The 2017 Agroecology Summer Intensive (ASI) was the last year for two faculty members who have served the program since its inception in 2006. Larry Yoder and Melissa Kinsey were honored for their contributions at the concluding celebration of the 2017 ASI in early August.
When the Rieth Village site is available, Merry Lea occasionally rents space to like-minded groups that can benefit from contact with our land base and mission. In August 2017, Merry Lea hosted the leadership for Young Evangelicals for Climate Action (YECA).
Merry Lea’s Dr. Dave Ostergren is a co-author of a paper on climate change which recently turned up on a NASA webpage.
Students in Merry Lea’s Agroecology Summer Intensive (ASI) not only learn to grow things; they also work at communicating their learnings to others. As the 2017 ASI drew to a close, they presented projects on topics such as composting, weed management and pastured chickens in a public forum open to community members.
Eleven juniors and seniors from area high schools participated in the week-long Conservation Leadership School (CLS) from June 12-16 at Merry Lea Environmental Learning Center, Goshen College’s 1,189-acre nature sanctuary in Wolf Lake, Indiana.
About a dozen high school students are spending a week at Merry Lea in June to learn more about sustainability, land management and future careers that might interest them. The schedule looks like a cross between summer camp and college.
Unlike many workers, Bill Minter can see at least one of the things he’s accomplished over the past quarter century. It is a 65-acre naturalized area on the west side of Merry Lea.
Merry Lea’s spring and summer CSA is in full swing, offering weekly bags of food to customers. Assistant Farm Manager Ellie Schertz prepares the deliveries every Tuesday. Chickens, salad greens and vigorous bunches of lovage are in this week’s goodie bags.
Warm weather the weekend of February 18 gave Land Manager Bill Minter and any nearby fire fans a leg up on spring prairie burning.
Goshen College has been offering summer agriculture education since 2008 and fall sustainability education since 2012 through Merry Lea. But beginning in the fall of 2017, the college will be offering students complete majors in these rapidly-emerging fields.
