Mark Maynard | Transition Town

The emergence of Local Economy Centers

By Mark | June 6, 2012

I didn’t have an opportunity to meet her at the recent BALLE conference in Grand Rapids, but, as luck would have it, I was able to dial in to a conference call during my lunch hour a couple of days ago, and ask a few questions of Kelley Rajala, the woman who runs the Sonoma [...]

Posted in entrepreneurism, Local Business, Locally Owned Business, Retail, Shadow Art Fair, Sustainability, Uncategorized, Ypsilanti | Also tagged alternative currency, Amy's Kitchen, BALLE, Bethesda, biomimicry, Business Allianc, business incubators, California, Cleveland, co-working, Dave Feldman, employee ownership, Evergreen Cooperative, Kelley Rajala, Livability Project, Local Economy Centers, Local Economy Institute, localism, Made Local Marketplace, Maryland, ownership, permaculture, Santa Rosa, Share Exchange, Slow Money, social justice, Sonoma Country Share Exchange, time bank, Transition US | 6 Comments

A2Awesome awards its first $1,000 grant. Congratulations to Nathan Ayers!

By Mark | January 29, 2012

As I mentioned a while back, I’m one of a group of people to who decided, not too long ago, to start a local chapter of Boston’s Awesome Foundation. Well, this morning, our group – christened A2Awesome – handed over its first $1,000 grant. The funds were given, in a brown paper bag, to Nathan [...]

Posted in A2Awesome, Agriculture, Alternative Energy, Ann Arbor, Awesome Foundation, Detroit, Education, Special Projects | Also tagged Alice Liberson, Ann Arbor Public Schools, bike power, bikes, Chiwara Permaculture, Dick Soble, drums, energy storage, Hans Masing, Heather MacKenzie, Hip Hop Congress, home energy storage, Jeff Meyers, Larry Gant, LED light bulbs, Linh Song, Lisa Dengiz, Monique Deschaine, Omari Rush, Paul Saginaw, permaculture, re-skilling, Sustainability, Tanya Luz, Transition Ann Arbor, vegetables, Washtenaw Community College | 10 Comments

Toby Hemenway to speak in Ann Arbor on permaculture

By Mark | May 11, 2010

I received word through several sources that Portland State University adjunct professor Toby Hemenway, the author of Gaia’s Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture, will be speaking next weekend in Ann Arbor. He will be speaking at the Ann Arbor Public Library on Friday, May 21, from 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM, and he will [...]

Posted in Agriculture, Ann Arbor, Environment, Food, Sustainability | Also tagged Agriculture, biodiversity, carbon sequestering, Designing and Installing a Food Forest, events, food forests, forest gardens, fruit trees, Gaia's Garden, How Permaculture Can Save Humanity and the Earth but not Civilization, Jared Diamond, Kris Kaul, Matthaei Botanical Gardens, Monica King, natural soil building, nut trees, permaculture, Permaculture Solutions for City and Suburb, Portland State University, SE Michigan Permaculture Guild, Sustainability, sustainable communities, Toby Hemenway, Transition Ypsilanti, urban ecovillages, vegetables, woodland garden | 14 Comments

Local Transition Town visioning session scheduled for February 1

By Mark | January 24, 2010

I’ve written quite a bit here over the last few years on the Transition Town movement. For those not familiar with the initiative, it involves the preparation and certification of towns attempting to address the duel challenges of climate change and peak oil proactively. It basically involves analyzing local food production, energy use, etc, and [...]

Posted in Agriculture, Alternative Energy, Ann Arbor, energy, Food, Sustainability, Ypsilanti | Also tagged bee keeping, canning and preserving, carpentry, Climate Change, composting, darning, Depletion and Abundance, fixing & re-use, gardening, Lisa Bashert, native landscaping, peak oil, permaculture, re-localization, salves, sewing, Transition Town Handbook, urban chickens | 4 Comments

Is it time for an Ypsi Open School?

By Mark | April 6, 2009

Terry Carpenter, a teacher with our favorite local pro-farming non-profit, Growing Hope, is considering the possibility of starting an open school in Ypsilanti. A few days ago, he posted the following on Facebook. With his approval, I’ve decided to post it here, to help get the word out. As of right now, no date has [...]

Posted in Education, Environment, Food, Sustainability, Ypsilanti | Also tagged Ann Arbor Learning Community, Bike Ypsi, Creative Change, eco justice, ecology, Growing Hope, High Scope, open school, Social Foundation of Education, social justice, Terry Carpenter, urban education | 39 Comments

Tag Archives: Transition Town

A2Awesome awards its first $1,000 grant. Congratulations to Nathan Ayers!

Toby Hemenway to speak in Ann Arbor on permaculture

Local Transition Town visioning session scheduled for February 1

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