Once upon a time a band of travelers found themselves on a highway because a spring flood had washed their village away. Now they were banded together to find a new place to live, and hoped that there was safety in numbers. Each of them had been fairly prosperous in their old town and felt they had skills to lead a new community.

They looked at several sites, and most were either on the downward slope of a hill, or on the top of a hill with a terrible wind blowing across.  They finally found a high spot along a big stream. It was in a stream bed, but there were other outlets for the water, so they thought it was safe enough.

At first there was ample room for everyone to build a fire. They were tired of each other’s company, and accustomed to the privacy of their own homes, they quickly set themselves apart from each other. But within a week the firewood supply was dwindling, and they found themselves venturing alone into the woods, seek more fuel for their fires.

One of the villagers was a blacksmith, so he began gathering stones to set up as an anvil. His fire roared more than others, because he needed it to make to the tools that were needed to build the houses. But because his fire burnt more, the others resented him because he was using up the wood that they needed.

Another of the travelers was a weaver and shepherd, who brought her flock along with her so that she could keep them safe and keep clothes on her own back.  The sheep were fine browsing the hillside alone, but she needed light to spin and weave by, and that was using a lot of wood as well.

Each of the people needed to eat, but not everyone had that skills or the tools to do so.  Though the baker bought his pots and pans from the blacksmith, he resented the wood that was used for the foundry and not for his cooking fire.

And then it began to rain.  They had been fortunate to have two weeks without foul weather, but now they found their fires were dampened, and so was the wood supply. They had not worried about shelter as the weather had been so grand, and now that their tents were soaked, and they had no wood to build with, they were getting frightened. Each person begrudged any flame or stick that was taken from the only surviving fire, the blacksmith’s.  Soon they all suffered from lack of sleep as distrust kept them awake at night, for fear that someone might take the fire away.

As they huddled around the smithy’s fire, the weaver began to spin her yard by the light of the flickering flames.  She fell asleep in a pile of wool, along with the child of the baker.  In the morning they awoke together under a dry tent with the smith standing near the fire and the baker making a light breakfast. As they enjoyed that meal together they began to realize that if they worked together they could have their safety in numbers, and still have privacy.  One could cook while another spun and wove, making clothes for cook and the others who tended the fire, gathered water and build other buildings.

Necessity makes strange bedfellows, but sometimes that strangeness is a blessing.  Having to start anew is a frightening thing, but planning ahead makes it possible, and if a new system works after a disaster, shoudn’t it work before one?

North Country Sustainability Center aims to be that “fire” that brings people together. Though a commercial kitchen and micro-creamery brings opportunities to our region, they also require an influx of food and customers.  Since growing and preparing food takes time, providing educational and cultural activities to while away the waiting makes the space all the more efficient in its production.

Providing services and space for cooks, bakers, dairymen and customers requires space, from warehouse to serving counters.  Paying for the heat of such a space, and the operation of the kitchen and studios requires a constant source of income, even after growing season.

While many people want to learn how to grow food, or raise animals, others just like to be around them. In this time when Asperger’s and autism are on the rise, providing fresh food and access to animals fulfills another goal, to help those “on the spectrum” learn to prosper in the future. Since that requires space, but not all the time, why not let others, such as 4H and dog trainers, use that space when the therapists and trainers aren’t using it?

Doesn’t that seem logical?  It is a big concept, but it fills a lot of needs. It does so without numerous different locations, multiple parking lots, roads, furnaces and facilities.  The mutual support of it builds community, and provides a destination for some to teach from, and others to learn from.  It’s a very logical approach to a very large set of problems.  Big? yes. Doable? certainly.

We have found a location on a hill near a pond that has ample room for “that village,” of users, and more.  It has a long history of supporting the Town and the Region, and we’d like to bring that history with us as we move forward in to a new, more sustainable world. Will you join us? or help us make it happen?

(Background Music:  Bum, bum, ba-bum, Bum, Bum, Ba-Bum, da-da-da…… )
(Scene: Light a match, put to a candle)

Our mission: To create a place that allows people to have a higher, more sustainable quality of life than they currently do. The future presents numerous challenges, and while some of the solutions are known, many are not easily accessible, or even recognized.

The Plan:  To create a place with room for sustainability skills to be shared among our neighbors.  To make wise use of our resources, and reconnect people with the skills that will make it easier to keep living in our area.

The Situation:  Rural America and many small cities are filled with creative people, full of ideas, but lack resources to bring those ideas to reality.  They don’t have “urban center” that’s big enough to bring people to their region, and the government’s attention to help create “enterprise zones.”

Solution:  Identify a space that is large enough to provide space for needed and under available activities, and make it available for people to use. Users will pay user fees, but be able to charge their own rates for people to participate in that activity ie: sewing instructors need space to spread out their fabric and patterns, yet they can rarely afford a personal studio.  They could teach sewing to novice needleworkers, earning money, teaching others self-reliance and help to pay the costs for the maintenance of the facility.

Characters: A non-profit, founded in 2010, developed to create a commercial kitchen, food hub and arts facility so that residents of the region could grow their local economy and sustainability.
A 1860 mill on more than 50 acres, in good condition.
Farmers who need markets and transport services to those markets
Artists of all type who appreciate rural life, but desire workspace and community arts programs to teach and share in.
Seniors citizens who have life skills such as sewing, cooking, woodworking, animal husbandry, who need incomes, but can’t travel far from home due to mobility concerns.
People of all ages who are seeking education, instruction and access to the knowledge and skills held by those listed above.
Young people and animal enthusiasts who have lost exhibition spaces, and though they want to learn about agriculture, or be active in pet based activities, they lack those opportunities.

Foes:  Apathy among neighbors who lack financial resources to create this project without outside help.
Corporations who have taught the public that they need short cuts and “extra time,” so that they can provide lower quality, higher priced products with negative effects on the users, the community and the Earth.
A sense of doom and gloom that people are inherently selfish and the environment is beyond the help of any individual.
A less than supportive town government who could not see that such a vision is not an overnight solution.

Assets:  An existing non-profit, North Country Sustainability Center,
An historical mill complex with ample space for all planned endeavors, with easy access to potential hydropower, solar power and interstate transportation
A willing and eager group of users who are currently struggling to build their businesses in isolation, but recognize that they could grow faster or in some cases, even begin, if they had access to such a facility.

You!

How can you help? 
If you live in New England, come to the John McCutcheon Concert in Fitchburg, a great fundraiser for North Country Sustainability Center, Inc.  The venue is right off Route 2, near the center of the Bay State. Tickets are $20 for adults $15 for students. Details at www.northcountrysustain.org/concert.html
Can’t attend the concert, donate to our nationwide fundraisers:   Crowdrise at North Country Sustainability Center,  or Indiegogo.com  at http://www.indiegogo.com/NCSCTools?a=521984  or donate directly to North Country Sustainability Center at PO Box 914, Ashburnham, MA 01430 or Pat@northcountrysustain.org at PayPal.
Share this message, retweet, reblog, or just forward it to everyone you know.  This is a model for a sustainable region, with shared use facilities, education for alternative energy and sustainable agriculture, and a celebration of our local arts, all of which builds local economies and quality of life.

Time Frame:  We have been evicted from our temporary home which did not allow us to address the most important needs of our community.  We need to finish paying the oil bill and we need to prove that our concept is feasible by raising the down payment for the mill in an adjacent town.  Lots of acreage, lots of space, and a town that understands that creativity needs nurturing, but is worth it in the long run. Our artists and crafters have lost a selling space just before the Holiday season. We don’t want them to miss another one.

If you look at the situation in New York and New Jersey, or what happened in Vermont last year, you sometimes see just the initial frustration and fear.  But the rebuilding is a long, onerous process that will need the skills that NCSC can teach. If it can happen there, it can happen in another way, anywhere. Help us create that “go to place” for our neighbors, and for yours.

Extra bonus:  Something positive to do while we all await the direction of this country based upon our Presidential choice.  All donations will be placed on our email list, so you will receive updates as to how NCSC is proceeding.  Be a team member and please accept this Mission: Possible.

Remember in the old television show, or the movie series, things always looked impossible, but they always succeeded. No need for disguises or CGI.  Just show the doubters that we can help each other, ourselves and the planet, if we just show each other the way. Help us be that light for you, and for others.

(Candle flame phases into a fire in a woodstove, )
(Overlay of phrase: Sustainability: Whatever it takes to keep living here.)

“All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players:

They have their exits and their entrances;

And one man in his time plays many parts,…”  William Shakespeare

Now that there’s been some time to heal from my face plant, it’s time to face the future with a fresh set of eyes. It’s time to reassess our past attempts and revitalize the project with a fresh coat of paint. What worked? What didn’t?  What do we need to do to succeed?  So here goes.

As Shakespeare says, we all have roles to play, in our present and in building our future.There are those who come into our lives, play major roles, and then leave.  But their presence lends flavor to the lives we experience while they are here and after they are gone.  Such is the same with places, and projects.  

Sustainability is much the same way.  Most people look at as “an earthy crunch thing.”  Economists are now looking at it terms of financial security.  Others look at it as a question of survival. They are all right, in part.  When we asked the school children what sustainability meant, most of their replies were environmental, but the one that we’ve adopted is all-encompassing; “whatever it takes to keep living here.”  That really opened my eyes to some new questions that needed addressing, within myself, and within our program.

“Here,” is a relative thing, and for some it is easy to define. It is the space that we are occupying now. But space is relative.  If you are calling a person and announce “You’re here,” you are at their house, or their apartment. But you are also on their block, in their neighborhood, in their town, their state, their geographical region …..  That definition of “here,” depends upon how important we think we are.

But because of that relativity, I found myself talking about a region, but living like it was in my hometown. I got frustrated when people said “it was too far,” but then I didn’t want to go more than 3 miles from home. After all, I do have noon-time chores to do, so it is important that I be close to home, but it doesn’t have to be in my home town, just within a quick drive to check on the critters. So I’ve started looking elsewhere.

I knew that our business plan relies on the kitchen and the dog sports, yet those were items that we weren’t really able to address in our leased facility.  I know that the region needs the kitchen, and from our experience, I now know that there is also a need for sewing space.  The dog folks seem to be of the “I’ll believe when I see it,” mindset, which, while frustrating, is understanding.  I also recognize that the arts are very important, but cannot be the mainstay of the program, as people often enjoy looking at pieces, but don’t invest financially.  That enjoyment is vital, but so is paying the bills.

I am more aware now that we need to surround ourselves with people who actually see the vision of a truly sustainable region.  They need to understand that “what’s in it for them,” isn’t more important than “What’s in it for my neighbor?”   If we are truly shape a new approach to our economy, our planet and our community we need to step away from our own “self-investment,” and recognize the intrinsic value that comes from working with others to benefit others.

If I go back to Shakespeare’s stage, I realize that we’re past Act I in the creation of North Country Sustainability Center, Inc. We’ve identified our location, our themes, and some of our players.  Now on to Act II to learn how the players change and grow, and the theme comes to life.  Want to join me?

I’ve been trying to find the words that will bring people together to grow this project. Whenever I try to explain it, there’s one word that comes up repeatedly – common. Not that this project is common, in the derogatory sense. It’s that what it has to offer was once “common knowledge.” Common has come to mean plain or ordinary, as if that makes it less desirable. But to me, common means “frequently found.” However, this project focuses on things that are no longer easy to find – common sense, common knowledge, common denominators and common ground. In that way, it transcends race, class or religion. It is based upon the idea that there are things that are “common” to us all – food, air, water, and shelter. Beyond that, everything else is extra. But since the 1950’s we’ve gotten so fixated on the “extra,” that we lost track of the common skills that were taught from generation to generation. Practices such as cooking, gardening, preserving, fishing, building, and repairing were once common activities in most homes around the world. It was the rare family that could afford to hire “a hand,” to fix things around the house or farm. It was part of being family. Those common practices, including the traditional arts, were ways to bring neighbors together to maintaining the community. Barn raisings, haying, quilting and shucking bees, were all ways to remain connected, and share in the work at hand. It was common place in rural America, and rural America was nearly everywhere. Now, rural America is isolated from the arts, culture, and in many ways, the attention of most of the country. People focus on urban areas as places that are blighted, and indeed they are. But solutions for those worthy areas are not necessarily transferrable to rural America. So what do rural communities have in common? Large spaces between amenities; neighbors that are a bit of a walk, or drive away, delays in service returns when disasters hit. They also need for opportunities that cities do not need. Do cities need a place where farmers can create saleable cheese? Do they have private well and septic systems that affect what is legal or not? In areas where livestock are present, community activities are based upon seasonal changes and “chore time.” These are the common considerations in the country. But increasingly, the young people have moved from those small towns without learning that common knowledge that was celebrated in their hometowns. But as “City foods,” become areas of concern, ie. high fat, high sodium, and food quality issues, they are looking for that food and information that was once common when they were growing up, only to find it missing. They seek out others who share their concerns or interests and join CSA’s (community supported agriculture,) food coops, and farm shares, but often lack the understanding that quality is often higher, but variety is not always available. Schedules are not as flexible, and respect is demanded of all members. This was once common sense but unfortunately that is losing its frequency as well. This brings us to opportunities that are available to these rural areas, if they are willing to develop them. Rather than long for a more suburban “civilized” lifestyle, they can embrace the common knowledge, common sense and sense of community that takes its roots from the word common. By nurturing and developing common facilities for shared activities, these towns can maximize on their open space, capitalize on their knowledge and skill and bring that common sense, back to its former status. That is what we’re doing at NCSC – developing a Commons. A place for cooking and food based business, a place to learn and share arts, fine and practical. A place for people to learn to grow and “put up” food, while others teach and supplement their income from their experience. And a place where traditional activities that celebrate the land, community and the food of life are held in a shared, common space. We are not trying to be “common,” as in lowly, but honor the term as it refers to universal. This is the means for rebuilding our regional culture, and once we’re proven the concept, we’ll be glad to make it “Common Knowledge,” again. What to join in the Common Good?”

Help us raise the money to purchase the buildings that will make it happen the quickest. We’ve put in an offer, and need your help. Anything helps, and we’re always around to help others build a center for their region.