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Special thanks to our Partners and Sponsors:
Central Carolina Community College – Chatham County Campus
Co-presenting the 3rd Annual Climate Change Adaptation Conference, Central Carolina Community College is a hub of sustainability education in the Triangle. CCCC’s Chatham county campus is home to its renowned sustainability program, offering degrees in Alternative Energy Technology: Biofuels, Sustainability Technologies: Green Building and Renewable Energy, Sustainable Agriculture, Ecotourism, and Natural Chef Culinary Arts. We offer a special thanks to our partner, Central Carolina Community College.
Center for Environmental Farming
Since 1994, The Center for Environmental Farming (CEFS) has been changing the way we farm here in North Carolina. CEFS “develops and promotes just and equitable food and farming systems that conserve natural resources, strengthen communities, improve health outcomes, and provide economic opportunities in North Carolina and beyond.” A partnership between North Carolina State University, North Carolina Agriculture and Technical State University, and the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services , CEFS is one of the nation’s most important centers for research, extension, and education in sustainable agriculture and community-based food systems. To learn more, visit www.cefs.ncsu.edu.
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. was established in 1979 by homebrewers Ken Grossman and Paul Camusi in Chico, California, USA. Sierra Nevada Brewing is one of the top breweries operating in the United States. Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. won the US Environmental Protection Agency’s “Green Business of the Year” award for 2010. The brewery is powered by solar energy, having 10,000 photovoltaic modules covering its rooftops and parking lot. The company processes used cooking oil from its restaurant for biodiesel use in its delivery trucks. Over 99.5% of the brewery plant’s solid waste is diverted from landfill. Sierra Nevada is the largest buyer of organic hops in the United States.
WUNC
North Carolina Public Radio, WUNC-FM, is a “trusted source of objective and transformational content reflecting our region and expanding our collective understanding of a global community.” Heard from the Piedmont to the coast, WUNC strives to inform, engage, and connect with the community with the utmost integrity – delivering high-quality news, cultural, and entertainment programming. Listen in to 91.5 FM in the Triangle, 88.9 Manteo in the Northeast outer banks and coastal communities, and 90.9 Rocky Mount in the “Down East” region of North Carolina. WUNC also streams live 24/7 – bringing the world home to you.
Uwharrie Bank
The Uwharrie Bank is a financial services company committed to enhancing the economic vitality of counties and communities making up the Uwharrie Lakes Region of North Carolina. They make it their mission to empower people with financial literacy and the resources to reach financial independence, build authentic relationships to understand and meet the needs of the community they serve, and to provide excellent stewardship of the resources entrusted to them. Uwharrie bank is “working to promote a new economy that capitalizes on our community values. Through land-use planning, conservation and preservation, we can control the development of our region and plan for the type of environmentally-friendly growth we want.”
Fund for Democratic Communities
Since 2007, the Fund for Democratic Communities (FD4C) has given over $1 million in grants to support community-based initiatives and institutions “that foster authentic democracy to make communities better places to live.” This Greensboro based private foundation serves communities of the Southeast, primarily North Carolina, in furthering grassroots democratic organizing efforts and promoting grassroots economies. F4DC believes strongly in the power of participatory democracy to further social change and economic justice objectives. By awarding matching grants, the Fund for Democratic Communities helps nonprofits and community groups build a solid foundation of financial support that is sustainable. We offer a special thanks to FD4C for our matching grant, catalyzing this very conference.
NCAT
Since 1976, the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) has been helping people by championing small-scale, local and sustainable solutions to reduce poverty, promote healthy communities and protect natural resources. In partnership with businesses, organizations, individuals and agricultural producers, NCAT is working to advance solutions that will ensure the next generation inherits a world that has clean air and water, energy production that is efficient and renewable, and healthy foods grown with sustainable practices. More information about its programs and services is available at www.ncat.org or by calling 1-800-ASK-NCAT.
RAFI
The Rural Advancement Foundation International is a nonprofit organization based right here – at home – in Pittsboro, NC. RAFI’s mission is “to cultivate markets, policies, and communities that sustain thriving, socially just, and environmentally sound family farms.” This foundation envisions a world where family farms earn a dependable income, agriculture laborers are respected and valued by the society they feed, our resources are preserved for future generations, our land produces abundant food that is accessible to all, and the full diversity of seeds and breeds are publically protected. RAFI works both nationally and internationally, from global to local, to address trends and changes in agriculture that affect farmers worldwide and right here at home.
Mellow Marsh Farm
Since 1996, Mellow Marsh Farm has specialized in the propagation of wetland plants native to the Southeast. Owned and operated by Sharon Day and Joan McLean, Mellow Marsh is located on 40 acres in Silk Hope, NC. All of their plants and plant material are grown from seeds collected in the Carolinas and Virginia and meet specifications for: wetland mitigation, stream restoration, storm water management, and rain gardens. For a current catalog, visit www.mellowmarshfarm.com.
Country Farm and Home
Since 1993, Country Farm and Home has served farmers, gardeners, trail riders, and landscapers alike in Chatham Country. Located in the heart of Pittsboro, this family owned and operated store helps our community “grow food naturally & nutritiously while nurturing the soil.” From seeds to soil enhancers – from curie combs to Carhartts – Country Farm and Home meets our community’s needs locally to help us to farm our food, grow our gardens, and raise animals.
Southeast Regional Climate Hub
The Southeast Regional Climate Hub (SERCH) was established by the US Department of Agriculture to bring farmers, ranchers, and forest land managers science-based and practical information on dealing with the effects of climate change. SERCH aims to provide support, strategies, and tools for producers throughout the Southeast to cope with challenges associated with our changing climate – such as drought, heat stress, excessive moisture, and longer growing seasons. SERCH is partnering with NCSU and other institutions in an effort to bring regionally relevant climate change adaptation information to our region. For more information, visit http://globalchange.ncsu.edu/serch/about/
Chatham Marketplace
By definition, a cooperative is an independent group of people joining freely to meet their common economic, social, and cultural needs via a community owned and democratically governed business. Chatham Marketplace is a co-operative business in Pittsboro, NC owned entirely by members of the community – more than 2,200 households.
Piggly Wiggly
From modest roots in 1916 Memphis to a present day 600 stores in 17 states, Piggly Wiggly is one of the best know groceries in America. Founded by Clarence Saunders, this company is coined as the first grocery store to use a self-service method of shopping – meaning the customer handles and picks their own products – as well as franchise independent grocers to operate under this self-service method. Today, Piggly Wiggly stores are still independently owned and operated. Serving communities in the Southeast, including Pittsboro, “Mr. Pig” holds to the motto “when it comes to value and freshness, you can’t beat Piggly Wiggly.”
Counter Culture Coffee
For the past 20 years, Counter Culture Coffee “has represented a different way of bringing coffee to market: sourcing incredible handmade coffees directly from farmers and cooperatives, and roasting so that we bring out their unique flavors.” With a dedication to environmental, social, and fiscal sustainability, Counter Culture has worked to produce some truly amazing brews while respecting coffee’s “diverse traditions and origins.” What sets them apart is transparency; coffee that comes from Counter Culture is roasted, packed, and shipped all in the same day, with the name of the farm or co-op it comes from proudly printed on the package. From farm to cup, Counter Culture is passionate about pursing coffee perfection.
Fair Game Beverage
Based out of our home – Chatham County, North Carolina – Fair Game Beverage aims to craft quality libations that are as wholly unique as the county itself. From Sorghum to scuppernongs, all ingredients for these Southern fortified wines and spirits are sourced locally and wholesomely. Fair Game says it best: “Our list of locally-sourced ingredients reads like a trip to the county fair, where the best of the season’s harvest is on display. From the Haw River Valley grapes in our deliciously dry Two Step, to the hints of aromatic scuppernong in our Tipper, there’s a little bit of home in every sip.” Keep an eye out this Fall for their new line of spirits, including their much anticipated Apple Brandy and Sorghum Cane Spirit.
Slow Money NC
Since 2010, Slow Money NC has been a catalyst for community financing for local, sustainable farmers and food entrepreneurs in North Carolina and beyond. Founded by Chatham Co. champions Carol Peppe Hewitt, Lyle Estill, and Jordan Puryear – Slow Money NC has catalyzed 147 low-interest loans to over 60 enterprises, totaling over 1.2 million dollars. Recently, this non-profit has taken its wisdom beyond the bounds of North Carolina and onto the open road with Running on Local – a campaign on all things local, brought to rural communities in the Southeast. Slow Money NC is slowly bringing the local back to finance.
