As we reflect on 2023, we would like to share a few words of gratitude for you all, our community.
It was a strange way to decide to become a farmer, but as I have learned, the process of becoming a farmer can take many different forms. It is something that I have seen firsthand through my work with the Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) called Managing Pasture for Healthy Farms and Soils Across Vermont on which Bio-Logical Capital is one of several partners.
I love to ask what books people are reading and what they are learning. I always come away from these conversation with new ideas and exciting book titles. It also means that I have books piled on tables all around my house.
Over one hundred thousand years ago, during the last ice age, clothing was arguably introduced as a form of survival and protection from the elements. For millennia, and up only until recently, our garments have been solely produced from animal or plant material- many of which are grown or harvested from farm and agricultural processes. Since their origin, textiles have been transformed by cultures and individuals into a representation of status, wealth, personal expression, gender, and ingenuity. To tell a story of the history of textiles, there is a lot of ground to cover.
Our team at Bio-Logical Capital has seen the essential role that meat processing plays in the livelihoods of small and medium size farms – and the working landscapes they steward. Working with Vermont Livestock Slaughter and Processing Company, a small family-owned meat processing business in rural Vermont, represents our translating and convening work across farming, food processing, impact investing, employee equity, and community development.
As we deepen our team’s work in Vermont and the Northeast – through research and new leadership with a NRCS Conservation Innovation Grant – we’re also welcoming new projects in Colorado and the West. I have thought often about compound interest through this process: not the mathematical concept, but how our experience and relationships compound to develop more potent knowledge.
