As described by our local friend, Brian Tokar, in his book The Green Alternative, “A bioregion is an area of land defined, not by political boundaries-cities, states, countries-but by the natural, biological and geographical features that cast the real identity of a place. A bioregion can be identified by its mountain ranges and rivers, its vegetation, weather patterns or soil types, or its patterns of animal habitats, whether birds, ground mammals or humans.” Bioregions exist on varying scales; we could think of our bioregion as northern Appalachia, or as the watershed of the upper Winooski River. We prefer the latter which would span from Cabot to Bolton, from Warren to Williamstown to Waterbury, and from Northfield to Worcester. As the Winooski flows downward, it merges with the larger watershed of Lake Champlain that extends into Canada. From this we can see that bioregional boundaries, in comparison to political boundaries, are more flexible, more fluid, and even friendlier.

How does a bioregion translate into bioregionalism? Well, our lives are influenced by all the life around us, so within these biogeographic areas, cultures, economies, ecologies, etc. inevitably vary. Bioregionalism is the understanding that we are interconnected with the life around us and that our actions should carry a loving, ecological, and locally unique energy.

We see our bioregion, the upper Winooski River watershed, as a realistic and appropriate scale for directing our efforts towards ecological harmony. We are focusing on this bioregion, the upper Winooski, because this is where we live. We are connected with this place and want to work right here with our neighbors to improve our communities.

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Love and ecology. Read us enough and you’ll see those two words together a bunch. What’s up with that?

We think of it this way:

How can we understand natural ecologies and ecosystems, live sustainably as part of them, and grow to love them, when we so often struggle to love and understand our neighbors and ourselves?

How can people care about plants, animals, or water quality when they struggle to care for others of their own species?

Harmony=Sustainability

To develop a sustainable ecological society, we must begin by learning, as humans, to care for, listen to, and love each other.

What do you think?