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Featured Article filed under Composting, Waste to Wealth | Written by Linda Bilsens | No Comments | Updated on Jun 8, 2017

Frederick Compost Summit Brings Together Regulators, Farmers, and Residents

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at https://ilsr.org/frederick-compost-summit-brings-together-regulators-farmers-and-residents/

On Monday, May 22nd, 2017, the Frederick Compost Workgroup hosted the Frederick Compost Summit at Fox Haven Educational Farm. ILSR’s Composting for Community project co-sponsored the summit along with Frederick Zero Waste Alliance, Fox Haven Farm, and others. ILSR staff made opening remarks, presented composting options for the county (including our new hierarchy to reduce… Continue reading

Article, Resource filed under Composting, Waste to Wealth | Written by Nick Stumo-Langer | No Comments | Updated on Apr 20, 2017

Posters: Compost Impacts More Than You Think

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at https://ilsr.org/compost-impacts-posters/

Composting protects the soil and climate while creating jobs. Learn how in our series of posters, available in a variety of formats for easy sharing and distribution. Each poster is available for your use (with attribution to the Institute for Local Self-Reliance) so you can educate your community about the benefits of composting. All posters are… Continue reading

Featured Article, Event filed under Composting, Waste to Wealth | Written by Linda Bilsens | No Comments | Updated on Apr 19, 2017

NSR Master Composter Course in Baltimore

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at https://ilsr.org/nsr-master-composter-course-bmore-fall-2016/

The City of Baltimore is dedicated to developing sustainable local food systems by encouraging urban farming. Compost is an important ingredient for filtering and immobilizing pollutants from our soils. ILSR’s Composting for Community Initiative is proud to help support the City’s food growing goals by partnering with ECO City Farms, Civic Works’ Real Food Farms, and Urban Farm Plans by bringing the Neighborhood Soil Rebuilders Master Composter training course to the Baltimore community! Continue reading

Featured Article, Resource filed under Composting, Waste to Wealth | Written by Brenda Platt | No Comments | Updated on Apr 19, 2017

Infographic: Compost Impacts More Than You Think

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at https://ilsr.org/compost-impacts/

From healthy soils, to good local jobs, we bet you didn’t know that compost can have such an impact! So think twice before you throw away your compostable food scraps… because one person’s trash is another’s black gold. Please help us spread the word! You can view the individual infographic sections here, but below is… Continue reading

Featured Article filed under Broadband, Energy, Energy Self-Reliant States | Written by Karlee Weinmann | No Comments | Updated on Mar 2, 2017

Arkansas Utility Leads on Energy, Broadband

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at https://ilsr.org/arkansas-utility-leads-on-energy-broadband/

This article was co-written with ILSR’s Community Broadband Networks initiative research associate, Hannah Trostle, and this piece is cross-posted on MuniNetworks.org. Ouachita Electric Cooperative, nestled deep in south-central Arkansas, is an unlikely innovator in a pair of industries struggling to adapt to shifting market dynamics: electricity and broadband. Despite rising demand for energy efficiency and… Continue reading

Featured Article, Resource filed under Broadband, Energy, Energy Self-Reliant States | Written by Nick Stumo-Langer | No Comments | Updated on Feb 23, 2017

The Power and Perils of Cooperatives – Episode 12 of the Building Local Power Podcast

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at https://ilsr.org/the-power-and-perils-of-cooperatives-episode-12-of-the-building-local-power-podcast/

In this episode, Christopher Mitchell, the director of ILSR’s Community Broadband Networks initiative, interviews Hannah Trostle and Karlee Weinmann, Research Associates for the Community Broadband Networks and Energy Democracy initiatives, respectively. The three discuss the cooperative model of ownership and how this model can enable investment in gigabit Internet connections for their member-owners, but also how they are subject to a low participation rates in their elections. Continue reading

Featured Article, Event filed under Composting, Waste to Wealth | Written by Linda Bilsens | No Comments | Updated on Feb 10, 2017

Community Composters Gather at Conference in Los Angeles

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at https://ilsr.org/notes-from-ccc2017/

The Fourth National Cultivating Community Composting Forum, January 2017, made clear that community composters serve an integral and unique role in both the broader composting industry and the sustainable food movement. We are the social innovators and entrepreneurs. We are the compost educators and facilitators that are building equity and power in our communities from the ground up. We are the front lines, grassroots, boots-on-the-ground that are cultivating awareness and demand for compost and its associated benefits. We are getting compost into the hands that feed the soil that feeds us. Continue reading

Featured Article, Resource filed under Composting, Waste to Wealth, Zero Waste & Economic Development | Written by Nick Stumo-Langer | No Comments | Updated on Feb 9, 2017

Bolstering Waste Recovery Through Model Legislation – Episode 11 of the Building Local Power Podcast

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at https://ilsr.org/waste-recovery-episode-11-of-the-building-local-power-podcast/

In this episode, Christopher Mitchell, the director of ILSR’s Community Broadband Networks initiative, interviews Brenda Platt, ILSR co-director and director of our Waste to Wealth initiative. The two discuss the history of ILSR’s Zero Waste work and how the conversation around composting and waste has changed in her 30 years at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. Continue reading

Featured Article, ILSR Press Room filed under Broadband | Written by Christopher | No Comments | Updated on Jan 10, 2017

How 2017 Will Transform Broadband Opportunities for Local Governments

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at https://ilsr.org/how-2017-will-transform-broadband-opportunities-for-local-governments/

StateScoop – January 10, 2017 Commentary: Christopher Mitchell of the Institute for Local Self-Reliance predicts new connectivity opportunities and an altered broadband landscape as a pro-business Trump administration prepares to disrupt the status quo. This may well be the year of local government broadband solutions. For some communities, it will be because they are prepared… Continue reading

Featured Article, Resource filed under Composting, Waste to Wealth | Written by Nick Stumo-Langer | No Comments | Updated on Dec 15, 2016

Composting Cultivates Economic Development – Episode 7 of the Building Local Power Podcast

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at https://ilsr.org/composting-economic-development-episode-7-of-the-building-local-power-podcast/

In this episode, Chris Mitchell, the director of our Community Broadband Networks initiative, interviews Linda Bilsens, Project Manager of ILSR’s Neighborhood Soil Rebuilders Program. Bilsens explains how producing compost from food scraps builds local economic development, fights climate change, and cultivates community.

Chris and Linda discuss how both individuals and communities can partake in rebuilding their local soils by composting organic materials. Check out the further information on our composting work here: Neighborhood Soil Rebuilders training program. Contact Linda Bilsens if you’re interested in replicating this program. Continue reading