than 120 Transition communities across the country and has supported and guided leaders in more than 400 local, national, regional and local organizations. Clarke has directed citizen training programs for 17 national faith communities and Greenpeace USA's national citizen Activist Network. She also founded and led campaigns on energy, environmental justice and toxins for New England Clean Water Action. Most recently, Clarke has served as a consultant for 350.org, the Massachusetts Municipal Association and the Sustainability Institute.
Clarke holds an M.A. in Public Policy from the University of Chicago and a B.A. in Urban Studies from Macalester College, and she is certified for mediation and consensus decision-making facilitation. Her passive-solar, Platinum LEED-certified “Power House” won the Massachusetts Utility Company-sponsored competition, the Zero Energy Challenge, and the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association's 2010 Zero Net Energy Award www.ZeroEnergyPowerHouse.com.
About Kearsarge Valley Transition
The Kearsarge Area Transition Initiative encourages the nine towns in the Kearsarge Valley to develop a greater reliance on local resources – food, energy and human resources in particular – to address the impacts of global issues such as economic insecurity, environmental instabilities, and dependence on non-renewable energy. Learn more about Kearsarge Valley Transition at www.kearsargetransition.wordpress.com, and see a list of upcoming events at Transition Kearsarge Events.
-Kellie M. Spinney
Colby-Sawyer College is a comprehensive college that integrates the liberal arts and sciences with professional preparation. Founded in 1837, Colby-Sawyer is located in the scenic Lake Sunapee Region of central New Hampshire.
Colby-Sawyer College, 541 Main Street, New London, N.H. 03257 (603) 526-3000
