FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Lisa Kivirist
Renewing the Countryside – Wisconsin
Tel:  608-329-7056    e-mail:  lisa@rtcinfo.org           

Renewing the Countryside - Wisconsin
Showcasing Wisconsin’s Energy Independence and Rural Renewal

Spring Valley, WI  — Sometimes solutions to the most pressing global issues like climate change and mushrooming energy costs can be found in your own backyard. Through thirty-nine engaging stories, Renewing the Countryside - Wisconsin explores how the state is leading the nation in sustainable and organic agriculture, environmentally responsible business practices and homegrown, forward-looking answers to the challenges facing today’s rural economy and communities.  The new book release will offer concrete examples and inspiration for governors gathering in Milwaukee for the Energy Security and Climate Change Summit on November 14 and 15, each governor receiving a book copy. Renewing the Countryside – Wisconsin, showcases that the long-standing energy independence movement in Wisconsin stands ready to take on new challenges.

“Wisconsin’s rich agricultural heritage and identity are coupled with a strong and enduring conservation ethic and sense of stewardship for our land and natural resources,” writes Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle in his foreword for the book. “Renewing the Countryside – Wisconsin clearly shows how these vital traditions continue to shape how we live and work . . .  Renewable sources of energy – including wind, ethanol and solar – and purposeful energy conservation are reshaping individual behavior and business practices.”

“While green energy refrains throughout the book, Renewing the Countryside - Wisconsin exemplifies that all our actions and choices collectively relate to long-term sustainability,” summarizes Faye Jones, Executive Director of Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Service (MOSES), one of the book partners along with the Northern Center for Community and Economic Development (UW-Superior and UW-Extension).  “Book topics range from farming to arts and culture to education, synergistically tying together how we can each individually make a difference in fighting climate change, from eating local, organic food to supporting local businesses.”

This photography rich book profiles numerous stories capturing how Wisconsin is leading the nation in addressing climate change through renewable energy production, energy efficiency and other sustainable practices, including:

• Green Technology on Campus:  Northland College (Ashland)
With wind towers and solar panels across the campus, Northland College integrates green technology with its liberal arts curriculum, making it one of the select few such environmentally progressive colleges in the country.

• Empowering an Energy Revolution: Midwest Renewable Energy Association (Custer)
The MREA organizes the world’s largest and longest-running Renewable Energy and Sustainable Living Fair, attracting over 20,000 annually.

• Powering the Way:  Lake Michigan Wind and Sun (Sturgeon Bay)
A one-stop shop for wind and solar systems, this company has served as an international leader in renewable energy for over 25 years.

• Harvesting the Good Life:  Inn Serendipity Bed & Breakfast and Farm (Browntown)
Powered by 100 percent renewable energy through solar and wind, this award-winning B&B exemplifies the blossoming ecopreneuring movement of small businesses leading the fight against global warming by being carbon-negative.

• Earth-Friendly Cheeses:  Cedar Grove Cheese (Plain)
Besides producing great cheeses, this artisan cheese factory uses a “Living Machine,” a groundbreaking method for purifying waste water through a natural filtering process using plants and microbes. 

• Doing Well by Doing Good:  Pinehurst Inn (Bayfield)
Blending an eco-renovation of an 1885 historic home with new green construction, Pinehurst Inn showcases energy efficient design and numerous solar thermal applications.

• Growing a National Movement:  Organic Valley Family of Farms (LaFarge)
One of the nation’s leading organic brands, this cooperatively owned company assists farmers in converting to organic farming, decreasing fossil fuel and chemical use while helping sequester carbon dioxide by conservation-minded farming practices.

“Renewing the Countryside is honored to share this book with attending governors as the book provides hope through pragmatic examples of what’s working in Wisconsin,” explains Jan Joannides, Executive Director and Founder of Renewing the Countryside, a Minneapolis-based non-profit organization that showcases the positive stories of rural revitalization. “These Wisconsin stories provide tangible examples of how Wisconsin’s rural entrepreneurs and communities are already successfully lowering their carbon emissions footprint.”


About Renewing the Countryside – Wisconsin
Through thirty-nine engaging stories, Renewing the Countryside-Wisconsin (released November 15, 2007) explores how the state is leading the nation in sustainable and organic agriculture, environmentally responsible business practices and homegrown, forward-looking answers to the challenges facing today’s rural economy and communities.  This book is a project of Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education Service (MOSES), the Northern Center for Community and Economic Development (UW-Superior and UW-Extension) and Renewing the Countryside.  Written and photographed by Wisconsin writers and artists and distributed by the University of Wisconsin Press, funding support for educational initiatives comes from the Milwaukee-based BRICO fund, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the USDA CREES.  Renewing the Countryside is a Minneapolis-based non-profit organization that strengthens rural areas by championing and supporting communities, farmers, artists, entrepreneurs, educators and other people who are renewing the countryside through sustainable and innovative initiatives, businesses and projects.  In addition to books, Renewing the Countryside leads a variety of efforts that strengthen rural vitality, including local food systems initiatives, promoting youth entrepreneurs and Green Routes, a green travel program.   www.renewingthecountryside.org