Sustainable Now, an Asheville-based organization that describes itself as “a prototype program designed to accelerate the widespread use of truly sustainable environmental, economic and community-building practices,” has released a series of videos from its Four Futures for Mountain Farmland Symposium, a conference which was held at Warren Wilson College earlier this spring.
Speakers include Becky Anderson of Anderson Consulting, Cameron Farlow of Organic Growers School and WNC FarmLink, permaculturist Dylan Ryals-Hamilton, and Sustainable Now director and frequent Asheville Citizen-Times guest columnist Ian Booth. See the full release below.
From Sustainable Now
Press release
Fact: Two percent of North Carolina’s mountain landmass is rated “prime agricultural land.”
More: The Asheville based non-profit, Sustainable Now, announced today the release of the Four Futures for Mountain Farmland video series at www.fourfutures.org. This online series of 12 videos addresses emerging challenges from rapid growth in western North Carolina including sprawl, habitat loss, and the scarcity of affordable farmland. The series is framed around a case study of the Old Coggins Farm, a pristine historic family farm that has received coverage in the local media since 2013.
Release of the recently completed video series was not announced in order to avoid adversely impacting the seller, who had the farm under contract before the series was produced. On June 22, 2015, a Massachusetts developer, Case Enterprises LLC, closed on the Old Coggins Farm for a proposed 99 lot development to be named Sovereign Oaks.
Background: Sustainable Now hosted the Four Futures for Mountain Farmland Symposium in the Cannon Lounge at Warren-Wilson College. A diverse group of regional thought leaders spoke on sensitive issues related to agriculture, development, innovation and conservation. The Old Coggins Farm, which adjoins the college land, provided a classic case study. (Case Enterprises LLC was invited to speak at the symposium but declined.) Each of these presentations has been edited into a thoughtful and powerful series that is designed to help mountain land owners, planners, farmers, neighborhoods, developers, prospective buyers and others think carefully about mountain farmland and land-use issues that are essential to building a resilient, sustainable community.
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