Workshops and Events
...helping people shape the future of western Maine.
Listed here are events, workshops, forums and opportunities that are assisting sustainable development efforts in western Maine.
Open Farm Day
July 20, 2008
Almost 100 farms throughout Maine will open to the public. Visit a farm and see what farm life is all about. Watch farm activities and demonstrations from milking to felting; pet farm animals, pick berries, tour a barn or go on a hay ride. There will be farm-raised products for sale, displays to see and samples to taste. For a list of participating farms or for more information visit the Get Real Get Maine website.
Glynwood Center’s 6th Annual National Harvest Awards
CALL FOR NOMINATIONS
Postmark Due: July 21, 2008
The Harvest Awards honor individuals, organizations, and businesses across the United States that do an exceptional job of supporting sustainable agriculture and regional food systems. Do you know visionary farmers who not only raise amazing food but have also developed innovations in growing, marketing, and collaborating with their community in new and exciting ways? Are there inventive individuals, organizations or businesses in your community who are developing cutting-edge models to connect people and sustainable, regionally-produced food?
Please visit www.glynwood.org for nomination details and to make an electronic submission. To receive nomination forms via snail mail, please contact Kim Vargo at kvargo@glynwood.org or (845) 265-3338 ext. 131. Nominations must be postmarked or e-mailed no later than July 21, 2008.
Farming for the Common Good
Location: The JED Collective & Giant’s Belly Farm in Greene
July 22, 2008 5:00 p.m.
Explore an innovative farming initiative in central Maine. The JED Collective is a group of organizers, parents, cultural workers, farmers and health workers who share a commitment to living in mutually-supportive community, working together towards increased self-sufficiency and sustainability, and dedicating energy in diverse ways towards the work of building social and economic justice, ecological health, and a culture of solidarity and care. This offering part of MOFGA's Farm Training Project Workshop series that runs through the growing season.
Shared-Use Commercial Kitchen Survey
Due: August 1, 2008
River Valley Agriculture Commission would like your input on a Shared-Use Commercial Kitchen Survey. What is a Shared Use Kitchen? The concept of a Shared Use Kitchen is to help food entrepreneurs by providing access to commercial kitchen equipment in a shared space, to prepare and process food for consumer marketing. The facility would meet all state and federal regulations and requirements. It would also provide a supportive environment in which information and support can be accessed easily.
This survey is part of a project to establish a shared use commercial kitchen at the River Valley Technology Center in Rumford, Maine as a community resource. The survey should take approximately 15 minutes to complete. To request a survey contact Beverly Crosby at 207-369-0396 or rvgc@rvgc.org. Surveys should be returned by August 1, 2008.
Education in a Changing Climate/Orion Society
Location: Unity - Unity College
July 27 - Aug 2, 2008
Want to make climate change education a reality with your audiences? Interested in learning innovative ways to better communicate with them about important environmental issues regarding climate change? Unity College invites you to attend this week-long workshop, co-sponsored by The Orion Society, publisher of Orion Magazine. So, whether you are a teacher from the sciences, humanities and language arts, a nature interpreter, environmental journalist, or an environmental educator at any level, you will find useful and nourishing ideas and strategies to bring into your classroom, nature center, zoo, museum, and curriculum. For more information go to Unity College website.
KNEADING Conference
Location: Skowhegan, ME
August 1-2, 2008
Meeting the need for locally grown grain and wood-fired bread. The KNEADING Conference invites professional and home bakers, farmers, and millers, oven builders, and innovative community members to participate in hands-on demonstrations and lectures on progressive ideas in the art of wood-fired bread baking and food production, local grain growing and milling, and oven building. A Community Open House will be held free and open to the public on Friday 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Tewksbury Hall, as part of the conference. There will be wood fired oven demonstrations and information on oven construction, along with lectures on growing grains in Maine. Treats from the wood fired oven and refreshments will be served. Scholarships are available this year for farmers to offset the cost of attending. Please visit KNEADING Conference for registration information and details.
Skowhegan Farmers' Market is having a JINGLE CONTEST!
Location: Skowhegan Farmers Market - Skowhegan Savings Bank Parking Lot
August 16, 2008
Compose a 30-60 second musical jingle about what locally available foods you like, why it's smart to eat local, and what it means to eat local.....and join the Skowhegan Farmers' Market jingle contest!
Registration and performance of jingles from 10-11am.
Free and open to children and teens of all ages.
Theme: Eat Smart, Eat Local!
Performer(s) of the best local food jingle will receive a prize, and the winning jingle will be recorded and aired on MixMaine radio 107.9 for the remainder of the 2008 market season!
Adult assistance welcomed.
Conducted in partnership with Western Mountains Alliance
Eat Smart, Eat Local campaign.
Questions, call Amber at 858-0842 or email lambke@verizon.net
Spread the word!
5th Annual Entrepreneur’s Summit
Location: Hilton Garden Inn, Auburn
September 16, 2008 8:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Designed specifically for entrepreneurs who need tools, resources and advice on starting or growing a business, this half-day seminar offers two workshop levels: Start-Up Track: Meet attorneys, accountants and marketing pros and start building your team of professional resources. Get tips on writing your business plan and securing funds to get started. Growth Track: Ready to take it to the next level? Understand growth vehicles and exit strategies, how to finance expansion and how to market your growing business. Hear from Maine entrepreneurs and network with business service providers. For more event details and registration information visit here.
Blaine House Conference on Volunteerism
Location: Orono – University of Maine at Orono
October 14, 2008
For more than 20 years, the Blaine House Conference on Volunteerism has provided learning and networking opportunities for Maine’s volunteer administrators and program managers. It is the only professional development conference tailored exclusively to the needs and challenges of leaders in the state’s volunteer sector. Keynote speaker, Jean Twenge, PhD., delivers talks across North America on today’s young generation, based on her research and her book, “Generation Me.” Additionally, Dr. Twenge will facilitate a workshop on managing programs with multi-generational volunteers. For more information visit Volunteer Maine.
25th Annual MYAN Peer Leadership Conference
Location: Atlantic Oakes By the Sea, Bar Harbor, ME
November 14 & 15, 2008
Visit http://myan.org/myan3/projects/conference/index.php for general Conference info. Registration information will be available in September 2008. Sponsored by Maine Youth Action Network.
‘NonProfit Action’ Launches Blog for Advocates
NPAction.org has launched "Blog for Advocates." Offering a wide range of information, from funding of advocacy efforts to unusual advocacy strategies, the blog aims to provide nonprofits with the information they need to participate in advocacy and the upcoming election.
Northeast Food and Farm Network
Sustainable food and farm advocates are invited to join a new social network of people and groups working towards a vibrant and sustainable regional food system in the Northeast. The website is called the "Northeast Food and Farm Network" and is a project of the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Working Group (NESAWG).
‘NonProfit Action’ Launches Blog for Advocates
NPAction.org has launched "Blog for Advocates." Offering a wide range of information, from funding of advocacy efforts to unusual advocacy strategies, the blog aims to provide nonprofits with the information they need to participate in advocacy and the upcoming election.
Farm Energy Partners Network
The Farm Energy Partners Network suggests several resources for farmers and folks interested in harnessing wind energy but are not quite sure what their first steps should be. American Wind Energy Association’s website includes a summary of wind power basics,
publications, and specific resources and public policies related to small wind in Maine.
You can write to AWEA at 1101 14th Street NW, 12th Floor, Washington, DC 20005, Phone: 202-383-2500. Email: windmail@awea.org
AWS Truewind, LLC provides copies of New England wind maps to help you determine if available wind is enough. You can write to AWS Truewind at 463 New Karner Rd., Albany, NY 12205, Phone: 518-213-0044.
Farm Energy Partners Network also has a free cd, called "Harvesting Clean Energy: A Farm Energy Field Guide". Email for your free copy today! cleanenergy@mainerural.org The cd includes a list of vendors who will help with next steps.
Wind Power in Maine -For a link to all Wind Power Projects in Maine, visit http://www.nrcm.org/wind_projects_in_maine.asp
Do Something - For Youth and Adults Working with Youth
http://www.dosomething.org/grants
Do Something puts the fun back in funding by giving you the big bucks to get things going in your neighborhood. With a little moolah, some attention from the media and great resources from us, 25-and-unders across the US and Canada can make things happen in a huge way!
Northeast Food and Farm Network
Sustainable food and farm advocates are invited to join a new social network of people and groups working towards a vibrant and sustainable regional food system in the Northeast. The website is called the "Northeast Food and Farm Network" and is a project of the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Working Group (NESAWG). The site is a full-featured social network with all the digital bells and whistles that you’d find on larger sites like MySpace or Facebook but without any of the flashing ads for things you don’t want or need.
Here are just a few of the things you can at http://www.nefood.org:
• create your own profile and food & farm-related blog
• start or participate in an online discussion
• post job and internship opportunities
• announce upcoming food, ag, or fishing events using our events calendar
• form a virtual group for finding and organizing like-minded people (this could be an issue-related group or a place-based group)
• post food & farm-related photos or videos
• invite other people from your personal and private networks into the site
Please join the fun and invite your food and farm loving friends. Together, we can build a better and better-connected food system in the Northeast! Contact: Roger Doiron, Regional Organizer, NESAWG.
Ways of the Woods -- Mobile Museum
The Northern Forest Center is pleased to announce that Ways of the Woods--mobile museum about forest heritage and culture in northern Maine, New Hampshire , Vermont and New York --has begun its 2008 tour. Ways of the Woods will be touring the region through the fall, visiting 8 schools and exhibiting at 19 fairs and festivals. To find out when Ways of the Woods will be in a town near you, click here. Ways of the Woods features multi-media exhibits, interactive outdoor displays, artifacts and children's activities that explore the ever-changing relationships between people and the land in the Northern Forest . More than 40,000 people in 40 Northern Forest communities have toured Ways of the Woods since its launch in summer 2006.
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