Stewardship and Cooperation

This month the Urban Land Scouts are beginning a series of ten meetings at Three Rivers Market, a cooperatively-owned natural foods grocery store in Knoxville, TN (and where I work as the Outreach and Marketing Director). We will be meeting every other week for the next five months to work on earning badges for each of the ten Urban Land Scout values. Three Rivers Market (TRM) and the surrounding area will be a good area to scout about: it sits near the top of one of the hills framing Happy Holler and between an historic old neighborhood and I-275. I am also excited to meet and learn from TRM's community of member-owners, many of whom I expect are already Land Scouts in their own rights.

Our first ULS meeting will be Saturday, January 14th, from 3-5 pm at TRM. There is a small fee to attend: $4 for member-owners of TRM and $5 for non-members. This will cover the cost of materials. You can sign up at TRM's Customer Service desk (on the left as you enter the store). The meetings are open to adults and responsible young adults (5th grade and older).

We will begin on the 14th by binding small field journals similar to the ones we made at Beardsley Farm and the Nashville Food Project. I like this form for a number of reasons: it can be made with minimal and varied materials, is simple to construct, easy to modify, and small enough to fit into most adult-sized back pockets. Most importantly, a sketchbook or field journal like this is a helpful tool in beginning a practice of daily observation and attention, the root of Land Scouting. 

If you live in or near Knoxville, I encourage you to come out and join us. Dress for the weather.