LISA HAMILTON  (sponsored by Let It Grow Nursery) 

Lisa Hamilton, noted author, to speak at Four States Ag Expo on “unconventional” agriculture

Over the past forty years, many American farmers and ranchers have been told to “get big or get out.” Corporate agribusiness on a massive scale has altered the way America grows its food, leaving widely acknowledged environmental and economic damage in its wake. Consumer concern is rising not only about the consequences to human health and well-being today, but also about the dangers to the farm lands which must remain viable for future generations. Now, across the country, farmers and ranchers with a courageous vision for the future are taking decisive action to change this direction.

The Four States Ag Expo is honored to present journalist and photographer Lisa Hamilton as a featured speaker on Saturday, March 20 at the Montezuma County Fairgrounds in Cortez, CO. For two years, Lisa researched these issues in agriculture and profiled three families who have adopted a new approach to farming on a small scale. Her basic question: what practices result in a sustainable food supply, and how do farmers and ranchers embrace these good practices while remaining economically viable? It’s a complicated matter, but there are provocative solutions which Lisa will present at the Ag Expo, beginning at 11 a.m.. A panel discussion at 3 p.m. will address the topic as it applies to different aspects of agriculture, such as sustainable cattle ranching, boutique specialty farming, the community-supported agriculture movement, and the 21^st century grange.

One preview hint: change might be demanded by consumers, but the work itself must start with the knowledge and commitment of the farmers and ranchers themselves. As award winning food guru and restaurateur Alice Waters says, “The food revolution taking place in this country cannot be truly successful without an agricultural revolution.” A call to action, true, but agriculturalists need more than inspiration—they need information. And Lisa Hamilton will bring that to her presentation at the Ag Expo.

Writer and photographer Lisa M. Hamilton focuses on food and agriculture, particularly the stories of farmers. Her work has taken her from castration time on a Wyoming sheep ranch to a meeting of radical plant breeders in Iowa, from dairy farms in the highlands of Bavaria to sacred ride paddies along the coast of Japan.

She is the author of two books: Deeply Rooted: Unconventional Farmers in the Age of Agribusiness and Farming to Create Heaven on Earth. Her work has also been published in The Nation, Harper’s, National Geographic Traveler, Orion and Gastronomica.

Please find more about Lisa at www.lisamhamilton.com.