The Organic View

From urban farms to the White House, beekeeping is a trend that seems to be here to stay. Honeybee is the story of beekeeping pioneer, C. Marina Marchese’s inspiring story of one woman’s transformative relationship with honeybees. It is an experience that changed her life as well as her perception of the natural world and her role in it. It is bursting with information about all aspects of honeybees, beekeeping, and honey. From life inside the beehive, to the role of the queen, workers, and drones; from pollination and its importance in sustaining life to the culinary pleasures of honey; and from hiving and keeping honeybees to the ancient and venerable practice of apitherapy, or healing with honey, pollen, and bee venom. In addition, recipes for food and personal care products are sprinkled throughout, supplemented by a detailed appendix of 75 different varieties of honey (including food and wine pairings for each). The book, written in a warm and confident voice is illustrated with charming drawing. Honeybee shows that taking a chance and pursuing your deepest desires really can lead to a more fulfilling life and a successful new career. It is also an irresistible look at one of the most delicious and natural sweeteners in the world and the industrious creatures that create “liquid gold” as Marina calls it. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Author, Marina Marchese, about beekeeping and her love of honey. Stay tuned!

Everyone is familiar with the nursery rhyme, “Mary, Mary, quite contrary, How does your garden grow?” For some, a garden is not just a place to grow pretty flowers and vegetables but rather a place to connect the relationship between mankind, nature and the Creator. This is basically what is referred to as a Spirit Garden. There are various rare and sacred plants that are used for medicinal purposes, divination, cosmetics, textiles, food, etc. Family and community food production is the objective of the Slim Buttes Agri-Dev Project. Its mission is to sustainably grow food in a hostile environment (located in the southern tier of the Badlands) amongst a depressed and afflicted populace. Although The Pine Ridge Indian Reservation is the eight largest reservation in the USA, it is the 2nd poorest. Running Strong for American Indian Youth, is a national organization that helps people meet their immediate survival needs by organic gardening, despite the problems and challenges which they are faced with. Their advisory board is composed of a special group of leaders in American Indian communities across the United States. They are an important resource to ensure that their programs preserve, promote and respect Indian culture and values. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak Tom K. Cook, Director, Slim Buttes Agriculture Development Project about Spirit Gardening.  Stay tuned!

When you buy certified organic food grown in Mexico, South or Central America, how can you be sure that it really is organic? The conscious consumer is now, more than ever paying attention to the country of origin as well as to how exactly food is produced. With the large agro-chemical companies exploiting farmers across the globe, the purity of food and proof thereof is in demand. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Garth Kahl, the Latin American Program Coordinator for Oregon Tilth Certified Organic (OTCO). Oregon Tilth is a nonprofit organization supporting and promoting biologically sound and socially equitable agriculture through education, research, advocacy, and certification. If you have ever wondered about the testing of organic products originating in Latin America, stay tuned! Bio: Garth Kahl has a degree in agriculture from Cornell University and a certificate in Ecological Horticulture from the Farm and Garden Project at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Since 1996, he has worked as an organic inspector, reviewer and consultant, both in the US and in ½ dozen Latin-American countries. For years this involved spending one quarter to one third of the year living and working with people in these areas.  Together with his wife and another business partner, he also owns and operates a small, diversified organic farm in the coast range of western Oregon. Garth is passionate about organic food and believes whole-heartedly that people should learn where there food comes from. In the case food from Mexico and South America, Garth believes people have nothing to fear, and that once people have the whole story, they will understand that their organic food choices can have a positive impact, even when they can’t buy locally produced organic food.

Over the voiced concerns of the country's top scientists, the cancer-causing strawberry pesticide methyl iodide was approved for use nationally in the last days of the Bush Administration. Called "one of the most toxic chemicals on earth," methyl iodide causes late-term miscarriages, contaminates water and is so effective at causing cancer that scientists use it to create cancer cells in the lab. Finally, Obama's EPA is taking public comments about the pesticide. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Tracey Brieger, Co-Director, Californians for Pesticide Reform, about the dangers of using this pesticide and why you need to demand safe strawberries. Stay tuned! Bio: Tracey Brieger has worked for 18 years in across the globe as an advocate for a variety of environmental and social justice issues. She has worked on international banking, finance, mining and hydroelectric dam issues, and also has a particular interest in sustainable food systems work. She worked in Thailand and Laos for two years on sustainable agriculture projects and since 2002, she has served as the Campaign and Media Director and currently the Co-Director of Californians for Pesticide Reform, or CPR. CPR is a statewide coalition of over 185 public interest groups that aims to protect human and environmental health from the dangers of pesticide use. From 2002-4, she served on the founding Steering Committee of the California Food and Justice Coalition. Tracey holds an M.S. in Environmental Science, Policy and Management from UC Berkeley. Outside of work, she enjoys teaching yoga and is a practicing clinical herbalist.

Fair Trade is an innovative, market-based model for poverty alleviation and sustainable development. It empowers conscious consumers while rewarding U.S. companies as well as developing world farmers who comply with rigorous social and environmental standards. Since launching the Fair Trade Certified™ label in 1998, Fair Trade USA has established Fair Trade as one of the fastest growing segments of the U.S. food industry. To date, Fair Trade USA has developed business partnerships with over 800 U.S. companies, including many industry leaders. Fair Trade USA now certifies coffee, tea, cocoa, sugar, fresh fruit, wine, and flowers, launching certified cotton and apparel in 2010.  U.S. retail sales of Fair Trade products in 2009 surpassed $1.2 billion. As a result, between 1999 and 2009, low-income family farmers earned over $200 million in additional income selling to the U.S. Fair Trade market, allowing them to keep their kids in school, care for the land and dramatically improve their living standards. Many producers invest their Fair Trade premium funds in organic certification, which has led to outstanding results: nearly half (47%) of all Fair Trade products in the United States are also certified organic.  The Fair Trade certification actually supports the organic certification model because when people are working in a healthy, productive environment, there is job security, growth and constant productivity. Together, Fair Trade Certification and Organic Certification are making great strides in environmental protection and stewardship. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Paul Rice, President & CEO of Fair Trade USA, the leading certifier of Fair Trade products in the United States. Stay tuned!

Butterflies are beautiful to see but are also a sign that your garden is healthy and fertile. In order to attract these beautiful pollinators, there are several things you need to know.  Once you attract certain kinds of butterflies, you can also tag them and learn about the data that is collected in order to help them thrive and survive. The hardest part is learning to recognize the host plants, eggs and how to feed the caterpillars before they go through metamorphosis. Once they become butterflies, capturing their essence in photographs is also an amazing experience that can be fun for all. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Master Gardener and Butterfly Garden expert, Ed Kenny of GardenEdDesigns.com about attracting these beautiful pollinators to your yard. Stay tuned!

John Robbins is one of the most influential activists of our time exposing the dangers behind the production of our food while also revealing the extraordinary benefits of healthy alternatives.  He is a bestselling author, having penned such books as “ Diet for a New America: How Your Food Choices Affect Your Health”,” Happiness and the Future of Life on Earth”, “ Healthy at 100: The Scientifically Proven Secrets of the World’s Healthiest and Longest-Lived Peoples”, “May All Be Fed: a Diet For A New World : Including Recipes By Jia Patton And Friends”, “Reclaiming Our Health: Exploding the Medical Myth and Embracing the Sources of True Healing”,”The Awakened Heart: Meditations on Finding Harmony in a Changing World”,”The Food Revolution: How Your Diet Can Help Save Your Life And Our World” and his latest book, “The New Good Life: Living Better Than Ever in an Age of Less.” As the only son of the founder of the Baskin-Robbins ice cream empire, John Robbins was groomed to follow in his father’s footsteps, but chose to walk away from Baskin-Robbins and the immense wealth it represented to “…pursue the deeper American Dream…the dream of a society at peace with its conscience because it respects and lives in harmony with all life forms. A dream of a society that is truly healthy, practicing a wise and compassionate stewardship of a balanced ecosystem.” He has also been the recipient of the Rachel Carson Award, the Albert Schweitzer Humanitarian Award, the Peace Abbey's Courage of Conscience Award, and Green America's Lifetime Achievement Award. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to John Robbins about his books and his activism. Stay tuned!

Glyphosate is the most commonly used herbicide and is also one of the most controversial. Professor Don M. Huber has done extensive research warning that the widespread use of glyphosate has a negative environmental impact. This impact not only affects the soil and plants but can possibly affect the health of animals and human beings. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Professor Don M. Huber to discuss his research. Stay tuned!

Some people choose animals as companions. Then, there are others that choose to exploit, abuse and profit from their misery. Such is the case with a 10 year old Siberian-Bengal tiger named Tony. He has spent every day and night of the last decade at the Tiger Truck Stop in Grosse Tete, Louisiana. It’s no life for a tiger, or any other animal. On April 11, 2011, Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) filed a lawsuit against the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and its secretary Robert Barham, arguing that he violated state law in granting a permit allowing Michael Sandlin to continue to exhibit Tony at the Tiger Truck Stop. This permit, that allows Tony to languish in a roadside cage, violates state law.  The case has reached international attention as people are aghast that such cruelty is tolerated in the United States. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Big Cat expert, Laura Lassiter and Carter Dillard, the Director of Litigation for the Animal Legal Defense Fund.  Tune in to hear about this wildlife cruelty case that has gained international attention.

In Raising Elijah: Protecting Our Children in an Age of Environmental Crisis, internationally recognized biologist Sandra Steingraber reflects on how caring for her own family led her to tough realizations and hard choices. She links key events in her children’s lives—leaving a beloved preschool due to chemical contaminants on the playground, learning to appreciate organic produce—with broader environmental concerns, shedding new light on the factors affecting both human health and the health of the planet. From bug spray, to “tuna salad: the new lead paint,” to her own deck made of pressure-treated wood (which contains the carcinogen—and developmental neurotoxicant—arsenic), Steingraber outlines the various hazards that lurk in most houses and backyards. But as she explains, no mother or father can foolproof a home. In her words, “I am a conscientious parent. I am not a HEPA filter.” That’s why, instead of shopping tips and websites to consult, she calls for “federal regulations that assess chemicals for their ability to alter puberty before they are allowed access to the marketplace,” a ban on horizontal slickwater hydrofracturing (a.k.a. “fracking”), and “chemical reform based on precautionary principles.” She also highlights a growing child’s special needs and vulnerabilities, observing that many doctors, scientists, and governing bodies assume “all members of the population basically act, biologically, like middle-aged men.” At once a call to action and a poignant meditation on the simple joys of motherhood, Raising Elijah helps us see the little changes we can make and, more importantly, the enormous—but not impossible—changes we must demand. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Author, Sandra Steingraber. 

Most people will run to their local garden center to find a chemical cure to get rid of common garden diseases or pests that are problematic. However, this may be an unnecessary expense that can be resolved with some very basic IPM (Integrated Pest Management) In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Horticultural expert, John Peter Thompson, who is President of the National Agricultural Research Alliance (http://www.NARA-B.org ). John Peter will discuss alternatives and prevention methods to make your garden look like the Victory Garden! Stay tuned!

When people think about organics, they mostly think about food.  However, what about all of the pesticides that are used to grow materials such as cotton? What is the big deal about wearing a garment made from seeds that are saturated with chemicals? Afterall, isn’t it just clothing? Not at all! The skin is the largest organ and anything you wear that has been grown with pesticides is going to have an effect on your health. What do you do when you have been growing cotton for many years and want to make the transition to organic? It is not an easy thing to do, even if you have been growing cotton for generations. The Oldham family has been growing cotton in Texas for more than 100 years. Depleted soil fertility and conventional market challenges led Gary Oldham, CEO of SOS From Texas, which stands for Save Our Soil, to search for alternatives to help the family farm remain sustainable.  Gary started farming organically in 1992 and started SOS From Texas in early 1993 to market his organic cotton through finished sportswear. The company slogan, “We Grow T-Shirts” reflects vertical integration of the products from the seed to the sewing. Today, SOS is one of the oldest and most respected producers of organic cotton sportswear in the US and markets all farm production through this line throughout the US and Worldwide. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Gary Oldham about organic farming and the challenges of growing organic cotton in the USA. Stay tuned!  

Regardless of the fact that there is a tremendous decline in the bee population due to Colony Collapse Disorder, amongst other diseases, there are still many areas where backyard beekeeping has been banned. The reason for the ban in many cases is mostly due to lack of knowledge about bees as well as fear of lawsuits. The plight to legalize beekeeping in a community is not something many beekeepers want to undertake. The consequences beekeepers that challenge these laws face range from risk of being fined to confiscation of their bees, which can also be a big financial loss. There are some areas that may even impose incarceration. Every area is different. Marygael Meister is a beekeeper that sought to do this for the city of Denver. It was a very trying process but one she was determined to see changed. Her efforts led her to establish and organize DenverBee.org. Ms. Meister successfully changed the city’s ordinance but also found that there is a great deal of responsibility that comes with such a privilege.   In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Marygael Meister, founder and President of DenverBee.org (http://www.denverbee.org) To learn about her relentless efforts to get the laws changed, stay tuned!

With the overwhelming devastation to the environment from the use of pesticides and herbicides, that not only leach into our precious water supply but can remain in the soil for decades, people have begun to search for safe alternatives. Some people have actually gone back to basics in order to control invasive species of plants without having to destroy the eco-system. Lani Malmberg, owner of Ewe4ic Geological Services, uses goats in a controlled grazing environment to gradually and naturally remove weeds in order to return the land to a healthy, natural ecosystem. Lani wanders the meadows, hillsides and waterways of the West, hooked staff in hand, pitting 1,500 cashmere goats against pockets of unwanted weeds that infest the landscape. Lani actuallygrew up in a cattle ranching family. While in graduate school studying weed science, Lani started her business Ewe4ic Ecological Services as an alternative for people who did not want to continue the destruction of the environment with chemical applications. Lani uses 2100 cashmere goats and has a myriad of clients; working for the government, private landowners for noxious weed control, fire reduction, re-seeding, watershed management and land restoration. Her company also offers noxious weed mapping and inventory. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Lani Malmberg about the success of using goats as an alternative to herbicides. Stay tuned!

In every garden magazine you see pictures of beautiful rooms that contain an assortment of annuals and perennials that can be very intimidating to the novice gardener.  It almost seems unfair that there are some people that have a natural green thumb and can make anything grow, or so it seems. Then there are other people who feel artificial plants are the way to go because every plant dies no matter how hard they try.  When you look at the big picture, these plants can be a very expensive learning curve. With all of the gadgets available, especially the ones “as-seen-on-TV” it makes you wonder what exactly should you buy and what products you should avoid. Fortunately, there are certain plants that are actually very hardy and are very easy to grow. You don’t necessarily have to be an expert, have to buy some kind of funky gadget, etc. to care for them either. In this segment of The Organic View Radio Show, host, June Stoyer will speak to Horticultural expert, John Peter Thompson, who is President of the National Agricultural Research Alliance (http://www.NARA-B.org ). John Peter will discuss plants that are easy to grow and care for to make your garden look like the Victory Garden! Stay tuned!