Hello,
It’s been our pleasure to present NewFarm.org to you—and
the world—since August 2002. We’ve delivered stories,
images, news and research findings that give you a deeper feel for
what’s happening and what’s possible in regenerative
agriculture.
We’re excited about the year ahead. Here at The Rodale Institute,
we’re working with other departments to complete an online
“transition to organic” course… we’re helping
farm manager Jeff Moyer create a no-till roller/crimper video to
promote this promising tool… we’re eager to bring you
fresh research results on healthy soil, cover crops and compost
use.
How do we pay for all this? The Rodale Institute receives a variety
of income streams to carry out specific projects. NewFarm.org, however,
has no designated funding for 2007 and beyond. We’re looking
to change that, as of today, with several initiatives, starting
with:
1. Your donations.
If we are a valuable resource to you, please invest in our present
and future with your donations to meet our first fundraising goal
of $20,000.
We plan to mount spring and fall fund drives to coincide with
planting and harvest. Give during the planning and planting season—that
would be now—if we are an essential information and
inspiration input. Give during the fall to celebrate the benefit
you receive by being part of the NewFarm.org community. If you
are able—and want to help us bring new features like streaming
video on board—give generously both times… and in
between.
To
start your giving, planned or unplanned, click here.
We’re looking for 400 of our stalwart supporters to give
$50 each to hit $20,000—and those of you who are really
happy to know that we are seeking direct user support can send
lots more. Your dollars pay for freelance contributions from around
the country, let us tell the compelling stories of New Agriculture
and help us maintain website tools that support sustainable farmers.
Want to mail your gift? OK with us. Just print off the online
donation form and mail with your check to: The Rodale Institute,
Box NFD-1, 611 Siegfriedale Road, Kutztown, PA 19503.
2. Identity ads.
We know there are successful businesses and nonprofits that benefit
from our work. Their staff, leadership and customers work from
values and a vision borne from the electronic pages of NewFarm.org
and the thousands of saved copies of our pioneering parent publication,
The New Farm magazine (1979-1995). We’re still
working on the internal logistics, but watch for this opportunity
soon to lend organizational strength to the journalistic outreach
of The Rodale Institute. The concept: Post a logo linked to a
greeting customized for NewFarm.org users or to a homepage.
3. Fee for commercial
service. Like our content mix of stories, columns and photos,
the majority of our classified categories will remain available
without charge to users. We may begin charging for items in the
“For Sale” section, using sub-categories of property,
commercial products/services, new equipment and farm-raised products/farmer-based
items to vary the reasonable fees. We’ll hold off on this
until we see how the donations come in.
These three overtures are the simplest, most elegant ways we can
think of to translate the enthusiasm for our work that you relate
to us when you write or see us at conferences. Your
donation today will send a critical message to the
three of us who create NewFarm.org fresh each update; the staff
and leadership of the institute, who keep research and training
happening; and our board members, who are currently in the midst
of fashioning a new strategic plan for the Institute.
Your
contribution toward the goal of raising our first $20,000 by
May 1 will determine how we proceed to fund our work that is critically
needed to grow more regenerative farmers. We want to continue to
send out “farmer-to-farmer know-how from The Rodale Institute”
to readers throughout the food chain.
Talk
to us.
Support us.
Keep the voices of the New Agriculture alive,
challenging and strong on NewFarm.org.
Greg Bowman
managing editor
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