May 29, 2008
My friend, mentor, and personal hero Bob Jonas is featured in the Summer 2008 issue of Sun Valley Guide.The article, written by Scott Douglas (another rock star), is specifically about the Wild Gift program that Bob founded in his "retirement" from wilderness guiding.
Wind making headlines again in Vermont
May 21, 2008
To many of the folks with whom I work, it's no secret that I'm an advocate of developing wind as an energy resource in Vermont. It's an extremely sensitive issue up here; as a result there has been a lot of controversy and very little action. Those who are interested should check out Ken Picard's thoughtful cover story on wind in this week's issue of Seven Days, Burlington's indie newspaper.
Applicants wanted for 2008 Wild Gift
March 3, 2008
News from Tamarack's Idaho office... I launched a new website and leader network for Wild Gift. Check out the site and forward to folks who might be interested in applying for this amazing opportunity! Below is a call for proposals. Feel free to email me if you have questions.
*Organization Seeks Better World Entreprenuers*
Are you a young woman or man, age 21-30, who wants to serve your fellow
human beings and wild nature? Who is ready to make that dream a reality
today? Then Wild Gift wants to honor your commitment to make a difference.
Wild Gift is a five-year-old nonprofit organization based out of Sun Valley,
Idaho, that supports leader action. Its unique 17-month program launches
projects promoting wildlands stewardship and sustainability at the community
and individual lifestyle level. Wild Gift selects and works with five
leaders each year. Grants, ranging from $10,000 to $15,000, are given to
each leader depending upon project scope. Projects may be local or
international. The Wild Gift program, open to US citizens only, is provided
at no cost to the recipient.
The program consists of four components: 1) mentoring to help shape
project proposals and empower leaders; 2) a 20-day deep wilderness trek; 3)
continuing support to ensure the project's first year success; and 4) a
7-day enrichment trek after the launch year to share project results and
strategize for continuing success. A new component is participation in the
development of Wild Gift's Leader Network.
Please visit Wild Gift on the web at www.wildgift.org for more information
and to download an application. Applications are due on April 1, 2008.
Jaime will rock you upside down!
January 9, 2008
Tamarack's audio wizard, Jaime Garamella, is set to release his debut album, Upside Downer, on Valentine's Day. Listen to all the tracks and pre-order the CD on his website, it's only $7 and it will last longer than chocolates or roses. Oh, and it rocks harder, too.
I whipped up a little music video of the title track... set on Burlington's waterfront. Enjoy while bearing in mind that I spent only three hours editing the video while Jaime spent about three months editing the music. Those guitar licks are sooo tasty.
Time to open Tamarack's Idaho office
November 6, 2007
Exciting news from the world's slowest blogger! My good friend Jenna Ringelheim and I are taking the reins of Wild Gift so the organization's founder (and my personal guru), Bob Jonas, can finally take a long-awaited trip to Nepal with his wife.
For those of you not familiar with Wild Gift, it's an awesome grant program for young conservation leaders that includes a year of funding and three weeks of deep wilderness immersion.
My new job means I'll be spending more time in Idaho, but I'll continue to devote that majority of my time to Tamarack projects. I was there in September for the annual class reunion and Board retreat -- kayaking down the Middle Fork of the Salmon River (photos) -- and I'll be heading back out there again in December and April. I'll be designing a new website this winter that will include profiles of all the recipients and their projects. Let me know if you're interested in applying for a Wild Gift grant or supporting this incredible organization!
Our newest lake monster might have boogers
September 6, 2007
Our office is on Lake Champlain, which provides a spectacular foreground for sunsets over the Adirondacks and a home for lake monsters.
'Champ' is our most famous lake monster, but we also have a number of invasive, exotic species that are rather monster-like, too. The Vermont Agency of Natural Resources recently held a two-day conference to address the spread of an algae called
rock snot that was discovered this summer in three of our state's rivers. If it reaches Lake Champlain, it will surely challenge the sea lamprey for the title of the lake's grossest resident.
Thanks to Kate Fink for spotting this story. She has been helping us with pre-production research for our planned 2008 documentary, Mysteries of Lake Champlain.
The 'Dacks on a liquid diet
August 10, 2007
I realize that, more often than not, I am using this blog as an excuse to share vacation photos. I guess I'm not much of a blogger... I'm more of an uncle who digs out the slide projector whenever you happen to visit.
Anyhoo... Laura, Willy, and I just returned from a few nights in the Adirondacks. We ditched the tent in favor of one of those "efficiency cabins" because Laura has to blend all of her food while her jaw is wired shut (bike accident).
I think we found one of the more beautiful spots on the grid -- Lake Kiwassa. Willy is now a champion canoe passenger and cliff jumper (he practiced by flying out of my second story window a couple of times). Here are the pics.
If you mess with our cows...
July 2, 2007
Happy 4th, everyone! It's been nice and cool here in Vermont lately, so climate change isn't nearly as trendy a topic as it was back when we had no snow in January. But the '802' rappers from Montpelier High School are doing their best to make sure we don't forget with their new music video.
I'll admit I wasn't too sure why these guys were such a hit on YouTube (and the NY Times, etc.) with their first video, but now they've won me over. "If you mess with our cows, we will break yo' knees!"
Finding wilderness in Florida
May 9, 2007
I took a break from our busy production schedule to spend a few days backcountry camping with my girlfriend, Laura, at Florida's Canaveral National Seashore. Here you can rent your own island for $10/night, paddle amongst dolphins and manatees, and play in the surf without another human in sight.
For a lay of the land, check out this panoramic photo. On the left is Cape Canaveral, where we were treated to an extremely rare sighting of a Florida panther! On the right you can see where we camped, on Orange Island -- the most distant visible land beyond Laura.
I highly recommend this trip to anyone looking for some warmth and wilderness.
The Jerry Maguire of Climate Change
February 13, 2007
Jeremy Grantham is an investor and the father of Oliver, our good friend from grad school. Mr. Grantham recently made headlines for sending his clients -- including Vice President Dick Cheney -- a memo titled, "While America Slept, 1982-2006: A Rant on Oil Dependency, Global Warming, and a Love of Feel-Good Data."
This courageous move reminded me of Jerry Maguire, except this time it's real and the cause is climate change! Read the full story from The Street.
Convenient Truths: a green video contest
January 22, 2007
If you saw 'An Inconvenient Truth' and were left hoping for a sequel that would provide some solutions to the climate change crisis, here's a cool video contest that you might enjoy checking out:
It's sponsored by Seventh Generation, our neighbors here on the Burlington waterfront.
T-Rack California Tour!
November 1, 2006
Here are some of my photos and a very rough video montage from our recent trip to California, where we were filming for projects for National Audubon and the Center for Whole Communities.
Not only did we see California condors in the wild, but one actually damaged our rental car by tossing a boulder at it.
We were not harmed by any of the other animals pictured.
