Indiana Living Green - April 2013

ILG /// APRIL 2013 /// INDIANALIVINGGREEN.COM 3

APRIL 2013C O N T E N T S

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D E P A R T M E N T S

04 Doom & Bloom

04 Gardening with Nature

05 Watts & Whatnot

06 Cover Story

15 Advocates

18 April Events

21 Eco-Crossword

22 The PANIQuiz

22 Ask Renee

23 Life is an Egg by Joe Lee

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4 INDIANALIVINGGREEN.COM /// APRIL 2013 /// ILG

doom & bloom with Jim PoyserGARDENING WITH NATUREby Lynn Jenkins

I garden,therefore I march

As long as I’ve owned a small section of soil, I’ve tended a garden. It has been the single consistent routine in my adult life.

I’ve been a daughter, wife and mother, played a goat herder, teacher, writer and publisher, been heavily into stained glass and stenciling, and am dabbling at metal smithing now. But the one consistent through the decades has been gardening. I know soil and understand compost.

I see rain and snow as both friend and foe of my delicate seedlings. I know wind and insects as both pollinators and destructive forces. I am aware of dozens of backyard beneficial bugs and a few that destroy. I know some birds will eat ripened fruits or yank seedlings from the garden, but I value their presence not only for their song and dance, but also for their voracious appetites for creepy-crawlies.

It was the gardeners and farm-ers who work hand in hand with nature who first observed the subtle changes in climate. There is a balance in nature and it is out of whack big time now. That is why I marched to the White House in February with 45,000 others to demand “Forward on Climate.”

Many gardeners give themselves a label: organic gardener, wildlife gardener, shade gardener, flower or vegetable or perennial gardener, etc. But one we must all now wear is activist gardener. If we want to continue to garden, we must demand protection of the fundamentals of gardening: the soil, the seed, the water, the climate.

Corporate greed and politi-cal arrogance are destroying the foundations of our gardens. The myriad chemicals deemed ‘neces-sary’ to grow food pollute the water and the soil. Biotechnology has genetically modified the seeds of our food supply. Government has granted corporations the owner-ship of this seed, as well as all following generations of that seed, regardless of where it grows.

We gardeners prefer to have our hands in compost and soil, not in political manure. However, we must become activists if we are to continue to be gardeners and grow our food as nature intended.

Got a comment, question or a tip to share? Contact Lynn at [email protected]

Folks, a disturbing situation has come to my attention, a battle between two major organizations in the central Indiana area.

I’m talking about the dis-pute between Citizens Rally-ing Around Poop (CRAP) and People for the Obfuscation Of

Poop (POOP). The respective groups can’t even agree on which organization came first, but after extensive research I’ve determined that CRAP came before POOP, and that in fact POOP emerged in direct response to the discomfort many had with the existence of CRAP.

Recently their anger at each other spilled out onto the streets of Indianapolis.

According to CRAP founder Deloris Jack, the initial idea grew out of a conversation one night among friends. “We were having dinner and talking about the food,” Jack recalls, “and where the food came from and how organically it had been grown and yadda yadda yadda and my husband suddenly slammed his hand on the table and cried out, ‘All we do is talk about food in this town, why don’t we ever talk about poop!’

“Well, we all sat there, stunned. I mean it was true. There’s so much consciousness about food systems here in Indiana, but the whole, um, externality aspect is ignored.”

Jack and others got to work, forming Citizens Rallying Around Poop, raising awareness of the inevitable end product of our daily ingestion.

Then, POOP entered the scene. While POOP

director Hal Tinker wouldn’t answer my calls, he did issue the following statement, written on a thin parchment and delivered to our office: “We at POOP think that feces should not be brought out into the light of day. Digestion takes place in the dark recesses of our bodies, then we retreat in private to take care of our business. Why make something so private subject to public scrutiny? It’s just wrong.”

CRAP’s Jack responds, “It’s time to bring feces out of the shadows so that we can face our by-products. In this time of environmental turmoil, everything should be on the table. “

Their disagreement came to a head last week when CRAP, protesting at the Indiana State-house, was confronted by members of POOP. CRAP was against legislation designed to thwart watchdog individuals or groups from investigat-ing large-scale agriculture operations.

CRAP’s Jack argues, “the bill was meant to keep the people from eying the massive amount of waste created in Combined Animal Feeding Operations, to keep us from facing it and thus being able to rally about it. POOP confronted us, infringing upon our rights of free speech.”

The scene was indeed ugly, with dozens of advocates clashing with signs and shouts, rising in intensity until some feared a donnybrook might erupt. According to those present, the conflict was interrupted when a flock of pigeons flying overhead decided to eliminate their waste upon the heads of both CRAP and POOP.

“Kind of poetic justice, if you think about it,” Jack says.

An internecine conflictabout externalities

^illustration by shelby kelley


To commemorate its 75 years of protecting Indiana’s birds, the Amos W. Butler Audubon Society has hired Don Gorney as the non-profit’s first full-time staff member. Gorney has been a volunteer board member since 2008, but his new position as director of bird conservation and education was made possible by a grant from the Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust. His aim is to carry on with the group’s stewardship.

“We want to protect the birds so that not only are they here for us but also for future generations,” Gorney said.

The organization has many accomplish-ments since it formed in 1938, named after Amos Butler, considered by many to be Indiana’s greatest naturalist and the author of The Birds of Indiana in 1890. The group has played a crucial role in the preserva-tion of Indiana’s largest rookery of great blue herons and the Burr Oak Bend Nature Preserve, a 120-acre site along the White River in Hamilton County.

Gorney got involved with the group when he moved to Indianapolis in 1998. He became so well known in the bird-watching community that he was eventually asked to join the board. Perhaps his former job as a bank examiner for

the FDIC gave him the instincts for safeguard-ing what’s valuable. Nevertheless, it was a perfect fit for Gorney, who’d found relief from work-related stress in bird-watching.

“Starting to bird-watch was a way of relax-ing,” Gorney said. “It gave me something to do in the evening and provided an outlet from the mundane world of bank examining.”

By hosting meetings and presentations, the Amos W. Butler Audubon Society has spread awareness about issues facing birds while in-spiring fascination with the many species with whom we share our state. Fifteen Important Bird Areas, which distinguish areas where a species is threatened by loss of habitat, have been created under the organization’s watch.

One of the key areas that Gorney will now fo-cus on is the Lights Out Indy project, which seeks to eliminate unnecessary lighting from buildings at night. Excessive lighting confuses migrating birds and often causes death by collision with the building — more than 800 deaths since the fall of 2009 by the organization’s count. By doing without unneeded lights, companies save energy, money and birds from being injured or killed.

Another program Gorney now supervises is Wings Over Indy, an urban bird project

which is geared exclusively for urban dwelling birds — nighthawks and chimney swifts. More than 30 gravel patches have been created for nighthawks and eight towers have been built for chimney swifts under the program.

“Over the last 10 years or so I’ve seen 250 species of birds just in Marion County,” Gorney said. “When people see some of these birds that are really just striking in appear-ance, it really captures their attention.”

As one of Indiana’s oldest non-profit organizations, Hoosiers have supported the Amos W. Butler Audubon Society through donations at its spring fundraising event, the Birdathon. In 2012 a record $31,970 was raised for conservation and education proj-ects here and in South America, adding to a total of $530,000 raised since 1987.

“I just find that amazing from a group of volunteers. Everyone’s a volunteer and we’ve had amazing success,” Gorney said.

By partnering with other conservationists, the Amos W. Butler Audubon Society has done an immeasurable service for species of birds. With Gorney working for the non-profit, it will continue to ensure that future generations can marvel at the same remarkable beauty.

by hiring first staffer By Jordan Martich

Audubon’s 75th marked

Amos W. Butler Audubon Society• Founded in 1938.• Educates, protects and preserves native

and migratory birds.• Grassroots chapter of the National

Audubon Society.• Covers birds in all Central Indiana counties.• amosbutleraudubon.org• P.O. Box 80024

Indianapolis, Ind. 46280

International Migratory Bird DayMay 25, 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Audubon and Indy Parks celebrate the amaz-ing migratory species that pass through our state with loads of educational activities and ornithological presentations at the Eagle Creek Park Ornithology Center. Take bird walks on trails in the park and become an avi-ary ally. Find out what we can do to help with the conservation of Indiana’s birds.6515 Delong Road, Indianapolis, Ind. 46278

WATTS & WHATNOT ^photos by mark lee

6515 Delong Roaaaad, dd Indianapolis, Ind. 46278

Don Gorney is director of bird conservation and education at Amos W. Butler Audobon Society.


Like all med school graduates, Dr. Kevin Logan took the Hippocratic Oath, which among other things favors prevention over cure. But Logan also holds true to another nugget of wisdom from Hippocrates: “Let food be thy medicine and let medicine be thy food.”

Kevin Logan wears at least two hats: During the week, he’s Dr. Logan, attending to a devoted clientele at his Fishers medical practice. On weekends and many evenings, he’s Farmer Logan, overseeing activity on a 7-acre property in McCordsville, Indiana. And soon he’ll be Proprietor Logan, co-owner of a locally grown–food retail outlet near 71st and Binford Avenue.

Seemingly diverse roles, yes, but they’re more connected than they might first appear. An early passion for gar-dening fed an interest in health and medicine, and a desire to support healthy eating has driven Logan to not only grow his own, but to support other small farm-ers and make fresh, local, nutritious food available to a wider consumer market.

Sorting out which came first—the chick-en or the egg—gets a little complicated, but the roots of Logan’s interests lead back to his I.U. Bloomington days. Working toward a business economics and international

degree and living the “college lifestyle” distracted him from taking care of himself as he knew he should. “My senior year in college was my ‘aha moment.’” he recalls.

What hammered home his awakening was a post-grad stint in the Peace Corp. “I saw the needs of the population in the Dominican Republic. Women were trying to feed their family. They had very few vegetables in their diet and they were really malnourished. But they had very fertile soil,” which, he says, was more often than not used to grow tobacco to sell.

So, he learned gardening through a Peace Corp training program and soaked up everything he could about growing food, bringing back his new skills to the commu-nity. He became the health educator for the village, urging families to take advantage of the resource in their backyard.

Seeing the diet-health connection in the Dominican Republic, he says, sparked his interest in medicine. When he returned to the United States, he gathered the needed pre-requisites and was accepted by the Indiana University School of Medicine. He was selected as one of the first students to participate in the school’s medical pro-gram in Africa. Throughout med school, he used gardening as a stress-buster.

Logan did his residency in internal medi-cine at the University of New Mexico, during which time he worked in a public health clinic in a disadvantaged area of Albuquer-que. His list of specialties and subspecialties runs the gamut of “ologies,” but he says that something felt out of sync the more he learned: Traditional Western medicine seemed more about treating disease than maintaining wellness, he says. So he studied other forms of healing, including acupunc-ture and herbal medicine at the Interna-tional Institute of Chinese Medicine.

His hybrid skill set made Logan a perfect fit for the Marten Center for Complementary Medicine and Pain Management at St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis, where he worked until he opened his own practice, The Logan Institute for Health and Wellness.

FOOD AS MEDICINESince then, growing numbers of

patients have discovered Logan’s mind-body-spirit approach to wellness—one that focuses less on treating symptoms and more on identifying their root cause.

One of the biggest root causes of health problems is diet. “In cases of chronic

^photo by michelle craig

Kevin Logan (left) and Tom Wiles, on their 7-acre parcel, 20 miles east of Indianapolis.

KEVIN LOGAN MOVES FROM PHARM TO FARMBY BETSY SHELDON

DOCTOR • FARMER MEDICINE MAN


illness, incorporating dietary changes into patients’ lives really makes a world of differ-ence in how they feel. I talk about food all day long with my patients, the things they should be eating, the things they should be avoiding. I see things that you wouldn’t even expect would be food-related.”

Case in point: A young athlete in his mid-30s who’d played college sports and thought it was just injuries that caused his suffering. “He walked into my office like a 60-year-old man. I put him on an allergy elimination diet. Turns out he had several food allergies and when he went off those foods, he was back to his athletics.”

Another case: Shawndra Miller of India-napolis had always considered herself a fairly healthy eater. “I became much more aware of the impact of processed foods after becoming a patient of Dr. Logan’s. Whole foods and chemi-cal-free foods became the mainstay of my diet. I also learned that some items that might be OK for others to eat were not the best for me. For example, I never knew that peanuts and peanut butter are likely to have mold in them, and I’m extremely sensitive to that.”

Food allergies are often undiagnosed, says Logan, because their symptoms might suggest a problem that is treated with phar-maceuticals. Symptoms such as headaches, fatigue, bloating, and digestive problems. And a lack of the right foods can also be the culprit behind the same symptoms. “People are universally deficient in many minerals—magnesium in particular,” he says. “Magne-sium is involved in at least 300 biochemical reactions in the body. Low magnesium levels are extremely common in the United States, and can lead to cramps, muscle pain, heart palpitations, and low energy.”

Food, he says, is not always the preferred cure for all of his patients. He prescribes a supplement to combat magnesium deficiency. “It’s basically like eating two pounds of Brus-sels sprouts every day. Some people choose the pill, other people choose the food.”

FROM PHARM TO FARMBut Logan does more than prescribe food.

He grows it, too. Partnering with childhood friend Tom Wiles, he bought a 7-acre parcel 20 miles east of Indy in the spring of 2011. “I’d been salivating for land for 20 years. This was an opportunity that felt right. It was organic, it was clean, we knew how it was treated, every-thing was just perfect,” says Logan.

Wiles, who shares Logan’s zeal for whole, sustainable food, says the two had talked for years about parlaying that passion into a reality. “Kevin and I were always interested in food and cooking, dating back to grade-school days,” he

says. From school lunches to vegetarian-ism to macrobiotics to raw foods, “We have both kept evolving and will con-tinue to learn and grow in our pursuit for healthy, responsible food choices.”

With occasional help from hired labor and supportive neighbors and friends, Wiles and Logan manage the Abundant Harvest Farm themselves. “Tom oversees the day-to-day operations. I’m more the agricultural advisor, if you will, because I have experience growing things, and I understand the cycles and what needs to be planted when.”

Logan’s wife, Jacqueline, also plays an integral role in the farm’s big-picture opera-tions. With the help of their four kids, Oscar, Sophia, Emilia, and Ethan, the Logans and Wiles spent most of the early months taming the land, where 12-foot-high weeds ruled on soil that hadn’t been worked for three years. They still managed to haul in a healthy har-vest their first season. “This land was ready to plant. Anything that we put in the ground grows like Jack in the Beanstalk.”

BACK TO THE GARDENAs a physician, Logan has been teaching and

lecturing about eating healthy for years, but more recently, with the inspiration from his own growing experiences, he’s taking it further.

“I want people to have the basic skills and knowledge to manage their dietary health. So the next extension is how to grow your food.” His own version of “teach a man to fish.”

The lesson to his patients and other at-tendees? “When you grow it yourself, you know how your food’s been treated and where it came from. You get the highest nu-trient density because when you’re harvest-ing it within hours to days, its nutritional value far exceeds food that’s harvested weeks in advance of consumption.”

Understanding how personal food choices affect the planet is another message that Logan stresses. As a bonus, he says, home gardeners who replace their tidy, high-main-tenance grass lawns with beds of vegetables not only save money on costly fertilizers, herbicides and twice-weekly mowings, but they reduce the negative impact those chemicals and energy expense have on the local community and larger environment.

FEEDING THE SPIRITIn addition to lessons about a healthy

body and impacts on the environment, gardening also benefits the spirit, Logan says. “There’s something very grounding about putting your hands in soil.” He paints a bucolic word-picture of sunrises and sunsets, rainfall, dew clinging to blades of grass.

And sound-picture: hearing the bees on the alfalfa and clover. “You can’t necessarily see them, but you can hear them.” Logan seems to have a special connection to bee-keeping, waxing poetic about the wonders of the hive. “Opening the lid of the beehive and seeing the honey just fall everywhere because there’s such abundance—it’s phenomenal. They were making so much honey we couldn’t keep up with them.”

Although he gets stung a few times every season, his relationship with the bees is one of partnership and mutual respect. “You have to be really zen with the bees. You’ll be alright if you just work with them. They don’t want to lose their life.” Logan’s daugh-ters often join him in the honey-collecting, wearing their own child-sized bee suits.

“I started beekeeping not because I want-ed to get honey—I mean, we get honey and that’s great—but it was more about trying to propagate the species,” he says. “With the decline of the feral bees, if we didn’t they would continue dying out. It’s rare that you see feral bees any more. When I recognize a honeybee, it’s a good thing.”

Raising grass-fed beef is another oppor-tunity for spiritual reflection. A long-time-vegetarian-turned-omnivore, Logan remains mindful of the responsibility of eating meat. Currently, the Abundant Harvest Farm offers


Tom handles the bees.

“Ikth


beef, pork, and duck—processed locally by This Old Farm—with plans to expand the operation. “We know the animals are being taken care of responsibly and humanely. When we had our first steak from the steer, we gave thanks to the animal. I bring that up with the kids because it’s important for anybody who’s eating meat to know where it comes from.”

And they can’t get that message from the grocery store. “Skinless, boneless chicken breast that doesn’t even resemble chicken is quite easy to consume without thinking about where it came from. But if you’re the one who raises it and slaughters it, you might think twice.”

ONE-STOP SHOPThe next step in the mission to spread the

healing power of food: Logan and Wiles are launching a retail space not only for Abun-dant Harvest Farm products, but also for other local Indiana farmers of like mind. The store, yet to be named, is on track to open at the end of May, with a Grand Opening event set for Summer Solstice, June 21.

“It’ll be like a weeklong farmers market,” says Logan of the business, “offering Indiana products to the general public six days a week instead of one day. A lot of these farm-ers, after they close down at the market, if they haven’t sold their produce, it may go to the chickens. We want to offer an outlet for them to sell their excess produce.”

Logan envisions shelves filled with Indiana products, everything from honey to flowers to produce to meats, eggs, and dairy products. “The concept is, you could stop in the store on your way home from work and buy everything you need to make a meal that night that’s going to be healthy, locally grown, and locally produced. A one-stop shop.”

Eventually, the store will offer a range of prepared foods, as well. “We’re experiment-ing with fermenting right now,” says Logan. So expect pickled vegetables in addition to peach preserves, strawberry sauces, salsas,

heat-up dishes, and more. A commercial kitchen will afford plenty of processing space, as well as room for cooking classes. “We want to become a community resource where people can come in and prepare food and learn how to attain good health.”

DROUGHT, PESTILENCE AND OTHER PLAGUES

While overall positive, not everything about the farming experience has been a bowl of cherries, says Logan. There are all the expected challenges: drought, garden pests, plant diseases. And the serious issues regarding tainted wind drift and chemical GMO materi-

als that settle on the soil from nearby agri-businesses. “It’s always going to be a problem with any kind of organic garden or chemical-free operation. Unfortunately it’s everywhere. There’s nothing we can do about it.”

A bigger barrier, he reflects, may be in the setup of some of the farmers markets. “We couldn’t get into a farmers market because there was already a beef vendor and they didn’t want another one, even though we were grass-fed and the other one was not.” He says that the market policies can be ex-clusionary and that some small farmers have to wait years before they’re accepted.

Logan sees this situation as a serious detri-ment to the growth of the local food move-ment. “That’s big. We’re all trying to educate people, and the more people out there in the marketplace educating and selling, the better for the population. That exclusivity is detri-mental to the whole community.”

He appreciates the challenges to the small farm community. “It’s a limited market. A typical farmers market might last four hours. If they’re lucky, they can have two or three a week, but they have to sell all their products in that time, and I don’t blame anybody for feel-ing competitive. It’s a matter of survival.”

And that’s really the reason for the retail space, he says—to provide an outlet for those farmers to sell their products. “We’ll have bios on all the farmers. We want people to know who their providers are. We want to connect consumers with the farmers. Keeping everything local is good for the economy overall.”

In the end, however, it all comes back to health for Dr. Kevin Logan. And the distinc-tion between doctor, farmer, and business owner is negligible. “Food is at the foundation of all health,” he insists. “ ‘Physician’ means to educate. And as we educate and empower, I want people to learn how to take care of themselves. I want to work myself out of a job. These bodies do heal if you give them the right nutrients and remove the things that you’re putting in that cause harm.”


Bee keeping is not just about honey, says Logan. It’s about

propagating the species.


Matt Ewer possesses the hands of a capable man. His handshake is firm, and while moving through the warehouse of Green BEAN Delivery just off Pendleton Pike he constantly puts his hands to use. He hoists wooden palettes here, pulls down a delivery tub there and dispenses several handshakes and high-fives to employees wearing genuine smiles. Ewer’s hands work to keep his company, Green BEAN Delivery, running smooth-ly. They also toil with the land of his family farm dubbed Feel Good Farm.

Ewer, the CEO of Green BEAN Delivery, works on his family farm at least every Monday, and during the growing season he works in the field there even more.

“It’s more of a learning lesson and more of a humbling experience than anything I do,” says Ewer. “I wear multiple hats, and one of my hats is to be a farmer. That is probably the most rewarding and also the most challeng-ing experience I have.”

Ewer’s efforts involving sustainable farming are admirable, but his philan-thropic work and attempts to bolster the food system are equally noteworthy.

SUPPORTING SUSTAINABILITY Green BEAN Delivery resides along

highly trafficked Pendleton Pike — affec-tionately dubbed “produce alley” by the employees of the company — in Indianapo-lis. It seems to be an extension of Ewer. Like its CEO, the company is vibrant. Outside the warehouse a fleet of Nissan Envy deliv-ery trucks sit. Each is waiting to deliver a portion of the company’s 700 to 750 daily deliveries of organic produce, each one tucked away in a green plastic bin.

Emblazoned upon each van is a cartoon produce character. Peyton the Passive Pineapple, for example, marks one of the white vans along with Betty the Boring Brussels Sprout. “We’re acting unconven-tionally in an organic market,” says Ewer.

Green BEAN Delivery began in 2008 with Ewer and his wife, Elizabeth Blessing, and their Feel Good Farm in Sheridan, Ind. Since then it has expanded to include four warehouses located in Indiana, Ohio, Ken-tucky and Missouri. Each hub coordinates with 40 to 50 farms — all are either certified organic or practice natural, safe, sustainable methods. These hubs distribute the farmer s’

products to paying customers’ doorsteps. It started with Ewer seeking out lo-

cal farmers. Now, there’s been a shift. “Some people we go out and see. As we’ve gotten bigger a lot of people will come to us and want to get their prod-uct out with us,” says Ewer. “Basically, we support sustainable growers.”

The company features a primarily organic product line, gathered mostly from local farmers whenever possible. Preservatives are absent from their 1,000 individual products, and all of them are deemed healthy by Ewer. Conventional food is avoided as much as possible.

“We do some conventional food when the organic market gets completely screwed up,” says Ewer. “But we primar-ily stick with organic food.”

A CERTAIN FLEXIBILITYSometimes, however, it’s just not pos-

sible to stick with an entirely local menu. Weather conditions always play a role in de-termining Green BEAN Delivery’s options. “We have to be realistic about it as well,” says Ewer. “It’s wintertime. It’s 7 degrees. It

^submitted photo

The whole family: Grean BEAN Delivery wife and husband team, Elizabeth Blessing and Matt Ewer, with their child and dog.

GREEN BEAN DELIVERY AN INFLUENTIAL — AND TASTY — FORCEBY DEVIN ZIMMERMAN

DELIVERING SUSTAINABILITY


gets difficult. Is there efficiency in pushing a green house full of propane to grow lettuce? Is that environmentally sound?”

A certain flexibility — Ewer says he is not an “all-or-nothing” individual — allows Green BEAN Delivery to support local food consistently. Because they look to outside sources when necessary, the company maintains a large customer base that remains satisfied. This, in turn, allows the company to do more good.

“I’m more of a person that wants to make a commercially viable product out there in the market,” says Ewer. “Then when we give support to those local people we actually make an extreme impact because we have a good customer base, and we’re really able to put good support towards those farms.”

The importance of supporting small farms ran through Ewer’s mind even as a child. Growing up in Marion, Ind., Ewer’s family owned a small farm, which his father, an ac-countant, and mother, a teacher, ran during the summer. During the winter, Ewer’s fam-ily stayed in the city. Ewer believes this dual rural and urban lifestyle provided a good backdrop for his current career. “I under-stand a little of both worlds,” says Ewer.

In Marion as a child, Ewer would pick sweet corn at his family’s farm in the summer, load it into his red Radio Flyer wagon and travel door-to-door peddling his produce. His life of produce distribution began early. Even then, Ewer saw the importance of local foods.

“Growing up around the farm I’ve always wondered what the plight of American agricul-ture was,” says Ewer. “I had some very definite moments growing up — I could remember when in the late ’80s pork prices dropped and you could see the farmers starting to lose con-trol of their businesses and farms. As a young kid that kind of struck me and I started to feel that there may be a broken system. I asked dad, ‘What’s all this corn doing?’ Obviously it was field corn, it wasn’t sweet corn. It was go-ing into a much larger system.

“Just looking at that and understanding where large ag was going in this country and how it was getting further away from family farms kind of guided me to choose a career path where I felt like I could make an impact. That’s how Green BEAN Delivery was born.”

THE FARMER IS THE HEARTThe whole company functions under the

ideal that sustainable farming exists as an im-perative practice. Green BEAN Delivery allows this practice on a much larger scale, creating a distribution network that had not existed prior to the company’s inception. It allows farmers to reach out to consumers, something Ewer believes was holding back small farms.

“I would say that every system needs devel-opment,” says Ewer. “It’s the old horse before the cart saying. We’re part of that develop-ment. We’re part of the solution to help solve those problems. Distribution is the main issue with that. You look at something that was completely broken down and destroyed. It’s not gonna come back in one day.

“There’s all kinds of businesses that need to be part of a healthy food system. A lot of times the main issue is distribution and understanding how to distribute product. So we’ve thrown together a creative network of multiple local food hubs that’s able to bring an access point to several farmers and arti-sans. … To think that local food is part of that system, is part of fixing what that issue is.”

At the heart of this ideal is the farmer, a figure that has been romanticized throughout American history and in Ewer’s opinion, even more today. He believes the foodie movement has given rise to a new level of respect for farmers, who had been viewed for a period as participating in a low-end occupation. Now they are garnering the respect they deserve through mediums such as The Food Network.

“It’s absolutely 100 percent positive for the food community that farmers are looked at that way,” says Ewer. “That they are roman-ticized a little bit. Because I can tell you they deserve it. It’s the hardest job I’ve done.”

In addition to allowing small farms to reach a larger customer base, Ewer sets his sights on leaving an impact in another way as well. Through philanthropy and other initiatives Ewer has used Green BEAN Delivery as a vehicle for making an impact on communities.

Since the company began five years ago Green BEAN Delivery has donated 230,000 pounds of products in areas within its distribu-tion network. “Food security in this country is a serious issue,” says Ewer. “Anything that

we can do to help that issue, we want to be a part of. Not only do we donate, but we’re also networking with those groups constantly and creating different ways of creating revenue for them or donations. We also believe food banks should be getting more healthy food.”

GARDEN ON THE GOOne initiative, Garden on the Go, saw

Green BEAN Delivery paired with the Indiana University Health Initiative. Although Indiana University is the primary force behind the project, Ewer’s company acts as the operations manager for the project. It involves setting up farmers’ markets in the lobbies of apartment complexes where the residents are dealing with diabetes, obesity, heart disease and other issues related to an unhealthy diet.

“Less than 25 percent of Marion County residents eat the recommended daily amount of fruits and vegetables, which contributes heavily to Indiana’s high rates of obesity,” says Lincoln Saunders, Green BEAN Delivery’s project manager for the program, via email. “By improving access in communities with limited sources of fresh fruits and vegetables, Garden on the Go helps individuals and families improve their diet and lower their risk for obesity and other diet-related chronic diseases.”

Garden on the Go began with a pilot pro-gram involving eight people. Each was given a weekly stipend for Green BEAN Delivery. Over a six-month period the eight people lost a combined 80 pounds. The pilot program showed how effective the initiative could be and how instrumental local foods can be in im-proving people’s diets. “Making it convenient, making it affordable and making it accessible is a key component to people eating healthy,” says Ewer. “If they’re given a healthy choice, a positive choice, people, more or less, are going to make that positive choice.”

But the impact Green BEAN Delivery has had on the health of the community extends beyond the Garden on the Go program. Bless-ing works to spread the word on the health benefits of organic foods and the consumption of produce through the company’s Healthy Times blog, which is available to members of the service. “Speaking from a nutrition-ist’s point of view, our greatest achievement is creating a food system that is able to feed thousands of people every week fresh, seasonal produce and natural groceries,” Blessing says via email. “Our service allows families (and individuals) to make educated food choices that help to create a healthy family.”

The company’s efforts have seen success for a number of people. Chris Sanderson, a Green BEAN Delivery member and the founder of Food Trumps All, experienced

^submitted photo

Matt Ewer grew up in Marion, Indiana.


a dramatic improvement to his health. Ac-cording to Blessing, Sanderson switched to a diet that included more whole vegetables and fruits. He lost 35 pounds, his blood pres-sure dropped 20 points and his cholesterol levels dropped 55 points. “We are proud that our service has made eating well easier for Sanderson, and people like him, who have embraced a new way of eating, and improved their lives,” Blessing says in her email.

RAISING THE KIDS RIGHTAlong with health initiatives, education

within the community remains central to Ewer’s future plans for the company. Feel Good Farm possesses the potential to reach urban areas thanks to its semi-urban location in Sheridan.

Ewer’s goal is to lay the foundation for an educational program that informs students about supporting the local economy, nutri-tional needs and the environment. He hopes the program would be able to coordinate with local or school gardens. “That’s a big goal of ours,” says Ewer, “to make sure that children in the younger generation understand why it’s important to support the local economy, why it’s important to eat local food and why it’s important to eat sustainable food.”

Ewer’s efforts show no sign of waning. The dual entrepreneur-farmer believes the food movement and the push for more sustainable methods won’t either. However, it all depends upon the next generation of sustainable farmers, and he would like to have a hand in educating them. Ewer wants to create a foundation to educate future sus-

tainable farmers. “I feel like that’s the major concern I have looking at the industry in general,” says Ewer. “Where is the next gen-eration of farmers going to come from? It’s a tough business and it’s a hard business. I think people take for granted the education that goes behind being a farmer, and being a sustainable farmer is even harder than being a conventional farmer in my opinion.”

Perhaps through Green BEAN De-livery’s multiple education programs another individual such as Ewer, someone capable of creating such a large impact, will continue Ewer’s efforts.

“Those are the things that we’re interested in,” says Ewer. “This company is starting to act as an incubator for future generations to learn these tasks and look at creative business models and put them out themselves.”

submitted photo


Local farms offer one of the most delicious ways to show your love for the earth: CSA subscrip-tions. When you purchase a share in a farm with a CSA program, you directly support a local farmer. In return, you receive fresh food from the farm on a regular basis. In this partnership, you will share both the risks of poor harvests and

the rewards of bountiful seasons. You will also gain satisfaction and peace of mind knowing that your food is grown sustainably and does not travel thousands of miles before reaching your plate.

For a list of 30 CSAs in central Indiana, see Indi-anaLivingGreen.com. Here’s a sample, below.

BIG CITY FARMSLOCATION: Downtown IndianapolisGROWING METHOD: Repurposing urban lots, naturally grownLENGTH: 22 weeksMONTHS: Mid-May to mid-OctoberSHARES: Large $650-$850; Small $375-$500 (Market Rate or Fair Wage Rate, according to the shareholder’s budget)EXTRAS: Volunteer opportunities: [email protected]: NoINFORMATION: bigcityfarmsindy.com; 317-694-4299; [email protected]

Big City Farms in Indianapolis con-verts vacant lots into urban farming systems. These urban farms occupy eleven lots on the near east side of Indianapolis, producing vegetables and fruits. This CSA offers large-share and small-share memberships.

Read NUVO’s interview with the owner/farmer Matthew Jose.

BUTLER CAMPUS FARM (BCF)LOCATION: Indianapolis, pick-up at the farmGROWING METHOD: Naturally grown without synthetic fertilizersLENGTH: 21 weeksMONTHS: June-OctoberSHARES: Large $588; Small $378EXTRAS: BCF farm stand for non-share members, or share members looking to supplement their weekly pick-ups with other farm offeringsDELIVERY: NoINFORMATION: butler.edu/urban-ecology/urban-farm; 317-201-6721; [email protected]

The Butler Campus Farm, located by the university’s intramural fields just across the canal, is managed by the Center for Urban Ecology (CUE). The idea for a campus farm was proposed by Earth Charter Butler in the fall of 2009 and broke ground by January 2010. The CUE has since in-stalled a beepod to raise awareness about collapse of honeybee colonies and the importance of pollinators. Weekly shares will include a variety of fruits and vegetables.

SOUTH CIRCLE FARM LOCATION: IndianapolisGROWING METHOD: Non-certified organicLENGTH: 23 weeksSTART DATE: Mid-maySHARES: Full (feeds 2-4) $550EXTRAS: Berries, flowers and produce available for purchase upon pick upDELIVERY: NoINFORMATION: southcirclefarm.com; 317-446-9448

South Circle Farm, located in downtown Indianapolis, is run by Indy native Amy Matthews. Matthews created this CSA by stewarding land from a non-profit organization. South Circle Farm offers berries and produce grown utilizing non-certified organic methods. While the farm only offers a single share size for $550, the share is available for a longer period than most topping out at 23 weeks. As well as offering produce and berries, the farm also offers an assortment of flowers.

VALENTINE HILL FARMLOCATION: Zionsville with additional pick-ups in Broad Ripple and IndianapolisGROWING METHOD: Chemical-free, organic, non-GMOLENGTH: 21 weeksMONTHS: June-OctoberSHARES: Large $550; Small $370EXTRAS: 7-week spring season and 7-week winter season, baked goods availableDELIVERY: NoINFORMATION: valentinehillfarm.com; 317-733-9311; [email protected]

Valentine Hill Farm grows organic fruits and vegetables year-round at its Zionsville-based farm. Additionally, they produce baked goods with their organic ingredients. It pledges to exceed the standards of the USDA National Organic Food. Mem-bers can purchase shares in any combination of Valentine Farm’s spring, summer, and winter sea-sons. Members also may choose whether they would like to include baked goods in their shares.

CSAs: COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AGRICULTUREBY KATIE BREDEN AND DEVIN ZIMMERMAN


In the past few years, you may have no-ticed the phrases CAFO and CFO joining the ranks of EPA, CWA

and others in the alphabet soup of environmental jargon.

Known formally as Concen-trated Animal Feeding Op-erations (CAFOs) and Confined Feeding Operations (CFOs), these farms often come with undesirable side effects like unbearable smells and water contamination issues that make their neighbors miserable.

To address this, the Hoo-sier Environmental Council is launching a new project called the Community Assistance for Sustainable Livestock Farming program. The program devel-oped after the organization received countless calls from citizens like Janet Ecklebarger.

Ecklebarger, a resident of Kos-ciusko County, became interested in the issue when an 8,000 head hog farm made plans to locate in her backyard. Like many Hoo-siers, Ecklebarger moved to the Indiana countryside to enjoy open spaces and fresh air. Hogs by the thousands were not exactly what

she had envisioned. Determined to keep an open mind, she toured one of the local factory farm facili-ties. However, the smell and other conditions she experienced only served to confirm her fears.

One of the most complained-of side effects of factory farming, the smell Ecklebarger experienced was that of thou-sands of gallons of livestock manure which is stored in large

manure lakes called lagoons or in pits where it ferments over time. Ecklebarger described the smell as overpowering sour fermented ammonia. “The smell is not poop,” she said, “It’s infinitely more disgusting. Poop is a natural healthy smell. This is very different.”

Ecklebarger drafted an ordinance that would balance this growth with public health concerns by creating a cap on the number of factory farms that could locate in the area. Despite 1,100 signatures in support, the provision was voted down by the Area Plan Commission.

Unfortunately, Kosciusko County now has one of the high-est concentrations of CAFOs and CFOs in the state and numerous related water quality issues.

Ecklebarger’s story is a com-mon one—Hoosiers across the state have tried to plan for the development of CAFOs and CFOs in their communities but have experienced frustrations in making this a local government priority. Hoosier Environmental Council’s Community Assistance for Sustainable Livestock Farm-ing program hopes to address this by providing information and educational tools to citizens

interested in planning for factory farm development at the local level. Program attendees will learn about

factory farming, environmental and public health effects, and legal issues through educational semi-nars held across the state. The seminars will begin in April and run throughout the summer and are free. Contact me at [email protected] if interested.

Amelia Vohs is a Legal Associate at Hoosier Environ-mental Council.

New farming trendsraise a stink

hoosier environmental council by Amelia Vohs

Ecklebarger described the smell as overpowering sour fermented ammonia.


urban ecology by Travis Ryan

With the longer days and warming temperatures, the turtles of Indianapolis are reemerging

after a long winter. Nowhere is this more noticeable than in the Central Canal. It isn’t the least bit unusual to see several dozen in-dividuals stacked up on rocks and fallen trees – not to mention each other! – while strolling down the Central Canal Towpath Green-way in early spring. These turtles are basking in the sunlight, warming their bodies and elevat-ing their metabolism so that they can go about the business of spring – eating and mating.

However, the turtles (mostly common map turtles, red-eared sliders, and painted turtles) bask-ing along the banks of the canal are only the most visible members of the turtle community in India-napolis. Most of the turtles that live in the Central Canal rarely put on such a conspicu-ous display. Beneath the waters there are musk tur-tles, snapping turtles, and spiny softshells, moving slowly about the canal’s muddy bottom in search of food and each other.

There are quite literally thousands of turtles within the Central Canal, but they aren’t randomly or evenly distributed. The canal was designed for boats in the 1830s and uniformity was among the designers’ chief concerns. Fifty feet wide and five feet deep makes for an efficient shipping lane, but a fairly boring aquatic habitat. The city that grew up around the canal, how-ever, provides some diversity in the surrounding environment, and that shapes the way the turtles use the canal.

For example, when you see turtles in the Central Canal it is most likely because they are basking. Not all areas within the canal are equally suitable, as there needs to be something upon which they can bask. So, most bask-ing turtles are found either upon the riprap (the large white rocks) that border the canal in commercial areas or on logs associated with the remnant woodlots that line portions of the canal.

When it comes to nesting, turtles leave the canal in search of loose soils where a nest can be dug. The most disturbed and hence least compacted soils in urban areas are in landscaped beds in residential areas. And, when it comes to taking the long winter’s nap, most turtles head to those remnant woodlots, where they can wedge themselves amongst the roots from trees that line the bank and hold tight for three or four months.

Beyond the canal, there are thousands of turtles dwelling in the city’s retention ponds. These ponds, which are a part of nearly every housing sub-development or apartment complex built in Indianapolis over the last three decades, aren’t intended as habitat for wildlife. They have been created to deal with the substantial runoff associated with an increase of impervi-ous surfaces in areas of newer development. But just like the canal, these manmade bodies of water present turtles – and other animals with the ability to make the best out of a bad lot – with a refuge within the city.

Spring means ....the turtles return

Manmade bodies of water present turtles with a refuge within the city.


citizens action coalition by Jennifer Washburn

Some Hoosier communi-ties are considering replac-ing their more regulated coal plants for plants that instead burn biomass. Bio-mass incineration can use many types of different fuel sources: fuel crops, manure,

sewage sludge, trash, trees, and wastes from agriculture, construction, and wood. Biomass energy is becoming more popular, because in theory, it is considered renew-able since it uses organic wastes that society will continue to produce. But, contrary to the “green energy” promise of biomass, the reality is that it is a massive health risk and economic collusion against communities.

Based on a flawed federal definition of “renewable energy,” biomass incineration is eligible for multiple federal, state, and ratepayer subsidies and tax credits. This motivates companies to exploit small com-munities and their resources for profit, because it is not economically feasible to construct the projects without these incen-tives. Despite several failed attempts in Indiana already, most notably Milltown and Scottsburg, these companies continue trying

to convince Hoosier communities into mak-ing the unfair exchange of money for them and health hazards for you. Overwhelming public opposition and pressure on local elected officials ultimately killed the Mill-town and Scottsburg incinerator schemes.

Unfortunately, Logansport and Jas-per are still in the heat of the battle. Logansport Municipal Utilities and city officials are considering a plan to ex-change their existing coal plant for one that would combust 4,000-6,000 tons of pellets made from municipal solid waste per day, possibly requiring them to import additional pellets and/or municipal waste from other cities to maintain enough fuel. Citizens are beginning to organize against this community threat.

In Jasper, despite overwhelming public opposition, the Jasper Utility Service Board entered into a lease agreement with Twisted Oak Corporation to convert the city’s coal plant into a biomass plant that would burn 300 tons of miscanthus grass daily. A world-renowned University of Notre Dame professor, Dr. Shrader-Frechette, heard the call for help and conducted a study of the Jasper proposal.

She found that, “The number of deaths per year from particulates alone will easily exceed the number employed by the plant.” Furthermore, growing miscanthus for fuel could mean the use of as much as 300 an-nual tons of carcinogenic fertilizers.

The American Lung Association strongly opposes burning biomass as it could lead to significant increases in emissions of nitro-gen oxides, particulate matter and sulfur dioxide, and have severe impacts on the health of children, older adults, and people with lung diseases. In fact, biomass burn-ing emits more particulate matter per unit of energy than burning coal, which would increase the community’s risk of asthma, cancer, and heart and lung disease.

Shifting the energy paradigm is a neces-sity to protect public health, the qual-ity of our environment and mitigate the disastrous effects of climate change, while keeping more money in the public reserves by creating more jobs and saving ratepayer and taxpayer money.

What can you do? Educate political of-ficials on the health hazards of biomass in-cineration and the benefits of investing in energy efficiency, wind and solar. Consider supporting grassroots groups that work to protect their communities like Healthy Du-bois County and those concerned citizens organizing in Logansport.

Biomass not as clean as promised


submitted photo Scenes from last year’s JCC Earth Day Celebration.

Earth Day Indiana is one of the largest Earth Day festivals in the nation, compris-ing over 140 exhibits and activities. These exhibits focus on conservation and the envi-ronment, featuring live music, and an entire tent for kids’ activities, learning and food.

This festival is organized by a nonprofit corporation of the same name. Execu-tive director, Stephen Sellers said, “Our little group started in 1990 with a bunch of other organizations around the country to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Earth Day. The group organized, formed, and stayed together and have formed a festival every year since. We have grown to become one of the largest Earth Day events in the country thanks to great sponsors, good or-ganization, and all of the interest that has developed in environmental and conserva-tion issues.” Earth Day Indiana’s mission is to host this festival every April to support sustainable living and conservation aware-

ness, as well as other environmental issues.“People can come enjoy an outdoor event

in a wide open space, have a really good time with food and live music and maybe make some connections to pursue down the road. One of the things that is so impor-tant about what we do is we try to bring in organizations, businesses, and people that represent a variety of points of view and points of interest concerning environmental protection, conservation, natural resources, and sustainable living. Visitors have a variety from which to choose. We hope they take a look at different things and choose their own paths,” Sellers said.

In fact, Sellers himself was influenced by an Earth Day event. When he was a freshman at IU in 1970, students organized an Earth Day event that impacted not only him, but many of his classmates as well. It helped to direct his path and he hopes Earth Day Indi-ana can do the same for its visitors.

Volunteer positions are available in three-hour shifts to allow volunteers time to experience the event. Volunteers will help exhibitors set up and tear down, clear trash and recycling, guard bicycles, direct traffic and generally help other people at the event.

Stephen Sellers stressed that this event is great for families and people of all ages to meet other people and organizations, and simply enjoy a nice day outside. “You’ll see folks with gray hair like me and you’ll see young kids wandering around with their parents. When you look out across the field and see as many as 30,000 people, it looks like Indianapolis.”

EARTH DAY INDIANASaturday April 27th, 201311 a.m. to 4 p.m.White River State Park801 W. Washington St.Pets welcomePedal and Park bike corral available

APRIL EVENTS

Earth Day Indiana By Katie Breden

The second annual JCC Earth Day Cel-ebration, sponsored by Indianapolis Power and Light Company, will feature over 40 organizations, schools and businesses pro-viding hands-on activities that teach about the earth. These interactive exhibits will be family-friendly “learn by doing” experi-ences that engage children and adults alike. Many of Indy’s food trucks will be available for this celebration. Two radio stations will also be in attendance. Mindi Epstein, Sr. Vice President of Internal and External Relations at JCC Indy, said, “I think what distinguishes us from other Earth Day celebrations is that it’s all active learning, learning by doing. Studies show that you

are more likely to remember something if you have a hands-on experience.”

Highlights include “Raising Chickens in Your Backyard” by Central Indiana Poultry Enthusiasts, “Answer Mother Earth” ques-tion game by Citizens Energy Group, The Fence Art Festival sponsored by NUVO and Indiana Living Green, bird migration learning activities by the Amos Butler Audubon Society, Purdue University’s Solar Racing Team, Indy Parks’ staffed mobile learning center, and tree planting opportu-nities with Keep Indianapolis Beautiful.

“All participants create some sort of a proj-ect or active learning session or activity and they’re really excited about it,” Epstein said.

Volunteer positions are available for people 16 or older. Positions run in shifts according to which aspect the volunteer wishes to assist. The choices include set up, tree planting, the event itself, and tear down. Volunteers are welcome to sign up for more than one shift.

Admission is free, and the celebration will take place regardless of weather.

EARTH DAY COMMUNITY CELEBRATION AT THE JCCSunday, April 21, 201311:30 am to 3 pmJCC Indianapolis6701 Hoover Road

JCC Earth Day Celebration By Katie Breden


SCIENCE ON TAP: SCIENCE AND THE CHANGE YOUR WORLD FILM FESTIVALWednesday, April 3, 5:30Come to the City Market for a special film festival sponsored by the IUPUI Common Theme program. The film festival will feature highlight Indiana groups and their incredible work in addressing worldwide challenges. For example, learn about new scientific discoveries allowing for the provision of food and clean water to people in poverty. Science on Tap events, held in the Tomlinson Tap room on the sec-ond floor of City Market, feature 30 to 40 minutes of a formal presentation, preceded and followed by informal discussion over pizza and beer. 222 E Market Street, downtown Indy, Free

INTERFAITH ECO-FILM SERIES: “BACK TO THE GARDEN”Friday, April 12, 7:30 p.m.The Indianapolis Interfaith Eco-Film series continues with yet another award-winning film, Back to the Garden: Flower Power Comes Full Circle which catches up with a group

of back-to-the-land “hippies” who in 1988 went off the grid. Filmmaker Kevin Tomlinson captures poignant personal stories from these tribal families in rural America as he seeks to discover what became of their Utopia. Admission is free and soda as well as snacks will be available. 6450 Allisonville Road, Free

SERENDIPITY: A FESTIVAL CELEBRATING MIND, BODY AND SPIRITApril 26-28At press time for this issue, we were still trying to get an interview with the amazing Julia Butterfly Hill, who turned her stand of protecting a tree known as Luna from being chopped down into a national movement of ac-tivism. But she’s just one component of this three-day festival that will fea-ture 35 concerts, 32 yoga classes, 26 workshops, 6 best-selling authors, 5 great DJs, plus various healers, holistic practitioners, environmentalists, activ-ists, fire dancers, drumming circles, dancing, vendors, organic food, and more! The setting will not disappoint, either, as the event will be held on a beautiful 50-acre retreat property with lakes, forests, and trails. The event will be in Cloverdale Indiana, 40 minutes from Downtown Indy. Keynote Speaker Julia Butterfly Hill will teach a special workshop. Other special presenters in include: Paul Selig, Philip Shepherd, Phil Goldberg and George Wolfe. Musicians include Tina Malia, MC Yogi, Carrie Newcomer and Kristin Luna Ray. For more information, in-cluding full lists of others scheduled to attend, or to buy a ticket, please visit www.serendipityfestival.com.

Julia Butterfly Hill is keynote speaker at Serendipity.

EVENTS CONTD

submitted photo

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big blue marble appreciation day by William Saint

See solution in the May issue of Indiana Living Green.See March’s solution on pg. 22.


The ApocaDocs’ Pre-Apocalypse News & Info Quiz (PANIQuiz) tests your knowledge of current environmental news. Brought to you by the ApocaDocs, Michael Jensen and Jim Poyser. Check your results (at the bottom), then see www.apocadocs.com to find out more.

THE PANIQuiz

© 2013 William Saint

1. What erratic behavior are bats displaying at Great Smoky park?

__ a. Flying upside-down__ b. Walking like an “Egyptian”__ c. Genuflecting__ d. Attacking humans__ e. Flying in “infinity” patterns

2. What did a Spanish study about sperm counts reveal?

__ a. Sperm counts are holding steady!__ b. Sperm counts are rising at the same rate as global warming.__ c. Men prefer when women conduct this study.__ d. Men are embarrassed to participate in this study.__ e. Sperm counts are falling at an alarming rate.

3. How is Ohio State University saving a million bucks a year?

__ a. Decreasing enrollment__ b. Wind power__ c. Fracking on its campus__ d. Decreasing scholarships__ e. Recycling

4. To reduce methane emissions, what is a college student using on sheep?

__ a. Absorptive burp masks__ b. Fart vacuums__ c. More exercise__ d. Therapeutic essential oils__ e. Shame

5. What does a new analysis reveal, regarding small oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico?

__ a. They are “set afire by rowdy teenagers.”__ b. They are “now delicious to fish.”__ c. They are “often much larger than reported.”__ d. They are “easily digested by bacteria.”__ e. They are “no longer harmful to aquatic life.”

6. What has happened to the US’s renewable energy capacity in the past few years?

__ a. It has nearly doubled.__ b. It has diminished.__ c. Its portfolio includes primarily switchgrass.__ d. It has overtaken fossil fuels.__ e. Its portfolio doesn’t include switchgrass.

7. According to a new study, what appears to be the most important factor regarding US belief in climate change?

__ a. Peer influence__ b. The media__ c. The weather__ d. Upbringing__ e. Lack of intelligence

8. What is unique about tar sands and its average “energy returnedon investment”?

__ a. It’s hardly worth it.__ b. The ratio is 2.9 units of energy for every unit gained.__ c. All of these answers are pretty much true.__ d. The ratio is 5 units of energy for every unit gained.__ e. It’s five times or more worse ratio than for conventional oil.

9. Fish exposed to mood-altering drugs do what?

__ a. Sing__ b. Swim faster__ c. Get depressed__ d. Eat faster__ e. Eat each other

10. While 40,000 Keystone XL protesters were gathered in DC,what was Obama doing?

__ a. Golfing with oil men in Florida.__ b. Hiding in the White House.__ c. Sleeping at Camp David.__ d. Planting trees in North Carolina.__ e. Auditioning for a spot on The Voice.

get off my (eco-landscaped) lawnMARCHSOLUTION:

Answers: 1. (d): Attacking humans (Washington Post); 2. (e): They are falling at an alarming rate. (London Daily Mail); 3. (b): Wind power (Columbus Dispatch); 4. (d): Therapeutic essential oils (Essex Chronicle); 5. (c): They are “often much larger than reported.” (Nature); 6. (a): It has nearly doubled. (Bloomberg News); 7. (c): The weather (University of British Co-lumbia); 8. (c): All of these answers are pretty much true. (Inside Climate News); 9. (d): Eat faster (Umea University); 10. (a): Golfing with oil men in Florida. (Huffington Post); Bonus question! (b): Eat half as much meat as usual. (London Guardian)

ASK RENEE

Q: I’m disappointed our cloth diaper service (Changing Times Diaper

Service) is going out of business in March. I can’t find another service in the Indy area. Do you know of one? The Honest Company has biodegradable diapers which we use on occasion. It’s not very environmental to wash our own and I’m overwhelmed as it is with a full time job and new baby. Do you know of any other local diaper service or someone willing to buy out this business? :)

Thank you,Lisa

Hi Lisa,

Well, that just stinks! It’s sad to see a local business close its doors. Un-fortunately, there is not another cloth diaper service in Indianapolis.

The proud parents of Toasty Baby offer Clothing Diapering 101 classes and they will soon add a Washing 101 class, but you still have to do the dirty work. Congratulations to Toasty Baby’s mom and pop owners on the birth of their second child this past week!

For those of you in Bloomington, Fort Wayne, and North-Central, North-East, and Southern Indiana, cloth diaper services are available in your area. For those of you in Indy who are tired of your boss’ sh…nonsense, maybe it’s time for a change to a busi-ness in baby poo.

If you’re skeptical on whether cloth diapers are the greener choice, consider these facts:

• It is estimated that 27.4 billion disposable diapers are used every year in the U.S.

• Disposable diapers are the third larg-est single consumer item in landfills.

• Cloth diapers reduce waste for families with children in diapers by more than 50%.

The Real Diaper Association is a great resource for those interested in more info.

Piece out,Renee

Got a question for Renee? [email protected]


Look for the May issue of ILG on stands April 29

Our May issue will feature KI Ecocenter, a community

organization geared toward kids learning about sustainability. Plus, a eco-race car design!

Eating well, living well and feeling good...

half-hour weekly radio program.

SAT. 11:30AM &

WED. 5:00PM

AnotherDayofLiving.com

EARTH DAY COMMUNITY CELEBRATIONCALL FOR ARTISTSCALL FOR ARTISTSneed a new way to showcase your talents?

• juried art competition• 2D and 3D artists welcome

• 8’ wide section of fence to work with• art must be installed in 1 day• environment/ nature themed

• prizes awarded

SAT, APRIL 21, 2013SAT, APRIL 21, 2013LIMITED SPACE AVAILABLE.

For more info or to submit art examples, contact Mindi at

[email protected]

Documents

Indiana Living Green - April 2013