Dispatches from the March Against Monsanto

More than 1,000 people gathered at Pack Square in downtown Asheville on May 26 to protest Monsanto, a multinational agriculture biotechnology corporation, and the world’s largest producer of genetically engineered seeds and pesticides. The rally and demonstration were part of an international “March Against Monsanto,” involving 36 countries worldwide. (Photos by Jordan Foltz)

Reduce meat consumptio­n for sustainabi­lity

Absent from the April 17 flowchart and questionnaire, “Are You (Not) a Sustainability Guru,” was the most important lifestyle question of all: Have you reduced your consumption of meat and other animal products? As we all learned in freshman biology, at every step up the food chain, 90 percent of the potential energy is converted […]

Meet Transition Asheville

According to Transition Trainer and Organizer Dylan Ryals-Hamilton, “there are 458 official Transition Initiatives worldwide, and 137 of those are here in the U.S. We live in a world of volatile gas prices, extreme and unpredictable weather and an unstable global economy. To some the future may look bleak. We’re looking for the positive angle, designing and creating the future we want to see here in Asheville.”

Sustainabl­e style

Fashion contains, within its definition, a nod to newness and immediacy. But it’s also based in custom and convention, and in industry. The hillside community known as Chicken Hill — a grouping of homes, a clubhouse, a church — lodged the workers (and their families) employed at the C. E. Graham Manufacturing Company’s cotton mill […]

A thinking man’s approach to green building: Robin Woodward

A few months ago, a conversation with longtime downtown Asheville advocate Karen Tessier led to talk about one of her marketing client — Robin Woodward of Blue Ridge Energy Systems. A profile on Woodward languished in the Xpress inbox, until we stirred the pot for ideas about sustainability — what it means and where we’re going. Asheville has been at the heart of green-building initiatives in the past few decades. Here’s a close look at one of its self-starters.

Asheville City Council gives New Belgium the go-ahead


During a meeting that lasted almost to midnight, Asheville City Council approved New Belgium’s brewery in the River District. Council also approved funding for sidewalk improvements and a study of alternate truck routes to address concerns of some residents about the traffic the business will bring. (Pictured: City Clerk Maggie Burleson swears in all those who wanted to speak at the public hearing. Photo by Max Cooper)