|
|
|
|
Making the Local Connection Keynote Speakers
Henning Sehmsdorf
Henning and his wife, Elizabeth Simpson,
are farm stewards of nearly 50 acres of land on Lopez Island in Washington’s
Puget Sound. In his talk,
Living the Holistic
High Life: Self-Sufficiency on a Small Family Farm,
Henning will tell the story of how they developed and operate an almost
entirely sell-sufficient small farm that provides food for their family,
interns and livestock, generates fertility for the soil, crops and pastures,
and draws income through custom slaughter of livestock, a community
supported agriculture (CSA) subscription service, and milk shares. Jo Lynne Seufer Protecting Farm Revenue: How Many Years of Profit Does it Take to Recover from One Year of Low Revenue? Jo Lynne Seufer serves as Risk Management Specialist and Outreach Coordinator with U.S. Dept. of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency, Spokane Regional Office in Spokane. Jo Lynne has over 22 years experience with USDA, working in Kansas, New Mexico and throughout the Pacific Northwest.
Colette DePhelps From the Ground Up: How Sustainable Family Farms are Changing the Face of Agriculture in the Inland Northwest. In the last 10 years, we have seen a tremendous change in the awareness of and availability of local food in the Inland Northwest. Colette, one of the founders and the current director of Rural Roots, will paint a picture of how the work of local farmers and sustainable agriculture are advocates is creating positive change—on the ground and in some of our most traditional agricultural institutions. She’ll also highlight ways working together can further enhance the success of family farms in our region.
Aaron Silverman
Aaron, an exceptional agricultural
entrepreneur and marketer, works collaboratively with several other farm
families to operate Creative Growers and Greener Pastures Poultry, LLC, in
Noti, Oregon. Vegetables and herbs harvested from their 6 acres of
vegetables and 1 acre of greenhouses are sold exclusively to western Oregon
restaurants and their poultry to restaurants, at farmers’ markets and to a
private butcher. In
Cooperative Farming:
Working Together for Mutual Success,
Aaron will share his experience and perspectives on the opportunities and
challenges of farming cooperatively and operating a poultry processing
business with other producers. Clay Erskine Peaceful Belly is a bio-intensive four acre farm which lies at the base of the city’s foot hills, three miles from downtown Boise. The farm is run by two eclectic couples Clay & Josie Erskine and Dianne & Michael Jones as well as great employees and volunteers that all work very hard to try to connect people in the city of Boise to the people that grow the food that they enjoy. In his talk, Creating a Community Through Good Food, Clay Erskine will discuss how Peaceful Belly is helping the people of Boise connect with where their food comes from and the people that help raise it.
|