CURRENT 2009 NEWSLETTER
2010 WEI INTERNSHIPS (now available)
BECOME A WEI (NEW or RENEWED) MEMBER
SNEAK PREVIEW FOR NEW WEI MEMBERS
WEI is a membership-driven organization. We are opening 2010 with a renewed membership drive to help bring in more supporting members and offer you as members more opportunities to participate in WEI events, planning meetings and happenings. In addition, WEI offers many optional benefits to members as well as the knowledge that your membership keeps us connected and keeps WEI going. Check out our membership page for more information. Encourage yourself and your friends to find a place with WEI. If you are a current member, consider an early renewal in 2010.
Individual memberships @ $48/year and double memberships for you and a friend @ $58/year. Memberships are available
on-line or by mail (send check and your e-mail address(s) to WEI, P.O. Box 128, North Branch, MN 55056). PHOTO: WILL ALLEN WITH WEI/LITTLE EARTH URBAN FARMING PROJECT
A MESSAGE FROM KAREN JOY CLARK, WEI EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR:
The year gone by --2009 -- has been a very exciting and challenging time for WEI! In brief, WEI has made stunning progress in each of our two Environmental Justice Education and Advocacy Collaboration (EJEAC) projects— the Phillips Neighborhood EJEAC in South Minneapolis and East Metro EJEAC in the East Metro/East St. Paul community. They are both bringing important national attention and resources to WEI’s innovative environmental justice and food justice work in the inner city and the metro area. WEI has also had a successful Community Supported Agriculture Project (CSA) at the Amador Hill farm campus despite a severe early drought this summer. WEI’s fourth year of Organic Farm School had full and active attendance in a new location at the Midtown Global Market and will be expanded into a new Earth Justice and Sustainability Studies education program to begin in Spring 2010. The Eco-Aware Project providing “safer home products and environment workshops” in both rural and city locations and our policy advocacy work with Healthy Legacy was successful in helping produce historic new protections against toxics in consumer products, including baby bottles. The North Circle Project has added several successful new local farmer members to WEI’s organic farm marketing program and a new Motherhouse Capital campaign is being launched for WEI’s farm campus.
The best news for us this year is that WEI has been named a Growing Power Regional Outreach Training Center which means that we will be developing our farm campus and our farm education program in collaboration with Will and Erika Allen from Growing Power, Inc. (Milwaukee and Chicago) to provide training, workshops, classes and many volunteer opportunities for developing organic urban and rural farming and food justice communities in our region. Will Allen, the brilliant founder and CEO of Growing Power Inc., an intensive and highly acclaimed urban farm/food justice center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, may have said it best: “Growing Power is proud to partner with WEI as a new Regional Outreach Training Center in Minnesota. WEI really gets how to link up environmental justice with the food justice revolution. Not everyone does. And WEI also has the culturally appropriate infrastructure to make all cultures feel welcome.” These projects and programs are each highlighted on our website and are important to celebrate! WEI is accomplishing our environmental/agricultural and food justice mission with a unique coallition of rural and urban Indigenous, low-income and communities of color and with women’s voices and priorities leading the way to change lives and to change public policy.
We welcome you to a new or renewed 2010 WEI membership. Check out below WEI's programs and projects. Contact us if you are interested in getting involved in any of these projects or the new ROTC project. We would love to hear from you.
For more information and updates on WEI's projects and programs: Farm Program, EJEAC Research/Community Advocacy, Earth Justice and Sustainability Studies, Eco-Aware Project and Healthy Legacy Coalition, Land Registry Project, Eco-Retreat Center, Internhship and Fellowship Support, WEI's Wish List.