Better Gift-Giving: Annual Shopping Guide

Holiday shopping is upon us in just two little days; and there's no shortage of jacked-up consumerist sensibilities. But while there are inevitably going to be items each holiday season you're compelled to buy—like that video game your kid's dying to have, or a new flatscreen for the home, or a certain tie/dress/sweater/coat/fill-in-the-blanks that your spouse/cousin/parent/etc. has specifically asked for—there are also plenty of other gifts you're going to buy this season. You've got stocking stuffers, little gifts for people you love, the obligatory gift for your boss, co-workers, mailperson, dry cleaner, sanitation worker, and child's teacher.

So why not do something different this year? How about, instead of buying mass-produced stuff, you use your money to make a difference?

There are millions of ways to make real change with your money this holiday season. Whether you want to support artisans, shop local, or buy from organizations that will use your money to help people (

or animals

) in need, gifts this year run the gamut from sending young women to school to purchasing handwoven baskets from an underpriveleged person in Nepal. You can donate to a non-profit you believe in on behalf of someone you care about or in memory of a loved one; or simply buy a from a company you believe has ethical business practices. Here's a short list of some of my favorites this year (full disclosure: shameless plug for

Better Farm gear

to support sustainability outreach is of course included in the roundup):

• Better Farm—All sales support sustainability and arts outreach
•  
• Amy's Smart Girls — Nearly 3 billion people around the world lack access to financial services that the other half of the world takes for granted. Through Amy Poehler's Smart Girls organization, you can supply a business loan to your choice of business start-ups (we recommend the "green" sector!).
• Dragonfly Pottery—Ann Donovan makes beautiful, handmade pieces that can be shipped anywhere. Check out the Facebook page here.
• Etsy—Hand-crafted items supporting artisans of every ilk
• The Gentle Barn—This group rescues, rehabilitates, and gives sanctuary to severely abused animals; then supports interaction between them and children who have suffered similar traumas. Animal and child share an extraordinary healing process
• Gifts With Humanity—This is the retail component of Global Fair Trade Crafts, a web-based business designed to support individual artisans around the world
• Global Girlfriend—This online shop helps women worldwide gain economic security. The fair-trade products are made by women around the world suffering from disadvantages that can be turned around by an income stream
•  
• Global Goods Partners—This non-profit works with almost 40 artisan groups employing more than 3,000 women in close to 20 countries
• Kari Zelson Robertson — BetterArts board member Kari is an accomplished potter who has a gallery space outside her Rutland home. She will ship pieces anywhere and is happy to do custom work!
• La Mia Designs — Stephanie DeJoseph has run two upcycling workshops at Better Farm and excels at repurposed textiles and needlework.
• Little Dresses for Africa —  You can go to this website to print out templates for dresses that you make and send in for distribution to girls in African orphanages, churches and schools.Or, you can make a donation to support the creation of dresses.
• Soko — Soko is an online store that connects online consumers to global makers and handcrafted jewelry from the developing world. All items are made with natural and upcycled materials.
• The Shop for Change—An online marketplace enabling disadvantaged sellers around the world to sell online and sustainably grow their livelihoods
• Ten Thousand Villages—The founding organization of the Global Fair Trade Movement, this store has got tons of amazing gifts for everyone on your list
• ThredUp —  ThredUP is an online consignment shop that resells once-worn, practically new kids and women's clothing unbelievable discounts. You can also sell your like-new clothes to them for cash.
• World Vision—This Christian humanitarian organization provides support to individuals and families worldwide regardless of their religion, race, ethnicity, or gender. From their website you can purchase goats or chickens for families in need, supply a village with seeds for gardens or money to dig wells, or furnish a school with supplies

Any individual retailers and/or artisans are encouraged to leave their own website/store information as a comment below for holiday shoppers.

Four-Season Farming: Greenhouse-Chicken Synergy Experiment Underway

Chickens enjoy a warmer climate where they can still scratch on the ground, while the plants get a heated home in which to grow.

We've utilized cold frames, mulching and greenhouses in the past at Better Farm to extend the growing season for our produce; but have had yet to stumble upon something that would truly allow production to continue year-round for our use and the use of the people we serve.

A recent partnership between Redwood's food pantry, Hearts for Youth, the Redwood Neighborhood Association, and Better Farm utilizes Redwood's Community Greenhouse to cultivate food that will be donated to the food pantry for disbursement to those in need. That greenhouse was moved to Better Farm, where the people staying here have agreed to tend to the garden and provide daily care for the plants as they grow.

Community greenhouse.

But how to contribute year-round to the food pantry?

I began looking into ways to heat greenhouses year round and found a ton of information on heaters, solar panels, fans and insulation. But all potential solutions fell by the wayside when I discovered Anna Edey and her work on Martha's Vineyard with her Solviva Greenhouse.

A basic Solviva greenhouse design, as found at Backyard Chickens.

Anna, who has been an organic farming pioneer since founding her business, Solviva, in 1984. One of the most stunning project's she's worked on has been a combination greenhouse-chicken house, where chickens heat the space with their body heat and manure (which is composted along with hay). Rumor has it that on 0-degree days, Anna's greenhouse is a lovely 80 degrees.

Awed by this potential, I brainstormed ways to protect plants while keeping them in the greenhouse with chickens. There are a lot of added bonuses to this chicken-greenhouse setup besides the plants, of course. The chickens also enjoy a break from all the cold and wind, which will boost their egg production throughout the winter. Plus, all the bedding and compost will be perfect to shovel into the garden come spring.

To prep the greenhouse, a few things had to be done first. The outside of the structure had to be wrapped in chicken wire to prevent predators from simply scratching through the plastic:

A trap door was added next to the front door to allow birds access outside on manageable winter days (accomplished here without having to leave the main door open and potentially subjecting plants to a chill):

Plants (broccoli, radishes, peas, spinach, lettuce and beets) had to be covered with protective netting so plucky chickens wouldn't damage the produce:

And lastly, the birds needed a protected space to sleep and lay that even a weasle can't get into in the middle of the night:

All the materials we used for this project were upcycled scraps of chicken wire from the herb gardens, handles from a kitchen demolition project on Fishermans Rest Island, and plywood scraps leftover from a construction project in June. We pulled a ramp from one of the other chicken coops, moved the water dishes and food to the greenhouse, and began catching birds we found huddled up outside. They couldn't be happier to discover there are still some places with green grass:

 

The project is officially underway.  In the coming weeks we'll be tracking overall temperature in the greenhouse to determine whether the birds are able to produce enough heat, along with passive solar, to keep the greenhouse above 60 degrees all winter long. If early findings are promising, we'll be adding shelving in the greenhouse to fill it top-to-bottom with yummy plants for food pantry patrons.

Want to design a Solviva Greenhouse of your own? Get in touch with us at info@betterfarm.org.

Get Crafty with Gratitude Trees this Thanksgiving

BetterArts this Saturday will create gratitude trees with children at Hospice of Jefferson County in order to express the youngsters' thanks to people they love who are no longer with us.

The arts 'n' crafts project is part of an annual partnership between betterArts and Hospice of Jefferson County, in which the two groups come together to provide a holiday party for children whose loved ones have passed away. This year's holiday party comes during the Thanksgiving season; so it is a fitting time for the children to focus on the gifts left behind by those who have passed away. These gifts may be in the form of memories, stories, life lessons, surviving family members, or anything else the children can imagine.

Those at the event will also be given the option of recording their fondest memories of their loved ones; a project undertaken by betterArts latest initiative, Better Radio. Those who opt to participate may have their memories burned onto a CD; or even broadcast on-air.

Here's some information on the healing power of gratitude, as published at the Chopra Center: Many scientific studies, including research by renowned psychologists Robert Emmons and Michael McCullough, have found that people who consciously focus on gratitude experience greater emotional wellbeing and physical health than those who don’t. In comparison with control groups, those who cultivated a grateful outlook:

• Felt better about their lives as a whole

• Experienced greater levels of joy and happiness

• Felt optimistic about the future

• Got sick less often

• Exercised more regularly

• Had more energy, enthusiasm, determination, and focus

• Made greater progress toward achieving important personal goals

• Slept better and awoke feeling refreshed

• Felt stronger during trying times

• Enjoyed closer family ties

• Were more likely to help others and offer emotional support

• Experienced fewer symptoms of stress

If you want more happiness, joy, and energy, gratitude is clearly a crucial quality to cultivate. It is a fullness of heart that moves us from limitation and fear to expansion and love. When we’re appreciating something, our ego moves out of the way and we connect with our soul. Gratitude brings our attention into the present, which is the only place where miracles can unfold. The deeper our  appreciation, the more we see with the eyes of the soul and the more our life flows in harmony with the creative power of the universe.

- See more at: http://www.chopra.com/ccl/cultivate-the-healing-power-of-gratitude#sthash.f6jPMFkv.dpuf

Many scientific studies, including research by renowned psychologists Robert Emmons and Michael McCullough, have found that people who consciously focus on gratitude experience greater emotional wellbeing and physical health than those who don’t. In comparison with control groups, those who cultivated a grateful outlook: - See more at: http://www.chopra.com/ccl/cultivate-the-healing-power-of-gratitude#sthash.f6jPMFkv.dpuf

Many scientific studies, including research by renowned psychologists Robert Emmons and Michael McCullough, have found that people who consciously focus on gratitude experience greater emotional wellbeing and physical health than those who don’t. In comparison with control groups, those who cultivated a grateful outlook:

• Felt better about their lives as a whole

• Experienced greater levels of joy and happiness

• Felt optimistic about the future

• Got sick less often

• Exercised more regularly

• Had more energy, enthusiasm, determination, and focus

• Made greater progress toward achieving important personal goals

• Slept better and awoke feeling refreshed

• Felt stronger during trying times

• Enjoyed closer family ties

• Were more likely to help others and offer emotional support

• Experienced fewer symptoms of stress

If you want more happiness, joy, and energy, gratitude is clearly a crucial quality to cultivate. It is a fullness of heart that moves us from limitation and fear to expansion and love. When we’re appreciating something, our ego moves out of the way and we connect with our soul. Gratitude brings our attention into the present, which is the only place where miracles can unfold. The deeper our  appreciation, the more we see with the eyes of the soul and the more our life flows in harmony with the creative power of the universe.

- See more at: http://www.chopra.com/ccl/cultivate-the-healing-power-of-gratitude#sthash.f6jPMFkv.dpuMany scientific studies, including research by renowned psychologists Robert Emmons and Michael McCullough, have found that people who consciously focus on gratitude experience greater emotional well-being and physical health than those who don’t. In comparison with control groups, those who cultivated a grateful outlook:

• Felt better about their lives as a whole

• Experienced greater levels of joy and happiness 

• Felt optimistic about the future 

• Got sick less often 

•  Exercised more regularly 

• Had more energy, enthusiasm, determination, and focus 

• Made greater progress toward achieving important personal goals 

• Slept better and awoke feeling refreshed 

• Felt stronger during trying times 

• Enjoyed closer family ties 

• Were more likely to help others and offer emotional support 

• Experienced fewer symptoms of stress 

If you want more happiness, joy, and energy, gratitude is clearly a crucial quality to cultivate. It is a fullness of heart that moves us from limitation and fear to expansion and love. When we’re appreciating something, our ego moves out of the way and we connect with our soul. Gratitude brings our attention into the present, which is the only place where miracles can unfold. The deeper our appreciation, the more we see with the eyes of the soul and the more our life flows in harmony with the creative power of the universe.

Gratitude trees are a great project for you to embark on solo; but they also make wonderful projects for the whole family. Here's all you need to make your very own!

Wall-Mounted Gratitude Tree

You'll need a roll of colorful paper, construction paper, and markers or paint (whichever you like, or both!) Simply cut a big tree with a bunch of limbs out of the paper and adhere it to the wall with double-sided tape. Cut leaves from the construction paper and write one thing you are grateful for on each one before sticking each leaf to the branches

Gratitude Tree in Vase
You'll need a vase (betterArts will be using vases donated to  by the Whimsical Pig in Watertown), pebbles or marbles for the bottom of the vase (optional), small branches collected from outside, string and construction paper. If you like, you can even tie a ribbon around the branches to hold them together. Put the branches and pebbles in the vase, add the branches, and then cut leaves from the construction paper. On each leaf, write one thing you are grateful for. These make terrific centerpieces at Thanksgiving!

Great Dish Giveaway Nets $11k for Nonprofits, Keeps Waste from Landfill

Photo from Syracuse.com.

The scene. Photo/Nicole Caldwell

The Better Crew on Saturday took part in a bit of American history as the public was invited to pick up as much unglazed Syracuse China dishware as desired from the company's former location in Syracuse.

For $10 a carload, people could arrive on Court Street, sign a waiver, and pull up to a field behind the factory to rifle through tens of thousands of unglazed dishware. The building's new owners were going to break up all the china and haul it to a landfill; but instead decided to turn it over to the public. The $10 fee was donated to the Eastwood Neighborhood Association and Over The Rainbow Daycare center at St. Matthews Church in East Syracuse. So this served an environmental cause (keeping all the stuff out of the landfill) as well as artistic, historic, and supporting great neighborhood causes. Quadruple win!

The pieces are all unglazed, but are perfect for art projects or for decorating and glazing by those with kiln access.

More than 1,100 cars and trucks arrived over the weekend with upwards of 3,000 people. More than $11,000 were raised for the nonprofits. Over at the Better compound, we'll be putting the china to use in a number of ways:

• Glazing workshops open to the public
• Future farm-to-table dinner events, where we will have artists design the dishware and diners will be able to bring their place settings home with them
• We will glaze dishware for use at festivals, weddings and other events

Spotlight On: Innonatives

A new innovation platform seeks to foster collaborative innovation and design for sustainability projects.

Innonatives, launched by the Sustainability Maker Project, combines open innovation and design, crowd-sourcing, crowd voting, crowd funding, an online shop, and an international expert system. It's free to join and functions by carrying out sustainability-related design and innovation projects covering everything from products to services and communication.

The platform can be used as an educational tool; for instance to ask students to work on the sustainability challenges that are posted on the platform. Or, you can post your own sustainability projects to be carried out by students and other innovators. The platform also acts as an expert system and evaluation tool for sustainability relevance.

Innonatives is currently in its test beta phase, so you can hop over to the website and take a look at all the exciting stuff to come. The first three open innovation for sustainability challenges are:

•       Communication/ Animation Challenge: to create a video clip that explains in an inspiring way how Sustainability and open innovation are connected and how innonatives works. There is prize money of 3000, 1500 and 750 Euros for this project (click here).
•       Product/Brand Design Challenge: Sustainable Design with Coconut Soil! Design a sustainable product system for European gardening and horticultural markets using waste material from the coconut industry. Click here.   
•  Product-Service Design Challenge for low-income communities: Sustainable Kitchen Challenge is spearheading a project for low-income housing in Brazil. Click here.

Innonatives Crowd Funding and the Online Shop will be available for use by the end of 2014.

The Sustainability Maker project is carried out by:

• econcept, Agency for Sustainable Design
• ecosense media and communication 
• WEBclusive
• Politecnico di Milano
• Forum soziale Technikgestaltung

Spotlight On: Ways of Living

We were visited in September by Jesse and Harper, two women in the midst of making a documentary called Ways of Living about sustainable, communal living. The video is due out in 2015.

The women have completed their travels throughout the east coast and are in the editing phase of their project. They need your help! Click here to check out their Indiegogo campaign and find out how you can show your support.

Here's the film treatment:

 

Here's some more about the project: 

In March Jess left the UK to join Harper on a pilgrimage of America's East Coast, stopping off at farms, eco-villages, and intentional communities. We had the aspiration to film a documentary about sustainable, communal living in 2014 - I don't think either of us were sure if communes still even existed before researching this trip, but in the back of our minds we yearned to discover alternative ways of living. We wanted to know about spirituality as a daily life choice, about ways we can reduce our impact on the earth's resources, and how we can teach each other to love more profoundly. Is it easy to live this way in 2014?

At the start, we thought maybe we'd learn some tips for energy saving, meet a few nice folk, edit something together, and return to life. But as we drove - and continue to drive - from place to place, we encounter an energy rising in us that reflects an undeniable shift in our own consciousness. It becomes clearer all the time why we are on this journey, and what we have learned so far has exceeded our expectations in every way. The people we have met have shown us how basically good humans are, and how willing we are to help one another. Countless folks have placed hot meals in front of us, cleared space for us to sleep, and sent us on our ways with homegrown produce and care packages. Through speaking with so many passionately educated eco-activists, we have learned so much about caring for the environment, foraging, and growing food. This rise in anima/feminine energy leaves us feeling so positive about the actions that many people are making. This world is NOT a lost cause!

Let's Help Each Other

We desperately need your support - financial and otherwise - to help us turn this archive of unbelievable, positive footage into a beautiful, artistic documentary about living and loving today.  

All funding goes towards the production costs - travel expenses, video and audio equipment, and editing. Contributors will receive a free copy of the finished film, as well as being kept in the loop with our progress. You are helping raise consciousness and spread awareness of different ways of living in an attempt to make this world a better and more sustainable community!

Thank You Humans

Please spread the word! If money isn't flowing for you right now, we equally need your help in getting our message out there. 

Let's remind the world that it isn't too late to make strong positive change. 

• Send a postcard about us to a long lost friend
• Keep us in your thoughts
• Use the Indiegogo share tools
• Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, Flickr, and Twitter (animarisingproductions) 
• Sign up for our mailing list to keep in touch:

www.animarising.squarespace.com

~THANK YOU SO MUCH ~ MANY MANY THANKS, MUCH LOVE AND GRATITUDE~
"Look. This is your world! You can't not look. There is no other world. This is your world; it is your feast. You inherited this; you inherited these eyeballs; you inherited this world of colour. Look at the greatness of the whole thing. Look! Don't hesitate - look! Open your eyes. Don't blink, and look, look - look further."

- Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche.

November Newsletter

Hello, Friends of Better Farm!

Thanksgiving is just a few weeks away—and now is a perfect time to reflect on all the things we're grateful for.

Practicing the act of gratitude is a great way to reduce the negativity we're overloaded with in our daily lives. If we insist on acknowledging what we appreciate and feel thankful for, we have less room in our minds for the mustn'ts, don'ts, shouldn'ts, impossibles, won'ts, and never haves. Instead of spending so much time fretting about what we don't have, gratitude forces us into the here and the now with all the gifts we already possess.

There are so many people you know who go out of their way on a daily basis to show kindness to strangers, volunteer in their communities, do something to help the environment, or just take the time to pick up the phone or offer you their ear. People like you! Let's all promise to take some time out this month to thank all those silent heroes in every community who do this often-invisible, vital work that brings us all a little bit closer together.

To that end: I am so grateful to all of you for being a part of the "better" mission! As I practice this reflection of gratitude, I can't help but focus on what a difference your volunteer work, attention, encouragement and involvement have meant for Better Farm, betterArts, the Redwood community, the environment, and each individual who has stepped foot on this property. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

As always, check in at our blog to follow all of Better Farm's daily adventures.

Until next time, better be. And, thanks.

Nicole Caldwell
Executive Director and Co-Founder
Better Farm

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News: All the Buzz At Better Farm

• Better Farm to be Featured in Ways of Living Documentary—We mentioned last month that Better Farm is included in a new documentary coming out this winter called Ways of Living. The wonderful ladies making that project have created an indiegogo campaign to raise production costs for the flim. Click here to find out more and chart their progress!

• Better Farm's Partnership with Airbnb brings Tourism, Sustainability to Redwood—Better Farm since March has hosted more than 60 reservations through Airbnb, furthering the farm's mission of sustainable living—and travel. Airbnb, which offers 800,000 listings in 33,000 cities  of room-shares or entire homes available for a night, week, or longer, recently released its first environmental impact study on the sustainability of home sharing. Turns out, Airbnb guests in North America use a full 63-percent less energy than hotel guests. That's enough to power 19,000 homes for an entire year.

• BetterArts Helps at Royal Fall Faire— BetterArts last month participated in Sackets Harbor PTO's Royal Fall Faire at Sackets Central School in order to provide children with an arts 'n' crafts station that included leaf printing, decorating pumpkins, and face painting. Check out pictures from the event here.

• Better Farm Educates on Health at Wellness Fair—Better Farm set up an information booth at Indian River Central School's annual wellness fair. Students and parents were informed on community organizations promoting health and wellness. The "better" crew passed out information, talked about local food sources, and shared some banana apple bread hot off the barbecue grill.

• BetterArts Board Member Opens New Gallery—Kari Zelson Robertson has opened a new gallery showcasing her original pottery creations in Rutland Center at 28279 Route 126, about 3.5 miles east of Watertown. Robertson's pieces range from vases and mugs to wall hangings and wine holders. Click here for more information.

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Better Radio Updates!

Volunteers got together in October to install Better Radio's tower, which will broadcast in 2015 from WBTS 88.5 FM.

Ham radio operator Walter Dutcher out of Rochester, N.Y., shared his extensive knowledge of radio frequencies and operating procedures which allowed the newly formed Better Radio committee to experiment with signal strength and to get a better idea of how this project will work.

The group was pleased to discover the signal strength is more than expected: about 20 miles in every direction. For the next several months, we'll be purchasing equipment, recording music, compiling segments and shows, and getting ready for our tentative on-air date of June 20, 2015! To get involved, email info@betterarts.org

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Upcoming Events

Here's a quick rundown of upcoming events. For more information, email info@betterfarm.org or

click here

.

• Nov. 7 —The 66th Annual Juried Fine Art Show, put on by the North Country Arts Council, is slated from 5:30-8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 7 at the Dulles State Office Building in Watertown. This year's show features work by betterArts board members, Better Farm staff, and former betterArts residents. Click here for more information.

• Nov. 13 —Better Farm's annual (Early) Thanksgiving Potluck Dinner Party is slated for 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 17 at Better Farm in Redwood. To RSVP, email info@betterfarm.org.

• Dec. 8—Nicole Caldwell guest lectures at Jefferson Community College to Intro to Business students, 12:20-1 p.m.

• December Date TBD— Hospice of Watertown Christmas party with kids

• December Date TBD—We're kicking off our monthly movie nights this December. On the agenda are educational flicks dirt!, Fed Up, Food Inc., and many more. To sign up, email info@betterfarm.org.

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Better Farm's Sustainability Education Program

Better Farm’s Sustainability Education Program was created to offer individuals an immersive, introductory crash-course in sustainability initiatives. Those enrolled in the program receive a hands-on education in a myriad of seasonal topics related to sustainability and environmental issues. Instead of a traditional working farm with acres upon acres of one or a few different crops, Better Farm has many gardens demonstrating different styles of small-scale farming and stressing the need for diversity of crops instead of mono cultures. Better Farm equips students with a variety of solutions to real-world agricultural issues, including small spaces, temperamental soils, pests, and climate change. The aquaponics, hydroponics, layered gardens, fruit orchard, and forests on the property are extremely varied so students coming from all over the world will learn real-world tools that can be applied back home. The Sustainability Education Program runs in one- to three-month intervals year-round. Those attending receive daily assignments and chores all related to sustainability initiatives and organic farming, as well as the opportunity to design and implement projects on their own. Upon completion of all units and responsibilities, participants will receive a certificate from Better Farm. College students may additionally receive course credit for completion of Better Farm's Sustainability Education Program.

To learn more and to apply, visit www.betterfarm.org/sustainability-internship.

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betterArts Residency Program

betterArts offers a unique opportunity to artists, writers, performers, and musicians with a residency program based out of Better Farm. Residencies are designed to offer artists of every discipline space and time to work on specific projects; whether a series of paintings, a composition, book, set of sculptures, or album.

A private room, 24/7 access to a fully stocked communal kitchen, linens and towels, WiFi, parking, and round-the-clock access to the Art Barn are all included in a low stipend required of all residents.

betterArts residents are encouraged to interact and participate in the goings-on around the property, and to help out with chores and farm-related responsibilities between three and five hours each week. These responsibilities may include working in the gardens, participating in arts-related community outreach projects, helping with house chores, cooking, or assisting with other odd jobs. At the conclusion of each residency, an artist is required to present his or her work to the public in a gallery show, reading, performance, or via some other appropriate medium.

Residencies are for two weeks, three weeks, one month, or two-month periods. Basic facilities at Better Farm will be provided; but betterArts residents are expected  to provide the majority of materials and equipment they would need for the production of their work.

For more information about the betterArts Residency Program and to download the application, click here.

Art as a Natural Healer

By Helen Young

If you’ve been thinking of applying to the

betterArts Residency Program

, motivated by the chance to complete a series of paintings, create a collection of sculptures, or complete that book you have always wanted to write, chances are, you are heeding an inner calling that equates creativity with fulfillment. The creation of art, however, wields many more positive effects than those which are immediately apparent. In this post, we present a few of the most interesting findings regarding the therapeutic effects of art.

• Art battles stress: Anxiety and depression are the most common mental conditions in the US and both are strongly linked to stress. According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, anxiety affects 18% of the US population and depression, and nearly half of those diagnosed with depression also suffer from anxiety. While these disorders affect the population as a whole, they can be particularly debilitating for those suffering from additional conditions such as eating disorders or those recovering from challenging issues such as substance abuse addiction. These conditions take their toll on body and mind and often, the first step to healing is addressing the conditions that cause chronic stress. Studies have shown that art reduces symptoms of distress, improves one’s perception of body image and promotes psychological health. The creation of art alongside therapists has even been found to improve quality of life among women undergoing treatment for  breast cancer, by reducing their levels of distress. In other studies, art therapy has been found to reduce measurable levels of stress hormone, cortisol.

• Art boosts self-confidence: As artists learn and begin to perfect different techniques, their self-esteem grows exponentially. Creation is a teacher that shows the artists the value of dedication, of taking risks and of reaching for goals. When we achieve what we set out to or we complete a long and arduous project, it makes us feel like the sky is truly the limit in terms of what we can achieve in other areas of our life.

• Art boosts brain function: Fascinating studies carried out with older adults suffering from dementia and other related conditions, show the power of art to stimulate cognitive functioning.

• Art can help us deal with pain: Many illnesses such as cancer, cause considerable pain and art is an excellent natural way to deal with this pain. Studies carried out on children suffering from cancer have shown that the act of creation helps them deal better with their pain.

• Art can help people recover from addiction: Across the nation, art therapy is being used successfully to help those recovering from substance abuse addiction and alcoholism, face their sometimes ambivalent attitude towards giving up the source of their addiction. Through paintings, collages and sculptures, recovering addicts can express all the things that attract them to their source of addiction, but also identify the many positive things they can gain by quitting.

• Art encourages mindfulness: It is no wonder that practices like yoga and Tai Chi are picking up in popularity in all corners of the world. In this day and age of avid Internet usage, disconnection from Nature and pressure to succeed in the material sense, we have discarded a useful way of being which keeps harmful stress at bay: mindfulness. For keen artists, the act of creation is akin to meditation; it is easy to completely disconnect from the problems that plague us and concentrate on the work we are creating, sometimes for hours on end. In this sense, art is the ideal mindful activity for those who are not attracted by meditation itself.

• Art promotes communication: Artists often their creation to express a difficult time in their past or a dilemma they are facing in current life. Many can find it difficult to express their emotions directly, yet find it surprisingly easy to do through their art. This is because of the uniquely subjective element of the language of art; an artist can be completely open in their work yet the message received can be a completely different one; therefore, privacy can be maintained to the extent the artists wishes.

• Art can help heal trauma: Art therapy expert, Judith Rubin, tells of how painting helped her overcome the death of a good friend when she was just 17. Her friend had died in a senseless accident and the day after the funeral, she says she felt compelled to head for the woods to paint. The work she created, she said, was “a symbolic replacement for he who has lost, a mute, tangible, testament. The doing of it afforded tremendous relief. It did not take away the hurt and the ache, but it did help in releasing some of the rage, and in giving form to a multiplicity of feelings and wishes.” It wasn’t until many years, she says, that she realized that the reason why art is so successful at taming fear and pain, is that “giving form to the feared object brings it under your own symbolic control.” This simple truth underlies much of the immense power of art and art therapy.

To learn more about the betterArts Residency Program,

click here

.

Vote the Environment, Why Don't You!

Poster by Erika Pitcher. Prints available here.

Consider the environment when you vote today.

Really. Think about it.

You may be really very seriously concerned about economics. Job growth. War chests. Gun control. Abortion. Maybe you are planning on voting for someone you don't like in order to ensure the incumbent gets tossed. Say you're voting based on who's better on women's rights. Gay rights. Civil rights. Healthcare. Balancing the budget. Supporting our military. Maybe you just really hate democrats.

Well, listen up: There's only one fundamental truth where each of us is concerned: We live or die based on the condition of the earth.

You don't get job growth without safe drinking water. There is no debate over gun safety without nourishing food. We have no security, no safety without fresh air to breathe. There is one thing that comes before every selfish, philanthropic, compassionate, arrogant stance we take in this world and that's the environment. She shields us, clothes us, feeds us, warms us, cools us, and only ever operates from a neutral, vibrant place.

It's time to stop carrying on in spite of her and start making moves because of her. These moves come in large part out of where we put our money and whose name we check on our voting ballots. Which politicians are willing to stand up and defend her? Who is unwavering in their devotion to Mother Dearest? Who understands the gravity of our environmental situation and the stakes? Whoever that is, that is who you need to go out and support. Today. Right now.

Poster by Kevin M. Fitzgeral. Prints available here.

A mere one-quarter of Americans between 18 and 29 years old are expected to vote in today’s midterm election, according to a study conducted by Harvard University. That is horrendous. Embarrassing. Too few. Hey, young people! We need you! Old people too! Everyone!!  I don't care if you're disillusioned by the two-party system or—gasp—whether you've finally figured out that all politicians are corrupted liars. Feel that way? Then start voting for the other person, the underdog, the green party or libertarian or independent. Better yet, why don't you put your neck out and run for something next go-round? Elected officials in small towns can actually make big changes for communities. In some ways, there's more power to effect change on the local level than there is for some puppet politician at the federal level. So get involved!

Look back in time, two, three, even four decades ago. There were glimmers then about what we were doing to the environment and to each other. A whole lot of people got together back in those days for the anti-war movement. John Lennon and Yoko Ono staged their bed protests: Hair Peace. Bed Peace. People harnessed their energy and pressured the political arena. And you know what? We pulled out of Vietnam. It happened. The republic had spoken. So why would it be so far-fetched to think that in this era, we might be able to harness that public energy again in order to make big, environmental changes? To abolish fracking once and for all? To finally put an end to drilling for oil? Or overall demand for oil? Or an overwhelming shift in perspective about how we live our lives in general? If the general public can end wars and push uptight politicians to accept recreational marijuana use, is it so far-fetched to think we could make compost toilets the norm and end our reliance on fracked gas and oil? Or that we could put an end to the endlessly diverted waterways out west? That we could refuse, with the force of millions, to subsidize huge corporations that couldn't care less about us?

It's not fair that we would have to be drowning below sea level or actually have run out of wild-caught fish for people to vote for the environment. California shouldn't have to dry out entirely for us to consider our elected officials' stances on water conservation. Glaciers shouldn't have to go the way of the woolly mammoth before we are willing to discuss climate change on a political level. Ditto for lakes and rivers being deemed unfishable, unswimmable before we're willing to vote for someone who will protect our waterways. Don't wait for every last ounce of oil to be drawn from the ground and every reserve to be cashed in on. Don't let some bigwig frack in every available spot, provide jobs for the next 80 years and make some fat cats even fatter; before we realize we can't actually eat all those dollar bills.

Give me a break.

Vote the Environment. She's the only renewable resource on the planet besides hope and love.
Vote Mother Earth. She's the only politician with a literal platform: the ground beneath your feet.
Vote the Planet: Because manufactured meat, farmed salmon, and GMOs ain't gonna cut it.

We are in the middle of a crisis far more interesting, exciting, terrifying and opportunistic than Miley Cyrus' latest rant, Lena Dunham's embarrassing memoir, or Brangelina's wedding photos. We're talking climate change. Extinction. Destruction of wild places. Record droughts. Rising sea levels. Severe storms and weather patterns. Dogs and cats, living together! It all keeps happening, even while we keep arguing over who we'll vote for based on who gives a crap about health care, birth control or how many bullets can go into a gun. This is like a magician getting you to look at one hand while he sleights with the other.

Stop being so distracted!

What if we refused to vote for the lesser evil in the polls and instead rooted for independents, libertarians, the Green Party—anyone who refused to stand down on environmental issues? What if we told the two-party system to take a hike?

It's time to draw the proverbial line in the sand: DO NOT CROSS! We will not let you! This has gone too far. We've had it!

So compost. Host farm-to-table dinner parties. Love each other and forgive and go love some more. Eat organic. Ditch sugar. Pick up trash, recycle, help to conserve our wild places. And, for goodness sakes, vote for priority numero uno! What good is that voice the world gave you if you don't use it to defend her?

Arts. Beats. Eats. Show Friday Nov. 7!

The North Country Arts Council's annual fall art show Arts Beats Eats has an opening evening and awards reception slated from 5:30-8:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 7 at the Dulles State Office Building in Watertown.

Live entertainment, snacks, and refreshments will be provided. These include:

• Performances by international recording artist, David R. Maracle, who plays spirit flutes as well as a variety of drums from around the world
• Living statues by Fire Magic
• Catering for the gallery opening by Northern Exposure 
• Signature martini bar by the Paddock Club
• Body- and face-painting by BrushStrokes by Melina
• Live-painting demonstration by muralist Garrett McCarthy
• Aaron Hall Photography Photobooth

Invitational artists for this opening include Better Farm and betterArts artists, David R. Maracle, Paul N. Pedersen, River Community Wellness Program, Soldier Art, and juried art from 65 artists throughout Northern New York.

A fundraiser will be held during the event for Dragonfly Pottery, a local business whose studio recently burned down. Pottery donated by area potters will be for sale. All proceeds from sales will be donated to Ann and John Donovan.

BONUS!! Combine your enjoyment with the Lyric Theater production of South Pacific. Musical begins at 7 p.m. Only 100 bundle tickets will be available! Save $2 off your Lyric ticket and your Arts Beats Eats ticket.

Tickets are $12 and on sale now online at www.nnyart.org or at these locations in Watertown, N.Y.:

• Arts on the Square, 52 Public Square
• Sherwood Florist at 1314 Washington St.
• Kinney's Drugs locations on Washington Street, State Street and Coffeen Street

Here are bios of the "Better" contributing artists for this event:

Melissa Aulet, photography

Melissa Aulet is a transplant to the area who moved to Watertown in 2010. She is originally from New York City, where she went to college at the Fashion Institute of Technology. Since moving to the North Country, Melissa has worked as a Senior Account Executive at Tunes 92.5 Radio Station in Watertown. Her work there has included helping to create commercials, voice commercials, write proposals, create imaging for the website and facebook, and take photos for concerts and events. Melissa additionally runs her own photography studio called Sarissa Melissa Photography. That studio has grown exceptionally in just a few years from starting off taking family photos to shooting the Heart concert, Reba concert, to photos for the Hilton Gardens Billboard. Melissa has used the medium of photography in many different facets enjoying nature and landscape photography as a way to explore, and grow her talent, as well as study light, and color. She hopes to grow her business in the new year to include more spectacular nature and landscape pieces for collectors, in addition to creating art for families with customized family sessions. The possibilities are endless. Melissa most recently joined the board for BetterArts, a local arts and culture non-profit based out of Better Farm in Redwood. For that endeavor, Melissa utilizes her knowledge in marketing to promote the group and its many great events here in the North Country. In the next few months, Melissa will be working with the betterArts team on future events and the launch of Better Radio on WBTS 88.5 FM.

  
Nicole Caldwell, collage

Nicole Caldwell is the co-founder of Better Farm, a 65-acre sustainability campus, organic farm, and artists' colony which serves as a blueprint for environmentally conscious living. Better Farm attracts those who are interested in doing "better"— growing from each experience, serving their communities, and creating something that benefits the world around them. Nicole is president of the not-for-profit arts and music outreach initiative betterArts, which works in tandem with Better Farm to explore the intersection between sustainability and art. She also works as a professional writer and editor; her work has been featured in Mother Earth News, Reader's Digest, Time Out New York, and many others. Her first book, Better: The Everyday Art of Sustainable Living comes out in June 2015 through New Society Publishers.

www.nicolecaldwellwrites.com

Erica Hauser, Watercolor

Erica Hauser is a painter and illustrator currently based in Newburgh, NY. She grew up on a half-dirt road by a reservoir in Brewster, NY, and graduated in 2002 with a BFA from School of Visual Arts, after studying at both Cornell University in Ithaca and the Art Students League of NY. She lived in NYC for 7 years and moved to the Hudson Valley in 2007. Erica was a visiting betterArts resident during June of 2011.

www.ericahauser.com

Kathryn Mollica, woodburning

Kathryn Mollica graduated from Better Farm's Sustainability Education Program in August of 2013, and has since become the organization's director of education and farming. She graduated with a degree in business from Fairleigh Dickinson University and is in the process of laying the groundwork for her own business—a bakery called, fittingly, Mollica.

www.facebook.com/bakery.mollica

Natalie Collette Wood, sculpture

Natalie Collette Wood has degrees from Herbert H. Lehman College City University of New York and School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her sculptures are like mythical creatures or submarine life forms with clear geometries and free form appendages in equal number. Created from found objects, the work is built from the PVC legacies of our civilization. Natalie lives and works in New York City. She was a visiting betterArts resident in August of 2013.  
http://nataliecollettewood.com 

This event is co sponsored by Stewarts Shops. The Dulles State Office Building is located at 317 Washington St. in Watertown, N.Y. for more information about this event, visit www.nyart.org.

Sustainable and Budget-Wise Living go Hand in Hand

By Helen Young

Many people assume that sustainable living is expensive and a luxury that only the very wealthy can afford. After all, organic vegetables cost more than regular vegetables,  and organic and sustainable living is very popular in the most affluent as well as the most forward

-

thinking areas of the country. 

This is a huge misconception.

Anyone can choose to live a sustainable lifestyle

 and pay attention to the environmental impact of the food they eat each day, and this can go hand in hand with budget living. In fact, you may even find that living sustainably is cheaper than living a mainstream lifestyle! Thinking about making the move to sustainable living and eating but have no real idea where to start? Here are a few hints and tips to gently introduce yourself to sustainable living:

Think About Where Your Food Comes From

One of the first and most simple changes to make if you’re working towards sustainable and environmentally friendly living is to 

think about where your food comes from

. Of course surest way to eat sustainably is to grow and produce everything you eat yourself; but whilst some people may relish the idea of starting their own small vegetable patch, very few will have the land available to grow absolutely everything they need. If that’s the case then why not try to source all of your fruit and vegetables from local organic farmers instead? There are many benefits that come from buying direct from your local farm: firstly you’ll know where your food is coming from and can speak to the farmer directly about their growing methods and any chemical processes they may use. In buying locally you’ll also minimize the number of food miles your veggies have to travel before they reach your plate thus lowering the ultimate carbon footprint of their production. Concerned about your budget? It may surprise you to know that buying your veggies directly from where they’re grown is 

often cheaper than heading to the grocery store

, provided the veggies you are looking for are in season and plentiful. Farmers are often pleased to sell on their surplus at a lower price, particularly items that don’t meet the grocery stores stringent aesthetic rules about size and shape but are otherwise tasty and delicious.

Reuse, Reduce, Recycle

It is the simplest of all sustainable methods and one that most children are taught at elementary school. 

Reuse, reduce, recycle

. Reuse whatever items you can, reduce the amount of waste you send to land fill, and recycle whenever possible. Yet it is mind boggling and amazing how few adults manage to stick to this simple lesson! If your keen to make your home a more sustainable environment then start thinking about the waste you are producing; what could you be recycling, what could you be reusing? Small changes, such as purchasing a reusable shopper bag and using it in lieu of a plastic bag whenever you visit your local store is a very minor change but can have a big impact. Reusing and recycling can also help you to save money; you simply need to readjust your mindset and think creatively about the additional purposes goods you might ordinarily throw away could serve.

Work With The Wider Community                     

One of the most important ways that you can begin your journey towards a sustainable lifestyle is by embracing the sustainable community and working together with your own community leaders. This will prove particularly useful if you are new to the concept of sustainability and would like some guidance and support: there are many local sustainability groups located throughout the country. Here you will be able to swap hints and tips, organic growers will be able to share or swap any surplus of produce and you may even find a volunteer network that you can join with the aim of supporting local projects and simultaneously spreading the sustainable message.

There’s no denying that true sustainable living is hard work and will take a huge amount of dedication. But it is possible to begin taking steps towards sustainable living, and bring an important sustainable message to your family, without making too many significant changes to your existing lifestyle.

Helen Young is a contributing writer to Better Farm's blog. She worked in health for more a decade before

becoming a mother made her reassess things. With work being so busy and intense, she wanted to step back, spend more time with her babies while they were still young, and develop her passion for writing. Helen's work covers many topics from physical and mental health topics to food, nutrition

and sports.

BetterArts Board Member Opens New Gallery Space in Rutland Center

Kari Zelson Robertson

presents

Soft Open

From 12-5 p.m. Nov.1 2, the little gallery will be open, displaying a selection of my ceramic work, handbuilt and wheel-thrown.

Located at 28279 Route 126, Rutland Center, our place is about 3.5 miles east of Watertown, NY. Look for that cute little building and the tall silo.

The studio, attached to our farmhouse, will also be open! Light refreshments and snacks, too.

Come out and and hang, talk, nibble, see my new work. I look forward to seeing you! Kari Zelson Robertson is a board member with betterArts, a non-profit whose mission is to increase access to the arts throughout the North Country. To learn more, click here.

Photos from Sackets Harbor's Fall Faire

BetterArts on Saturday participated in Sackets Harbor PTO's Royal Fall Faire at Sackets Central School in order to provide children with an arts 'n' crafts station that included leaf printing, decorating pumpkins, and face painting.

The kids had a blast making their pumpkins totally expressive, colorful works of art. And yes, the adults enjoyed getting their hands dirty as well! Here are some photos from the day:

Many thanks to the Sackets Harbor Central School PTO for inviting betterArts to this wonderful event! For more informatio on the work of betterArts, visit www.betterarts.org.