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Kelp growers. Hospitals. Chefs. Mental health agencies. Food shelves. What do they all have in common? These strange bedfellows are all important players in the Northeast’s ever-expanding farm to school programs.
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I get this question all the time. It’s funny. People seem to think, “When the animals disappear, don’t you disappear, too?”
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Since we're not harvesting crops, rotating the cows through pasture, or leading them to and from milking, winter gives us a little window for maintenance, repairs, and improvements. And calving!
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For most farmers, winter means planning. Shelburne Farms is no exception. But as an education organization, there's extra planning around sharing our gardens with students.
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Agriculture and tourism are both vibrant contributors to Vermont. Now with new guides to support them, Vermont farmers can think creatively and realistically about how to engage customers in activities on their farms.
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What happens when a boy with food anxieties is regularly exposed to new foods in the classroom? Dana Hudson found out as a Shelburne Farms educator for a "Dairy in the Classroom" program.
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Hot, stormy weather threatened the early hours of the Vermont Cheesemakers Festival, but fortunately, the sun came out for a great event -- to showcase our own cheese and that of so many other artisanal producers.
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It's not time to roll back childhood nutrition standards. It's time to better reinforce them with comprehensive farm to school programs
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Since participating in James Beard Foundation's Boot Camp here at the Farm, a three-day intensive training for chefs in policy and advocacy, I’ve been reflecting on the synchronicities between our organizations, despite our differing roles within the food sector.
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Try this Kale Pesto recipe from New School Cuisine cookbook, adjusted for a more family-sized batch.
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Exactly a year ago, we joined the Slow Food USA delegation to Terra Madre and Salone del Gusto, Slow Food International's biannual gathering in Italy. 3,000 delegates from 130 countries celebrate and save our food identities and multicultural heritage. Here’s a flashback via Edible Green Mountains.
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With a look back at Farm to School Month, read about our pioneering Jr Iron Chef Vermont program via Edible Green Mountains. We're thrilled to see so many other Jr Iron's pop up across the country. And we're excited for 2016's competition!
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How is Vermont's Farm to School movement growing a more sustainable future? Our presentation at the 3rd International Conference on Food Education, EXPO Milan 2015.
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This account of this past summer's Farm to School Institute was just published on USDA's blog!
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How we’re building a community of people who care passionately and teach thoughtfully about the land we live on and farm, and the healthy foods that derive from it.
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There’s no wrong or right way to eat our raw milk farmstead cheddar, but there are some basic guidelines you can follow to make your holiday cheese plate worthy of a banquet. Here are few principles to keep in mind.
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We asked seasonal inn chef James MacPherson why he chose to move from the restaurant world to the school cafeteria. He shared some pretty inspiring answers.
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The running of sap from sugar maple trees signals the beginning of spring. It is the first gift that the earth gives us after a long winter of living off of the root cellar.
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How will climate change impact sugaring in Vermont? We don't know all the answers, but we're encouraging students on our "Sugaring by the Numbers" field trip to start asking and observing.
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Tired of boring old pale cheese? We are too! So we've crafted one batch of new orange cheddar for you. Find out the hows and whys of this long tradition of orange cheeses (including our own).
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Here's what's happening around our working farm as we open for the season. From the Dairy, to the Market Garden, to our woodlands, here's that latest.
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Strawberries are everyone's favorite this time of year. Here's how we grow them (and what you can make with them!).
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Shelburne Farms is a working farm, and food we grow honors and preserves the land it comes from. Read the latest updates from our across the farm.
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Chef Jim McCarthy is sharing a quick and painless recipe to utilize those hearty greens at the breakfast table — a Kale and Scallion Frittata.
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Guido Masé, Chief Herbalist at Urban Moonshine, teacher, and author led us up the hill beyond the Farm Barn to find plant-based medicines growing right under our noses.
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Couldn't make it to this year's VT Cheese Fest? Learn what makes Vermont clothbound cheddar special -- Cabot, Grafton, and our own clothbound.
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Visit several of the farms who opened their doors for this year's Open Farm Week, and discover how connecting to farm food and fiber is good for all of us.
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Shelburne Explorers 4-Hers select a calf in the spring, then work with it all summer long to show at fairs.They learn so much about commitment, perseverance, and other life lessons. And they get to snuggle with calves.
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This delicious recipe combining our smoked cheddar with apples will be a guaranteed hit at any dinner table this holiday season.
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Just a rundown on what's happening on the Farm at this quieter time of year. It's not as quiet as you might think!
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We share author, food activist, and fermentation guru Sandor Katz's fervor for getting everyone involved with the food we eat. Inspired by Katz's work, we brought fermentation into the outdoor classroom with our preschoolers.
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A meal perfect for the sugaring season: filling enough to brave the cold, but with a hint of the sunshine to come...
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Farm cows are work animals with one role: to make milk for our farmhouse cheddar. But as Renée LaCoss, herdsman at our Dairy for 15 years shares, bonds develop.
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The kitchen is the crucible where our farm-fresh ingredients are transformed into delicious meals - largely unchanged since 1987, it was due for an upgrade.
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Because we see them at farmers’ markets, most of us know garlic scapes shouldn't be relegated to the compost pile. But what most of us don’t know is how to use them in the kitchen.
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We caught up with the farmers who care for the Farms' land, animals, and produce – here's what's happening on campus in early August:
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Protecting water quality means continually evaluating our operation and being mindful of the consequences of our actions. Over the years, we've made many changes.
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There are countless reasons why learning about food on a working farm is meaningful, but one of the most powerful is also the simplest: getting kids to try new things.
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Inn Restaurant Executive Chef Jim McCarthy shares his recipe with our raw milk, farmstead smoked cheddar in the mix.
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Market Gardener Lynn Wolf went looking for a way to more efficiently shell the popcorn and blue corn that we grow.
It led to a discovery -- and a solution!
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It is always exciting to experiment with growing new plants in our organic Market Garden to show the wonderful variety of foods that can be grown in Vermont. Our latest experiment is saffron.
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Discover what inspires, motivates, and changes farmers and educators as they work to grow and strengthen their farm-based education programs.
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As we opened the Inn & Restaurant doors this season, we asked Executive Chef Jim McCarthy, “What current dishes best represent our approach or food philosophy?”
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When our cows transition each spring from their indoor winter diet of hay and baleage to a summer outdoor diet of pasture grasses, we have to adjust our cheesemaking accordingly.
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Our 6-Month Cheddar brought home a blue ribbon at the American Cheese Society's annual Judging and Competition.
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Chef Jim McCarthy takes food waste seriously, “I like to think about how we can use all the food that is delivered to our kitchen.”
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The summer drought in the Champlain Valley has been hard on our pastures and fields, with impacts rippling out through the dairy and cheesemaking. Here's how they've been coping.
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School nutrition professionals gathered with Vermont FEED to consider how to feed students nourishing meals on a budget — that they will actually eat.
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It's a rare batch of cheese that makes it to a four-year cheddar. Find out what it takes to make the grade.
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The hoop barn at the Dairy just got a roof lift! At 19 years old, the original roof was ready for a replacement.
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A blended soup utilizing those bottom-of-the-bag tortilla chip crumbs that became an instant hit with students and adults.
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Our cheddar and farm products offer something for everyone's holiday table and gift list!
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We brought the Farm to Shelburne Community School for a salsa challenge and team building.
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This Moroccan-inspired dish is one of Chef Jim’s favorites, using a savory yogurt to pair with sweetly-seasoned roast Brussels sprouts.
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Chef Jim created this holiday-table-worthy recipe to feature the second release of our collaboration with Fiddlehead Brewing Co., our IPA-infused Beer Cheddar.
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A Jr Iron Chef VT award-winning recipe developed by Chef Jim McCarthy and his student culinary team.
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We get asked a lot of questions at Farmers Markets. Here are seven of the most common questions and answers. Working the Market is one of my favorite parts of my job -- sharing Shelburne Farms with locals, regular customers, and visitors!
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Fun and whimsy are the words that guide Josh as he selects what crops to grow in 2019 for the Inn's farm-to-table restaurant. There's a lot to plan for.
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Every winter, we shear our sheep at the Dairy. We asked Herdsman Renee LaCoss about the process, and get answers to the most commonly asked questions.
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Throughout the years in our Farm to School work, favorite recipes have risen to the top, including this flexible breakfast or snack by Chef Jim McCarthy.
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Chefs have been cooking this way for centuries, and Chef Jim wants homecooks to use this sort of adaptive cooking to make use of what is already in your kitchen.
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We all know the main ingredient in cheese is milk, but most cheeses also contain salt, cultures and rennet. Rennet is fascinating, yet it isn't well understood by most people.
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Spoonful Herbals wants you to get outside and make food from the land well before your basil grows in.
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When COTS began planning for their new program to involve its families in cooking, they reached out to us for support in working with youth (and adults!) in the kitchen.
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The cheese department recently signed on to be part of the "Vermont Green Dairy Cohort," a project of the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation and Efficiency Vermont. We'll be tracking and improving the environmental footprint of our cheesemaking facility.
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Shelburne Farms welcomes new Executive Chef John Patterson, joining us from Fork restaurant in Pennsylvania. Jim McCarthy, Executive Chef Emeritus, will continue on during this transition season.
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A wet spring and early summer has affected our haying production and schedule, although yields and quality are good. It appears there's no "normal" anymore.
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The 2019-20 Northeast Farm to School Institute cohort rolled up their sleeves for the first-ever Institute Salad Competition!
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This year, the Vermont Cheese Council has added an additional day to the Cheese Fest dedicated to educational seminars for the biggest curd nerds!
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We're excited to announce that our Executive Chef John Patterson and Executive Chef Emeritus Jim McCarthy received the 2019 "Best Bite" award for their Beet Tomato Tartare and Blue Corn Pancakes - try their recipes for yourself!
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What’s the story behind our raw milk, farmstead cheddar? The Vermont Department of Tourism & Marketing visited to get a behind-the-scenes tour.
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This is prime season for gleaning in the Market Garden--harvesting extra produce from the fields for various local food security organizations. Read about what it looks like.
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We recently wrapped up a ten-day stretch at the Champlain Valley Fair, providing food and agriculture education to the 100,000+ fair visitors. We're sharing a favorite recipe among the crowd!
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We caught up with the farmers who care for our land, animals, and produce – here’s what’s been happening on campus this September:
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We collaborated with local partners to create a dinner in celebration of the Abenaki agricultural year. Each dish featured an important Abenaki crop, including this Three Sisters Soup.
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On your walk to the overlook beyond the Farm Barn, it's easy to miss the Lone Tree Hill Memorial, and the man honored there. Who was Derick Webb? Let us introduce you.
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October is National Farm to School Month, a time to celebrate connections happening all over the country between children and local food. Here are some of the highlights from the month's festivities and initiatives.
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While many pumpkins are carved into jack o’lanterns for trick or treating, many remain intact. It is easy to forget that these squash are edible, and a great way to engage children in cooking after the holiday.
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We recently lost our dear donkey, Dudley, to old age. He was a longtime fixture in the Children's Farmyard. Look back on his years with us.
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For a taste of the competition, try Green Mountain Technology & Career Center’s recipe for Rich and Creamy Ratatouille in a Roasted Pepper Sauce, which won the 2019 Crowd Pleaser Award.
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Twenty years ago, Vermont was an early adopter of the Farm to School movement. Now, 65% of Vermont schools report having a connection with a farm or farmer!
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At November's successful National Farm-Based Education Conference, 7 innovations contributed to strengthening farm-based education opportunities across the country.
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We took the world apart—so we could understand it, so we could explain it, and so we could teach it—but we never made it whole again. I believe that education for sustainability offers a remedy to the disconnected, disjointed state of teaching and learning.
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When educators gather, something amazing happens that equals more than the sum of its parts. Some say it is when 2+2 = 5, but I like to think about when 2+2= Magic!
That’s what happened October 2nd at the Coach Barn at Shelburne Farms.
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What were early childhood educators doing playing a kids game (with no kids), long after school hours, on the tail end of an already exhausting work day?
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In education, differentiation is a promising practice to support student learning, build on prior knowledge and experiences, and connect students to each other and their environment. It is equally important when offering professional instruction to adults.
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Tag along with a school field trip exploring sugaring in this photo blog. See sugaring through the eyes of schoolchildren -- and learn a few things, too!
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Our "A Forest for Every Classroom" partnership program is welcoming a new group of teachers in May with a new focus: climate change.
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When did it become so difficult for young children to play and learn outdoors? And how can we get them back out there? Here's a preview to the upcoming conference we're hosting on Nature-Based Early Childhood Education.
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“…Inspirational, reflective, and restorative summer professional work is so essential to nurturing the whole teacher. “ Find out how Shelburne Farms serves that role for many educators practicing Education for Sustainability.
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While the fall colors are in full show in Vermont, I'm heading to Kunming, China to share Education for Sustainability practices with students, teachers, and community members.
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Educator Ryan Morra shares his experiences and reflects back on his recent trip to China to share the Farm's Education for Sustainability practices with middle-school students in Yunnan Province.
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Find out how A Forest for Every Classroom (and upcoming program, A Watershed for Every Classroom), helps educators bring students outdoors for meaningful, place-based service-learning experiences.
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Maybe you’ve seen the solar panels on our Farm Barn roof or visited our Solar Orchard. Recently, we added information panels to both of these structures.
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We welcomed educators from near and far this summer — from Texas to Quebec and Indiana to Hawaii — every one bringing their commitment to educating for a sustainable future.
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What does instruction around the critical, yet sensitive issue of climate change look like? And what does "climate literacy" mean? Teachers at our Education for Sustainability Institute this past summer found out.
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Discover some promising practices for how to educate for sustainability in our newly released ebook, with nine case studies and twelve contributing author educators.
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How do you galvanize teachers and students to address the most pressing sustainability issues of our time? To start, you get them all in one room. That's what we did on September 21 to launch of year of learning and change.
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We recently received a "High Five" award from King Street Center. Educator Linda Wellings reflects back on all we do for King Street kids -- and all that they do for us.
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The Farm was recently inspired by other dedicated educators at the UN Regional Centers of Expertise Conference of the Americas in Curitiba, Brazil. Greater Burlington was recognized as a Regional Center of Expertise on Education for Sustainable Development in 2015.
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Teachers from Chittenden South Supervisory Union were participating in a recent Vermont FEED professional development course. And it was all about the food.
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Director of Professional Development Jen Cirillo explains why we work with educators, and what they’re doing when they’re learning to “Educate for Sustainability.”
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Here at the Farm, we know that animals have magic. The conference helped us understand that magic a bit better.
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National level decisions aren't slowing our fight against climate change: we’re taking concrete steps towards renewable energy and energy efficiency.
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As we leap into summer camps, we asked a couple of our educators to take a look back at a full season of school programs, in words and pictures.
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Immigrant and refugee children from Sara Holbrook New Arrivals Camp discover the Farm, new language skills, and a community when they join us each summer.
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This book helps me remember that although we can feel isolated and overwhelmed by the world, we are not alone. We are part of the natural world and, if we care to listen and notice, the plants can be our teachers, just as we are for our students.
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An inspiring story of how a school found purpose and vision in the idea of sustainability. Walter Huston of Perkins Academy is an alum of our EFS Leadership Academy.
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Martinez uses the art of storytelling to weave a narrative that informs you about the latest in critical global issues AND makes you want to get up and take action.
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2017 marks 20 years of partnership with Outreach for Earth Stewardship. Have you ever met a mighty bird of prey here on the Farm? If so, it is all thanks to OFES!
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What is an Equity Assessment? Why is the Farm conducting one? Find out more about the Farm's work around equity, access, inclusion, and diversity.
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Nearly 100 educators, school nutrition staff, administrators, farmers, and regional Farm to School organizations gathered for the Farm to School Institute.
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As fall and winter close in, look back at the joy of summer, and the fun and discovery shared by our more than 600 campers.
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Middle and high school aged students gathered at the Coach Barn to launch year-long projects focused on UN Sustainable Development Goals.
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In the face of reports outlining the dire impacts of climate change, it is the actions of students and teachers -- through climate change education -- that give me hope.
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Cultivating Pathways to Sustainability, an educational initiative of two teachers and Shelburne Farms, was recently recognized as a “Flagship Project” by the United Nations for its contributions to Quality Education, one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
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Jorge Yagual recently joined Shelburne Farms as professional learning and farm to school educator. His journey here perfectly captures the rippling impact of our work with educators.
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I was recently one of ten Burlington area educators who traveled to Hawai’i to explore the power of place-based and culture-based education.
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We celebrated Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Week by bringing the goals to the classroom and envisioning a healthy and just world with 80 third and fourth grade students.
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Summers on the Farm are bustling with educator professional learning programs dedicated to educating for a more healthy and just future. Take is a glimpse into how the summer has begun.
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Shelburne Farms and partners hosted the 8th annual gathering of U.N. Regional Centres of Expertise on Education for Sustainable Development -- those from the Americas. Greater Burlington is one these centers.
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Our Cultivating Pathways to Sustainability Program challenges teams of students to make a difference in their communities by addressing one of the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals at the local level.
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Where is the indigenous perspective in our place-based education work? 5th grade teacher Aziza Malik, one of our EFS Leadership Academy teachers, asked this question.
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Most teachers believe climate change should be taught in schools. They're just unsure how to do it. Our Climate Resiliency Fellowship is changing that.
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School Programs Coordinator Courtney Mulcahy reflects on what our ongoing work to build an equitable and inclusive organization has meant for her and the programs she’s part of.
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