11 Sustainable Cities and Communities (162)
Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
Calling all climbers (and hikers and bikers): Come help clean Obed crags
The annual Obed Adopt-a-Crag event is set for Sept. 14 and will include access trail maintenance such as that performed here by volunteers at a previous event. National Park Service
WARTBURG — The East Tennessee Climbers Coalition and Obed Wild and Scenic River will host the park’s annual Adopt-a-Crag event on Saturday, Sep. 14 2024
Volunteers are needed to help with a variety of projects including general trail maintenance and litter pickup. Please meet at the Lilly Pad Hopyard Brewery, 920 Ridge Road, Lancing, at 10 a.m. to register and receive a project assignment. Due to limited parking, carpooling is suggested. Please bring your own lunch and water. Volunteers are also encouraged to bring hand tools, gloves, sunscreen, and insect repellant.
After completing their projects, volunteers are invited to spend the day climbing their favorite routes or enjoying other recreational opportunities in the park. Following the event, the ETCC will be hosting a volunteer appreciation event at the Lilly Pad.
Flutter over for educational fun at the annual UT Arboretum Butterfly Festival
OAK RIDGE — More than 2,500 people are expected to attend the ninth annual Butterfly Festival hosted by the University of Tennessee Arboretum Society and the UT Forest Resources AgResearch and Education Center. Gates will open at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 28, at the UT Arboretum,
The festivities will take place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. EDT. Plenty of activities will provide educational opportunities for the public to learn how we can all protect butterflies and other pollinators.
Kevin Hoyt, director of the UT Forest Resources Center and Arboretum, invites everyone to come for a fun day of educational activities. “This family-oriented event will feature butterfly tents and the UT Insect Zoo as well as children’s crafts, artisans and other vendors and food trucks.” Hoyt said butterfly releases are no longer part of the event and that guests are asked to leave pets and butterfly nets at home.
As climate threats to agriculture mount, could the Mississippi River delta be the next California?
Written by C. Stephenson, I. Ireland and P. Powell
Michael Katrutsa walks through rows of tomatoes on his 20-acre produce farm in Camden, Tennessee. His crops also include sweet corn, watermelon, cantaloupe, peppers, cucumbers, okra and more. John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout
Specialty crops take root as models emerge of American agriculture dominated by Delta
This story is a product of the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk, an independent reporting network based at the University of Missouri in partnership with Report for America, with major funding from the Walton Family Foundation. It was originally published by Tennessee Lookout.
CAMDEN — A smorgasbord of bright red tomatoes and vibrant vegetables line the walls of Michael Katrutsa’s produce shop in rural Camden, Tennessee. What began a decade ago as a roadside farm stand is now an air-conditioned outbuilding packed with crates of watermelon, cantaloupe and his locally renowned sweet corn — all picked fresh by a handful of local employees each morning.
The roughly 20-acre farm west of the Tennessee River sells about half of its produce through his shop, with the rest going to the wholesale market.
Farms like Katrutsa’s make up just a sliver of roughly 10.7 million acres of Tennessee farmland largely dominated by hay, soybeans, corn and cotton. Specialized machines help farmers harvest vast quantities of these commodity “row crops,” but Katrutsa said the startup cost was too steep for him. While specialty crops like produce are more labor-intensive, requiring near-constant attention from early July up until the first frost in October, Katrutsa said he takes pride in feeding his neighbors.
The World Wildlife Fund sees farms in the mid-Mississippi delta as ripe with opportunity to become a new mecca for commercial-scale American produce. California currently grows nearly three-quarters of the nation’s fruits and nuts and more than a third of its vegetables.
But as climate change compounds the threats of water scarcity, extreme weather and wildfires on California’s resources, WWF’s Markets Institute is exploring what it would take for farmers in West Tennessee, Mississippi and Arkansas to embrace — and equitably profit from — specialty crop production like strawberries, lettuce or walnuts.
- tennessee agriculture
- mississippi delta agriculture
- climate change farming
- how will climate change affect farming
- michael katrutsa
- camden, tennessee
- world wildlife fund
- gulf south blueberry growers association
- aglaunch
- don van de werken
- commodity market
- commodity economy
- food processing in rural areas
- monoculture
- delta harvest food hub
- southeast specialty crops
- local food
- small farmers
- local food economies
- report for america
Get plugged in to the facts about electric vehicles during SACE webinar
KNOXVILLE — You’re invited to join a Southern Alliance for Clean Energy webinar, “Understanding EVs: Real People Share Real Stories of Electrifying Their Ride,” at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 29.
A panel of electric vehicle (EV) owners and drivers will share stories and insights from their experiences with EVs. Learn more about what it’s like to own, charge, travel and save money with an EV, plus hear advice from real people who have gone electric! Panelists for this webinar will include:
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EVNoire Associate Director Tarique André Miller, on EV charging levels and networks, best practices on charging, maintenance cost savings, plus EV incentives and opportunities for all
- SACE Electric Transportation Equity Manager Madelyn Collins and East Tennessee Clean Fuels Community Engagement Liaison Wesleigh Wright, on what they learned about EV range and community charging during their first ever EV road trip
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SACE volunteer Sara Vinson, on purchasing an EV, using federal tax credits to save money on an EV, and benefiting from the low maintenance of EVs (including her vow to never get an oil change again!)
Bruderhof manufactures sustainable community in Monroe County
Written by C. Don Jones
Hiwassee Bruderhof builds vermicomposting equipment at its manufacturing facility on the grounds of what was Hiwassee College in Monroe County, Tennessee. Hiwassee Products
Intentional Christian community settles into old Hiwassee College campus
HIWASSEE — We gathered in the old Hiwassee College theater to see “Common Ground” and hear from one of the farmers featured in the film.
Members of the new Bruderhof (from the German word, a place of brothers) community in Monroe County sat with us for the screening.
A few folks asked me: “Are you a farmer?”
“No, I am a United Methodist pastor,” I replied. The community is on the old Hiwassee College campus. The Holston Conference closed the college in 2019 and then sold the property to the Bruderhof in 2021
One older gentleman said, “I hoped to sit with a farmer.” I understood that. The community, in addition to being a self-supporting Christian Intentional Community, hoped to sell some of its new equipment to local farmers. Hobby gardeners, like me, would not want to invest the money in the new tools being offered.
Tennessee Valley Authority faces a push to get greener and more transparent
Written by Robert Zullo
Nanette Mahler, left, and Tracy O’Neill walk along Macon Wall Road in Cheatham County, Tennessee, near the site of a proposed Tennessee Valley Authority gas power plant project. Local backlash against the proposal comes as the federal utility faces bipartisan legislation in Congress seeking to boost transparency in its planning process and scrutiny of TVA’s anemic renewable power growth compared to other utilities. Robert Zullo/States Newsroom
TVA ‘clearly a laggard’ in renewable energy
This article was originally published by Tennessee Lookout.
ASHLAND CITY — When he heard about the sale, Kerry McCarver was perplexed.
In 2020, the mayor of rural Cheatham County discovered that the Tennessee Valley Authority bought about 280 acres of rolling farmland “in the middle of nowhere” in his county, which lies just west of Nashville and is home to about 42,000 people.
He asked another county official who formerly worked for the TVA, the nation’s largest public power company, to find out what it planned to do with the land.
The answer they got was “future use,” and they speculated a solar farm might be in the works.
“It’s kind of the last we thought about it,” McCarver said during an interview in his office in May. “Then a year ago last summer, TVA called here needing a place to have a public meeting.”
The authority was now proposing a 900-megawatt natural gas-fired power plant, battery storage, pipelines and other associated infrastructure for the site, which came as a shock to McCarver and many other locals who felt it was wholly inappropriate for the area.
- tva
- tva clean energy
- tva board
- tva board meeting
- tva bull run
- tva coal fossil plant
- tva kingston
- kerry mccarver
- tva fossil plant
- tva gas plants
- cheatham county
- jeff lyash
- duke energy
- sierra club climate change
- southern alliance for clean energy
- stephen smith
- tennessee lookout
- tva governance transparency
- southern environmental law center
- energy alabama
Get on Little River for a day of summer fun, science and community
MARYVILLE — Come hang out on Little River with friends and family and learn about river life with the scientists and staff of Conservation Fisheries Inc. and Little River Watershed Association.
The educational fun kicks off at noon July 27 with the start of shuttled floats down Little River ending back at River Johns, 4134 Cave Mill Road. (Bring your own personal flotation device).
Guided snorkeling (masks and snorkels provided) in the river at River Johns begins at 3 p.m. The day wraps up with food from Tarik’s North African, or you can bring your own picnic.
Not just a bougie supper club: Slow Food returns, patiently, to mountains
Written by Élan Young
Slow Food Tennessee Valley co-founder Sarah Bush picks heirloom tomatoes at Vuck Farm in Riceville. Élan Young/Hellbender Press
Slow Food ramps up regional food resilience efforts
RICEVILLE — On a hot summer day in late June, Sarah Bush, co-founder of Slow Food Tennessee Valley, slices some varieties of tender heirloom tomatoes freshly picked from tall rows of plants strung up in a giant, covered hoop-style greenhouse before serving them on a cutting board with a bit of farm-fresh chevre and basil.
The tomatoes span hues of yellow, red, green and purple, some a solid color or slightly striped and bearing intriguing names not found in grocery stores: striped Heart, Cherokee evergreen, chocolate stripe and Valencia. The flavor combinations explode into farm-to-table bliss.
The tomatoes are especially terrific for a reason: Bush, 46, has practiced regenerative farming since she was 28.
Mentored by other small farmers around the country who taught her how to exist and thrive in an economy that favors Big Ag, she now splits her time between Vuck Farm, a biodynamic farm in Riceville owned by her partner TJ Teets, and managing the produce department at Three Rivers Market in Knoxville — Tennessee’s only cooperative grocery.
She also serves on the planning committee for CRAFT (Collaborative Regional Alliance for Farmer Training), which is run by the Southeastern Tennessee chapter of the National Young Farmers Coalition.
Not a bougie supper club
Founded in 2008, the Tennessee Valley chapter of Slow Food is the only chapter in the state that has remained active since its founding.
A little more than two decades earlier in 1986, thousands of Italians gathered at the base of the sprawling Piazza di Spagna in the center of Rome to protest the country’s first McDonald’s restaurant. Slow Food’s founder, Italian journalist Carlo Petrini, was among them. Instead of bringing a sign with a slogan, Petrini brought a big bowl of penne pasta to share with the crowd chanting We don’t want fast food. We want Slow Food! Three years later the movement became an official organization and today spans 160 countries.
- three rivers market
- collaborative regional alliance for farmer training
- vuck farm
- national young farmers coalition
- alice waters
- wendell berry
- slow food
- tennessee agriculture enhancement program
- terra madre
- slow food of tennessee valley
- sarah bush
- old city garden
- jim embry
- university of tennessee institute of agriculture
- pesto festo
- ark of taste
- tj teets
- riceville
- small farmer
- farmland loss
- young farmer
- regenerative farming
Fish on: First-time study links recreational fishing and nutrition
Written by David Fleming
A new paper reveals the important role that inland fisheries play in providing affordable nutrition around the world. Illustration courtesy of Lakshita Dey via Virginia Tech
Under-reporting of economics of sustenance fishing is a social justice issue
David Fleming is a Virginia Tech writer and communications specialist.
BLACKSBURG — It is a sight of summer: Along the banks of rivers and streams throughout the Southeast, recreational fishers will cast lines into the water, hoping that a fish will take the bait. In urban towns and cities such as Roanoke or Charlottesville, the same lines dangle from bridges or freshwater wharfs.
All of these activities are currently catagorized as “recreational fishing,” but for many fishers in the U.S. and around the world, the act of fishing in freshwater is not a leisurely pursuit but a way to provide critical sustenance and nutrition for individuals, families and communities.
An expansive new paper, co-authored by Virginia Tech Assistant Professor Elizabeth Nyboer of the College of Natural Resources and Environment and published in the journal Nature Food, reveals the underrecognized extent that inland recreational fisheries provide food and nutrition to people as well as offers insight on their vulnerability to future climate challenges.
- national climate adaptation center
- freshwater fisheries
- value of recreational fishing
- nutrients from fish
- sustenance fishing
- provisioning fishing
- virginia tech
- virginia tech college of natural resources and environment
- elizabeth nyboer
- usgs
- nature food journal
- holly embke
- social justice
- social justice fishing
- recreational fishing
- zero hunger sustainable development goal
- economic importance of recreational fishing
- inland fisheries
Gather Under One Canopy at Tennessee Urban Forestry Council conference
Written by Thomas Fraser
NASHVILLE — The annual Tennessee Urban Forestry Council conference is set for Nov. 14-15 at the Scarritt Bennett Center.
This year’s theme is Under One Canopy, which will highlight how individuals, organizations and municipalities are engaging with diverse stakeholders and cross-sector partners to make an impact in Tennessee communities through urban forestry. Confrence attendees will celebrate achievements from across the state, exchange ideas and learn from the latest urban forestry studies and stories.
Full registration and lodging details will be announced soon.
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Big South Fork volunteers honor natural heritage, national trails
Written by National Park Service
Volunteers helped build this bridge on Sheltowee Trace in Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area. National Park Service
ONEIDA — Two popular trails were greatly improved with the help of volunteers during Big South Fork’s annual National Trails Day event, observed this year on June 22.
Volunteers helped build a 40-foot-long trail bridge between Yahoo Falls and Alum Ford on the Sheltowee Trace (a designated National Recreation Trail), by assisting park staff in transporting lumber and tools as well as the replacement of decking boards and handrails on the entire bridge. Volunteers also assisted trail crews with vegetation, drainage and tread improvements on the Proctor Ridge Horse Trail.
Volunteers are an important part of ensuring park trails are clear and well-maintained. If you are interested in learning more on how you can volunteer, contact the volunteer coordinator This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or call (423) 569-9778.
City-based projects are pollinating the planet
Written by Molly McCluskey
A parklet in Washington DC with brightly colored planters filled with local pollinator plants. Molly McCluskey
From pocket parks to large-scale projects, cities around the world are working to reverse a troubling trend.
This story was originally published by The Revelator.
Every June, cities around the globe celebrate Pollinator Week (this year, June 16-22) an international event to raise awareness about the important roles that birds, bats, bees, butterflies, beetles and other small animals serve in pollinating our food systems and landscapes. These crucial species are declining worldwide, with many on the brink of extinction.
Cities have responded to this crisis with a variety of urban initiatives designed to foster pollinator habitats and in the process transform once-stark cement landscapes — as well as pocket parks, curb strips and highway dividers — into lush, welcoming areas for pollinators and humans alike.
In Washington, D.C., ambitious pollinator projects are abundant on rooftops of public, office and private spaces, ranging from the renovated D.C. Public Library’s main branch to National Public Radio’s headquarters, which hosts an apiary. Throughout the District of Columbia, municipal code requires buildings to maintain the tree boxes and curb strips outside their properties. This often leads to creative landscaping on the smallest of scales.
A bumble bee (Bombus sp.) collects pollen from purpletop vervain (Verbena bonariensis) in a pollinator plot on the Tennessee Aquarium plaza in Chattanooga. Tennessee Aquarium
Aquarium celebrates Pollinator Week with activities and giveaways June 17-23
Doug Strickland is a writer for the Tennessee Aquarium.
CHATTANOOGA — Pollinators. They’re kind of a big deal.
From iconic monarch butterflies and humble honey bees to fast-flying hummingbirds and acrobatic ... lemurs?! ... the animals that help plants reproduce are collectively known as “pollinators.” Whether intentional or accidental, the actions of pollen-transporting species contribute tremendously to the health of their respective ecosystems and are responsible for a shocking amount of the food we eat.
The benefits of the human-pollinator relationship are a two-way street. According to the Pollinator Partnership, a nonprofit dedicated to raising awareness about the role pollinators play, pollinators are responsible for roughly one of every three bites of food we eat and propagate over 180,000 different plant species — including more than 1,200 food crops.
Less carbon, more chill: ORNL tech reduces refrigerator CO2 emissions by 30 percent
A novel technology developed by ORNL keeps food and beverages refrigerated with an advanced evaporator, phase change materials, metal foam, direct-contact defrosting technology and a low global warming refrigerant. Oak Ridge National Laboratory
OAK RIDGE — A technology developed by Oak Ridge National Laboratory keeps food refrigerated with phase-change materials, or PCMs, while reducing carbon emissions by 30 percent.
More than 100 million household refrigerators in operation across the United States consume up to 2 kilowatts of electricity daily. These refrigerators contribute to energy consumption and carbon emissions by using compressors that cycle on and off day and night, pumping refrigerants across evaporator coils to maintain low temperatures for fresh and frozen compartments.
(Hellbender Press previously reported on the development of new coolants and systems at ORNL).
ORNL’s innovation uses advanced evaporators with PCMs installed in each compartment for cold energy storage. PCMs are useful for heating and cooling because they store and release energy when changing from solids to liquids or vice versa. Researchers applied porous metals, direct-contact defrosting technology and a refrigerant with low-global-warming potential to enhance performance and minimize environmental impact.
“PCMs are integrated with evaporator coils to keep temperature constant, requiring one operating cycle and allowing refrigerators to operate almost 100% at nighttime, when energy use is lower,” ORNL’s Zhiming Gao said. “This reduces electricity demand, saves costs and maintains efficiency.”
— Oak Ridge National Laboratory