Gretchen Kruesi

tumeric

Plant and Mushroom Medicines for Cancer

By Gretchen Kruesi / November 8, 2019 / Comments Off on Plant and Mushroom Medicines for Cancer

Chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery are the main cancer treatments people turn to when diagnosed. These high-risk and chemical-heavy options aren’t the only ones—plants and mushrooms are on the rise as cancer treatments. They have great healing properties that combat cancer similar to how the plants and mushrooms grow. The following is an excerpt from Cancer…

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barn in distance with bushes along driveway

Getting Wild: Take A Walk on the Wild Side

By Gretchen Kruesi / November 6, 2019 / Comments Off on Getting Wild: Take A Walk on the Wild Side

John and Nancy Hayden have spent the last quarter century transforming their organic vegetable and livestock operation into an agroecological, regenerative fruit farm, nursery, and pollinator sanctuary. They call it The Farm Between, and as we walk among the diverse medley of wildly burgeoning shrubs and trees, it becomes clear that the name is much…

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leg warmers

The Cost of Our Clothes

By Gretchen Kruesi / November 5, 2019 / Comments Off on The Cost of Our Clothes

Clothes cost more than the number on the price tag. Some clothes contain toxic ingredients that are harmful to manufacturers, consumers, and the environment. The textile industry produces billions of products annually which are often worn few times then discarded improperly, resulting in massive amounts of resource wasting. The following is an excerpt from Fibershed…

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question mark over face

All In the Question: What If We Started Asking Better Questions?

By Gretchen Kruesi / October 31, 2019 / Comments Off on All In the Question: What If We Started Asking Better Questions?

Sometimes, a roadblock or bump in the road can seem like the end of a good idea. The best way to overcome these obstacles is to change the way we view them and ask the question; asking “how can this help?” as opposed to “is this the end?” can make all the difference in the…

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Lisa and CGP staff

Veteran Activist and Organizer Lisa Fithian Visits Chelsea Green

By Gretchen Kruesi / October 29, 2019 / Comments Off on Veteran Activist and Organizer Lisa Fithian Visits Chelsea Green

Chelsea Green Publishing celebrated Employee Ownership Month with a visit from veteran activist, organizer, and author, Lisa Fithian! Invited to be the inaugural speaker in our “Lunch and Learn” program sponsored by the Employee-Ownership Committee, Lisa inspired us all with countless stories of her adventures on the frontlines of change. Lisa’s new book, Shut It…

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people farming

The Future of Sustainable Fashion: A “Farm-to-Closet” Vision

By Gretchen Kruesi / October 29, 2019 / Comments Off on The Future of Sustainable Fashion: A “Farm-to-Closet” Vision

Rebecca Burgess has coined a new term for sustainable fashion that represents a not so new idea: fibershed. Centuries before the advent of fast fashion and the multimillion-dollar fashion industry, functional fibersheds were everywhere. As a means of protection, spiritual identity, gender, adornment, societal rank, personal style, and modesty, people sourced their fibers from the…

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greenhouse heater

Choosing the Best Heat Source for Your Greenhouse

By Gretchen Kruesi / October 24, 2019 / Comments Off on Choosing the Best Heat Source for Your Greenhouse

When it comes to heating your greenhouse, the options may seem endless and expensive. Fear not! Growing your own food in the cold weather doesn’t have to break the bank. The best solution differs from farm to farm; it depends on the climate, crops grown, and the greenhouse structure itself. Harness the advancements in greenhouse…

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imagine tiles

The Importance of Imagination

By Gretchen Kruesi / October 22, 2019 / Comments Off on The Importance of Imagination

From What Is to What If author Rob Hopkins is a co-founder of Transition Town Totnes and Transition Network. He is also the author of The Power of Just Doing Stuff, The Transition Handbook, and The Transition Companion. He earned a spot on Nesta and the Observer’s list of Britain’s 50 New Radicals and was…

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cooking

Happy National Cookbook Month!

By Gretchen Kruesi / October 18, 2019 / Comments Off on Happy National Cookbook Month!

From foraging to fermenting, a good cookbook can be the guiding force that elevates your culinary skills. Draw a little inspiration from our expert chefs, foragers, and brewers and get ready to kickstart your own creativity in the kitchen! With recipes for gumbos and stews, plus okra pickles, tofu, marshmallow, paper, and more The Whole…

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farmers talking

A Search for Rural Justice

By Gretchen Kruesi / October 17, 2019 / Comments Off on A Search for Rural Justice

Charles D. Thompson, Jr., is the Professor of the Practice of Cultural Anthropology and Documentary Studies at Duke University. His numerous books and documentaries have helped bring underrepresented rural issues in the United States and Latin America to the forefront. When Chelsea Green sat down with him to discuss his latest book, Going Over Home:…

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girl with bar on shoulders

Building Strength by Mastering Hunger

By Gretchen Kruesi / October 15, 2019 / Comments Off on Building Strength by Mastering Hunger

“How can we expect to feel our best unless we live in harmony with the way our bodies work?” —Denis Wilson, MD In the United States, more than 35 percent of adults and nearly 17 percent of children are obese. This is true in spite of our cultural obsession with diets, exercise fads, and health…

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honeybee on flower

Speaking for the Bees

By Gretchen Kruesi / October 10, 2019 / Comments Off on Speaking for the Bees

“Having a relationship with the rest of nature is knowing that we can, if we wish, rekindle our lost connections, because somewhere deep inside us all, there lives a little spark of ‘wild’ just waiting to be ignited.” —Brigit Strawbridge Howard Our planet is home to at least 20,000 species of bees—a statistic most of…

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water with bubbles

What is Water?

By Gretchen Kruesi / October 8, 2019 / Comments Off on What is Water?

Since his bout with throat cancer, ForeWord Editor-in-Chief Matt Sutherland has been hot to discover the most reputable integrative health and wellness books that address alternative approaches to cancer prevention and treatment. Cancer and the New Biology of Water is one of these books. The following is an excerpt from Sutherland’s interview with Thomas Cowan…

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magnifying glass over the word cancer

The Terrifying Diagnosis: Where Do We Go from Here?

By Gretchen Kruesi / October 4, 2019 / Comments Off on The Terrifying Diagnosis: Where Do We Go from Here?

Cancer is a terrifying diagnosis for many people and their loved ones. While the medical community has made immense progress in treating it, there are still a lot of uncertainties. The biggest being that even after years of research, there is still no cure. Each question we answer only leads to a new one, adding…

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Farm with sunset

Back-to-the-Land Dreams

By Gretchen Kruesi / October 1, 2019 / Comments Off on Back-to-the-Land Dreams

These days, becoming a farmer isn’t considered a “typical” career path. But for some folks, the allure of cultivating your food and owning your land seems too good to resist. These people were born to return to nature, where they can experience true freedom in the open air. The following is an excerpt from Going…

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Adding Our Voices to the Global Climate Strike

By Gretchen Kruesi / September 25, 2019 / Comments Off on Adding Our Voices to the Global Climate Strike

By Jill Kiedaisch, Content and Brand Manager “If I have to face up to the reality of climate change as an 11-year-old, then so do you.” The words of one of the countless youth speakers who shouted into microphones at “5,800 events in 163 countries” around the world last Friday, September 20, 2019. Millions of…

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bee on honey comb

A Nest of One’s Own

By Gretchen Kruesi / September 25, 2019 / Comments Off on A Nest of One’s Own

Bees are commonly thought to live together by the thousands. Many people picture a buzzing hive filled with bees, all working together to take care of the young, collect pollen, and promote the overall health of the colony. However, there are thousands of species of bees that aren’t part of a colony. These solitary bees…

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mountain

The Story and Legacy of a Radical Industrialist and his Quest for Authentic Change

By Gretchen Kruesi / September 24, 2019 / Comments Off on The Story and Legacy of a Radical Industrialist and his Quest for Authentic Change

Ray C. Anderson’s Mid-Course Correction, originally published 20 years ago, became the definitive case study for sustainable business. Now fully updated and expanded for the twenty-first century, Mid-Course Correction Revisited includes new chapters penned by Anderson’s grandson, John A. Lanier. The following is an excerpt from Mid-Course Correction Revisited by Ray Anderson & John Lanier.…

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doctor with stethoscope

A New Culture in Health Care

By Gretchen Kruesi / September 23, 2019 / Comments Off on A New Culture in Health Care

In the face of the American healthcare crisis, some companies have acknowledged the system’s effect on employee productivity and made healthcare reformation a priority. Amazon, JPMorgan Chase, and Berkshire Hathaway built a joint health care venture to re-examine insurance benefits, access to primary care, and pharmaceutical costs. Finding the right person to take the lead…

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apple honey cake

Vegan Apple Honey Cake

By Gretchen Kruesi / September 18, 2019 / Comments Off on Vegan Apple Honey Cake

Oy Vey Vegan explores the plant-based food world with a concentration in Mediterranean and Jewish Eastern European flavor influences. Estee Raviv creates a variety of options from breakfast to dinner to snacks and desserts that disprove the common thought of vegan food being bland. This cookbook is for everyone—from beginners to master chefs to curious…

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four pigs

Happy Pigs Really Do Taste Better

By Gretchen Kruesi / September 17, 2019 / Comments Off on Happy Pigs Really Do Taste Better

For ten years Alice Percy operated a commercial hog operation on her farm in Whitefield, Maine, becoming the largest certified hog producer in the state. Percy has mentored hog farming startups through the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA), and helped to develop the association’s Raising Organic Pigs fact sheet. She has presented workshops…

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people protesting

The Power of Nonviolent Direct Action

By Gretchen Kruesi / September 12, 2019 / Comments Off on The Power of Nonviolent Direct Action

Some acts of nonviolent protesting put the message out for the public and brings attention to the issue. However, this strategy doesn’t always capture the attention of the people who have the power—the government. Adding strategy to nonviolence brings the attention it needs directly into the face of those who can change the rules and…

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farmland with structure in ground

Why Isn’t Farming Enough?

By Gretchen Kruesi / September 11, 2019 / Comments Off on Why Isn’t Farming Enough?

Years ago family farms were an abundance. Generations of farmers passed the land down in hopes of it continuing to prosper. However, these farms are a rarity; smaller ones are put out of business by large corporations and the cost of maintenance yields no profit. Many farmers have to find other means of making a…

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farm land

Resilience and the Lost Art of Agricultural Inventiveness

By Gretchen Kruesi / September 10, 2019 / Comments Off on Resilience and the Lost Art of Agricultural Inventiveness

After twenty years in academia, Michael Foley began farming first in southern Maryland, and then in Willits, California, where he, his wife, and oldest daughter currently operate the small, diversified Green Uprising Farm. Foley is cofounder of the School of Adaptive Agriculture, a farmer training and education program where he is a board member and…

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test tubes on table

DIY Fecal Transplant – Pretty Close to Miraculous

By Gretchen Kruesi / September 9, 2019 / Comments Off on DIY Fecal Transplant – Pretty Close to Miraculous

After suffering from an antibiotic-resistant infection in her bowels, Catherine Duff contracted Clostridium difficile (C. diff). This bacteria can result in damage to the colon and intestines, which may lead to other fatal complications. Though there are remedies to cure C. diff, it doesn’t work for everyone. Fecal transplants are a relatively new procedure that transfers…

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