Dear USA TODAY Editor,

Nail the coffin shut on America, free thinking has apparently become a waste of time and money. Or so you might think if you read USA Today’s cover story for November 19, 2008. Here, reporters expose a horrifying trend that college athletes overwhelmingly pursue *gasp* social science degrees. At first gloss, it doesn’t seem to be much of a story; that some athletes look for an easy academic load and cluster around so-called ‘easier’ majors fits the stereotype. But a closer look at the story reveals a wholesale condemnation of liberal arts and social sciences degrees, by the authors, by those directing the study, and those asked to comment, as a waste of effort, a waste of money, and as incapable of providing people with any valuable skill. (more…)

I wrote this note to my colleagues at UAF from a small village in Mexico. I thought anyone who still checks out this site might like to read it as well… Greetings and salutations from Tucson! I hope that my letter finds you in good health and not too frozen. I myself have adjusted to the milder weather and now can understand what motivates the snowbirds to travel so far each year. Arizona has been a kind and friendly destination so far, and my hosts here at the Sonoran Institute are as hospitable as one could hope.

I think that I could not have chosen a more enlightening, yet grounding internship experience.  

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I’m traveling this week to the island of Unalaska, home of the famous ‘Dutch Harbor,’ featured in the Discovery Channel’s hit show Deadliest Catch. Its a preliminary research trip, and I had the opportunity to interview with the local public radio station.

A story can be found here.

And when the audio is up for the interview, I’ll share that as well.

A recent hubbub in the Fairbanks city council about banning the much-loved pass-time of dumpster diving has got me thinking about self reliance: about the economics of self reliance, its relationship to environmental stewardship and sustainability, and of obstacles like this silly ban that governments and businesses so frequently put in the way of achieving it. If there has been one unifying theme behind the articles of my column Outpost Agriculture, it is the importance of building self reliance back into our communities. In this three-part series that our editor has so graciously offered to publish, I will explore the concept of self reliance, not just to define it but to justify it as a strategy that everyone can participate in for making positive impacts on their communities and local environments. The pursuit of self reliance is an inalienable right of every person and community. We need to come to understand that, and learn to recognize the many obstacles that both we and other people have placed in its way, so that we may discard them and change our lives for the better. (more…)