Wendell Berry - Visionary, Author, Farmer, Activist

Introduction and Video from Moyers & Company.

 Wendell Berry, a quiet and humble man, has become an outspoken advocate for revolution. He urges immediate action as he mourns how America has turned its back on the land and rejected Jeffersonian principles of respect for the environment and sustainable agriculture. In a rare television interview (video, below), this visionary, author, and farmer discusses a sensible, but no-compromise plan to save the Earth.

Bill Moyers profiles Berry, a man of the land and one of America’s most influential writers. Berry's prolific career includes more than forty books of poetry, novels, short stories and essays. The interview was taped in Kentucky during a conference celebrating Wendell Berry’s life and ideas and marking the 35th anniversary of the publication of his landmark book, The Unsettling of America.

Berry lives and works on the Kentucky farm where his family has tilled the soil for 200 years. He’s a man of action as well as words. In 2011, he joined a four-day sit-in at the Kentucky governor’s office to protest mountaintop mining, a brutally destructive method of extracting coal.

Moyers explores Berry’s views on civil disobedience as well as his strong opposition to agribusiness and massive industrial farms. They also discuss Berry’s support for sustainable farming and the local food movement.

“My belief is that the world and our life in it are conditional gifts,” Berry tells Moyers. “We have the world to live in on the condition that we will take good care of it. And to take good care of it we have to know it. And to know it and to be willing to take care of it, we have to love it.”

Bike to Work and Get Fueled En Route -- May 13-17

Bike to Work Week Features Daily Fueling Stations For Bike Commuters

What:  May 13-17 is National Bike to Work Week; in Buffalo GObike has partnered with four local businesses and one non-profit to put on a bicycle commuter breakfast “fueling station” for each day of the week.

Who: GObike Buffalo, Sweet_ness 7 Café, Café Taza, Five Points Bakery, Ashker’s Café and Juice Bar, Golden Cup Café, and GOBNMC.

Why: To encourage people to bike to work!

 

Who Should Attend:  All bicycle commuters on their way to work.

When:  Monday May 13th, 8-10am: Sweet_ness 7, 220 Grant St.
Tuesday May 14th, 8-10am: Cafe Taza (w/ Five Points Bakery), 100 Elmwood Ave.
Wednesday May 15th, 7-9am: Ashker’s Cafe and Juice Bar, 1002 Elmwood Ave.
Thursday May 16th, 7:30-9:30am: Golden Cup Cafe, 883 Jefferson St.
Friday May 17th, 6:30-10am: With GOBNMC, 929 Washington St.

10th Annual Boom Days - Saturday, March 31

Join Us Saturday At The
10th Annual Boom Days

Every half hour experience the FREE grain elevator tours starting at 4:00pm with the last tour at 6:30pm. You will be able to feel the history as you walk through. When the lights go on the bands will start playing, it will be the first time the lights were on in the Perot Grain Elevator since 1993! Come just to be part of the memories - as far as we know, no other grain elevator in the world is equipped with a stage!  

A fireworks display around 10pm will light up the Lake Erie shoreline and the grain elevators with a show that promises to amaze all!

The Edward M. Cotter Fireboat was designated a historical landmark in 1996, after over 100 years of protecting the Grain Elevators. It is way cool and will be docked at the Perot and available for tours. Some folks will be able to board and witness the Boom Ball cast overboard to race down the mighty Niagara, marking the end of winter and the start of spring in Buffalo.

The live bands rockin' at the elevators are the IF's and the Mark Winsick Band. Just the fact that we have a stage for the bands in the Perot is unbelievable and so exciting. This will be an event to remember, people! 

Did you know the Elevators were built in 1909!

Dress warmly and bring all of your friends. Get ready for a great time! This event will be talked about for a long time. We have a bunch of heaters that will be working overtime to warm the place up, but it will be a bit chilly - that's the nature of the grain elevator any time of year. Layers people layers!

Don't forget there will be plenty of food to warm you up, too. Food trucks from a cadre of Buffalo's gourmet bistros will be available including the brand new Cheesy Chick Food Truck, the Roaming Buffalo, Whole Hog, Rolling Joes + Sweet Temptations.

Be sure to visit us at http://www.boomdays2012.com/ and look for all Boom Days information.  

UPDATE April 2, 2012:

Dancing inside a Grain Elevator!

Photos from Bernice Radle

Buffalo: Big Potential to go Green

The Partnership for the Public Good, led by UB Law Professor Sam Magavern, has documented thoughtful recommendations for Greening the City of Buffalo. The Partnership acknowledges that Buffalo has big problems, but it foresees an even bigger potential for positive change. Recommendations cover wide-ranging topics including sustainability, economic development, transportation, water, green spaces, buildings, energy, food, recycling, tax incentives, and education. Documents prepared by the group are available on the Web and include an Executive Summary and Recommendations, and the full document, Greening Buffalo: What Local Governments Can Do. Additional documents are available at the group's Wiki Space, Partnership for the Public Good.

The Partnership recommends forming a coalition of interested groups with a unified annual platform for change and a set of sustainability targets and measures to hold the public sector accountable. For further information, e-mail Sam Magavern at the University at Buffalo Law School.