The annual Chamber Farm Tour will be of Dutch Acres Organic Dairy Farm, 1648 Pleasant Plain Road, Fountain City, IN., Thursday, June 18, 2009, 5:30 – 7:30 p.m.

Learn about:
* The milking process
* Calves and selective breeding through
* Artificial insemination
* Natural compost bedding barns
* Feeding and field rotation
* Water retention pond and filtration system

Make bus and/or dinner reservations @ 962-1511 or email kellyh@rwchamber.org by June 15. Dinner reservations required. Seating and parking are limited. Bus leaves the Chamber at 5:00 p.m. Additional pick up @ Fountain City Wesleyan Church.

Bicycle Indiana Celebrates Bike-to-Work Day on May 15

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.—Bicycle Indiana is preparing for Bike-to-Work Day on May 15 by organizing routes and meeting places across the state that allow cyclists to link up and safely commute to work. Bicycle Indiana will help promote more than 40 different bicycle-related rides, races and events throughout Indiana during the week of May 11-17—a week proclaimed by Governor Mitch Daniels as Indiana Bike Week. Employers in many cities can field teams to participate in the bike-to-work corporate challenge—a friendly competition designed to reward company teams for riding the most total miles.  continue reading »

Cope Environmental Center will offer yoga classes every Wednesday May 6 – August 26 from 5:30 – 6:30. Classes will be taught by Stephen Johnson. Stephen has been involved in sports and fitness training throughout his whole life. He completed his Yoga teacher training through CITYOGA in Indianapolis. The class is open to all levels of yoga experience. Classes will be held in tranquil outdoor settings. In the event of rain, classes will be held inside the education center. Yoga is a wonderful practice to invite peace to the mind, body and spirit. Come reconnect with nature and yourself. Reap the benefits of balance, calmness, and wellness. Pre-registration is requested, but walk-ins are welcome.  continue reading »

Earlham alumni Dan Hobbs and Allison Kinsey have an opportunity for you to be part of protecting the Earth this Earth Day!

Dan has been a top-notch organic farmer and leader of various sustainable agricultural nonprofit organizations for the last 20 years. He's trying to protect prime farmland from development by buying the family farm adjacent to his farm to keep it in active agricultural use.

Dan and Allison are funding the land acquisition by selling shares of their exceptional organic heirloom garlic. The farm grows several stunning varieties--Music Pink (try it for the name alone!) Romanian Red, etc. They're asking folks to buy a 3-year share or 1/2 share, which means you'll be shipped a mix of all the varieties they grow each year.  continue reading »

You are cordially invited to see and respond to a possible use for the Historic Richmond Gas Works Building.

The Gas Works Project: Thesis Presentation by Gregory Dowell
Student of Architecture
Ball State University

Thursday, April 16th, 6pm to 7pm in the Conference Room at the Leland Residence, 900 South 'A' Street, Richmond, Indiana.

The Public is Invited. This Event is Free of Charge. Light refreshments will be Provided. Community Comments will be Welcomed

Presentation Sponsored by Richmond Art Works and The Leland Residence. Questions please contact jim@richmondartworks.com.

RichmondBrainstorm.com may be an online destination, but it was created to help make the real world a better place. The new website collects ideas from Richmond, Indiana residents about how to make the community a better place to live, work and play.

Visitors to the site can submit their ideas into a number of categories – from Arts and Culture to Government, Historic Preservation to Technology – and explain why they think implementing the idea would benefit the community. Then other site users can review the ideas and vote on them, comment on them, and even share related success stories.  continue reading »

As a part of Earlham College's free forums on Sustainability in the Community, Mic Jackson will give a talk entitled "What Is a Sustainable Community?". Mic is a Professor of Mathematics at Earlham, and is a member of the Richmond/Wayne County Environmental Council. Held on the campus of Earlham College, the Richmond Room, Landrum Bolling Center, Thursday February 26th.

7:30 a.m. - Breakfast Buffet, Richmond Room
Make your $5.00 reservation for breakfast by calling (765) 983-1393 or email leama@earlham.edu.

8:00 a.m. - Presentation
Free Admission – no ticket required

In The Small-Mart Revolution by Michael Shuman, which is available for borrowing from the PWC library, he lays out a very helpful "purchasing ladder" - a hierarchy of choices that you can make about buying locally. As he puts it, "since few goods and services are perfectly local, how should you weigh various imperfections? Ultimately the answers will reflect your own tastes, values and interests."

Here's what Shuman says works for him (slightly edited for length):  continue reading »

Join the Chamber of Commerce Agribusiness Committee and a distinguished panel for a discussion regarding the marketing potential for locally grown products in our area. Could we market our own locally grown produce and other products? Hear what’s already happening in our area and other parts of the state and nation. We encourage producers, consumers and vendors alike to participate in this discussion.  continue reading »