By Christine McGowan, Forest Products Program Director at Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund Updates to Vermont’s 100-year old tree warden statutes provide clarity, opportunity for collaboration. According to Elise Schadler, a program manager with Vermont Urban and Community Forestry, a tree warden is a modern day local lorax—a...
By Christine McGowan, Forest Products Program Director at Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund Ten years ago this summer, Hurricane Irene tore through Vermont, leaving massive destruction and flooding in its wake. Among the hardest hit were mobile home parks, where many residents lost everything they owned—including the...
By Christine McGowan, Forest Products Program Director at Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund It’s often said in business that “bigger is better,” but for Josh Seidman, steward of Rugged Ridge Forest, “better” is making the highest-quality maple syrup sustainably. A 2010 University of Vermont graduate, Seidman became interested...
By Christine McGowan, Forest Products Program Director at Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund Mike Rainville, founder and owner of Maple Landmark, landed his first wholesale account at age 15, when a traveling salesman noticed the wooden tic tac toe boards Mike had for sale at the Lincoln...
Her business vanished virtually overnight, but with creativity and coaching, Sugarsnap Catering is back stronger than ever and optimistic about 2021. Over a seven-day period that she refers to as “Twilight Zone Week,” Abbey Duke, owner of Sugarsnap Catering in Burlington went from a full schedule...
New England State Food System Planners Partnership New Regional Partnership Aims to Prepare New England for Future Food Supply Disruptions The New England State Food System Planners Partnership, a network of food system leaders from all six New England states, has launched the "New England Feeding New...
The Cold Hollow Carbon project in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom is the first co-op model in the country to successfully enter a voluntary carbon market. By Christine McGowan, Forest Products Program Director at Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund Long valued for timber, recreation, wildlife habitat, and solace, Vermont’s forests...
By Christine McGowan, Forest Program Director, Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund As a young entrepreneur, Sam Hooper carefully considers every decision he makes for his business, and every dollar he spends. So when Hooper, who bought the hundred-year-old Vermont Glove last year, was faced with replacing the...
By Jake Claro, Farm to Plate Director at the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund I encourage everyone to read through the Vermont Agriculture and Food System Plan recently released by the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets (VAAFM) and the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund (VSJF)...
Montpelier, VT – The Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund (VSJF) announces the appointment of Noelle MacKay of Shelburne and Dustin Degree of St. Albans to its Board of Directors. VSJF is a nonprofit organization focused on sustainable economic development in the agriculture and food system, forest...
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