August 14-22, the greater Montpelier area will come alive with a community-wide celebration of sustainable living, practical homesteading skills, and visions of a more resilient local community.  The VbC is 9-day event filled with hands-on education in permaculture design and construction, ecological building, and public art that will extend and celebrate the Great Reskilling of our communities embodied in these projects.  All projects are built through collaboration and the commitment of a neighborhood to strengthen itself.

Green Drinks @ The Skinny Pancake in Montpelier, Tuesday January 12 from 6pm-8pm.

Green Drinks is a freeform social meetup primarily for people interested in environmental issues.

• First 50 drinks provided by event sponsor
• No agenda
• Fun!

Time: September 17, 2009 from 7pm to 8:30pm
Location: Kellogg Hubbard Library
Organized By: Transition Town Montpelier and Kellogg Hubbard Library:

Event Description:
This practical compost workshop will engage participants in the art & science of backyard composting. We will explore the basic ingredients to layer a triple bin composting system so that in a few days it will reach a temperature of 150 degrees. The two-week method is labor intensive but guaranteed to turn three season garden and kitchen waste back to vital nutrients to feed your soil.

Presented by Joseph Kiefer, Co-founder of Food Works at Two Rivers Center. Kiefer has been working to end hunger in Vermont through food education since the 1980’s.

See more details and RSVP on TransitionVermont.ning.com

As part of the International Day of Climate Action(IDCA), Higher Ground is having a dance party which will be webcasted through UStream so that people at other climate action events can tune in and join the party.

IDCA is October 24, and the dance party time is TBA.  So far, there are “satellite” parties planned for UVM and Charlotte, and can be found on the dance party’s website.

More details coming soon.

Local Food Celebration in Montpelier

Saturday 9/12/09 on the green at the Vermont College of Fine Arts.

Music, workshops, local food, and friends!

The VBC is 9-day event filled with hands-education in permaculture design and construction, ecological building, and public art that will extend and celebrate the Great Reskilling of our communities embodied in these projects.  All projects are built through collaboration and the commitment of a neighborhood to strengthen itself.

5th Annual Northeastern Permaculture Convergence - ‘Permaculture in Practice’
Join permaculture enthusiasts, practitioners and educators from throughout the northeast for the 5th annual regional northeastern permaculture convergence in East Montpelier! This exciting, collaborative, activity packed event features an impressive assemblage of presentations, lectures, hand-on workshops and celebration that include intensive forays into edible plant propagation, natural building, root cellaring, bio-char, rocket stoves, coppice forestry, lacto-fermentation, education, keyline design, the zen of permaculture, humanure, traditional woodworking and much more. Local food, music, beer; on-site camping; and some of the most inspired company you’ll find in the region set the stage for an amazing fourth of July weekend. Additional tours of community-based permaculture-inspired homesteads and businesses will precede the convergence on July 1-2. Additional details coming soon.

To volunteer to help organize, please contact Janice Walrafen: jwalrafen(at)verizon.net. To submit a workshop proposal please contact Nicko Rubin: narubin(at)gmail.com. For information about farm tours preceding the conference, contact Keith Morris: earthsurfing(at)gmail.com.
Stay tuned for more details and registration information.

Time: May 13, 2009 from 6pm to 8pm
Location: Methodist Church, just past Kellogg Hubbard Library
Street: Main St.
City/Town: Montpelier
Contact Info: 456-8122, Annie McCleary
Event Type: potluck, and, working, group
Organized By: Post Carbon Sustainability Network

PocSun, Post Carbon Sustainability Network, is a long-standing group which is dedicating these next two years to implementing root cellars in the area. One member has written a pamphet on root cellaring which we would like to distribute to the community. This group meets on the second Wedsnesday of the month at 6 pm for a potluck, followed by a meeting. Join us!

Time: May 10, 2009 from 10am to 1pm
Location: Mandala Botanicals in Barre
Contact Info: (802) 479-1925
Event Type: open, house
Organized By: Sandra Lory

An informal gathering to learn more about the Local Healers Program. It is a reunion of previous summer participants in the Local Healers Program, a chance to meet Sandra Lory and see her apothecary and home classroom, and enjoy a fantabulous brunch feast of spring foods.

Call (802) 479-1925 for directions, or email: mandalabotanicals@gmail.com

Dry corn, dry beans and winter squash, a guild of sustaining foods. Grown in the Americas for thousands of years, sustains culture and the soil. Come learns how to plant, save seeds and store theses precious foods that can help us become self-sufficient in home grown food.
@ AllTogetherNow! Community Art Center in East Montpelier