and organizations,

Merck Forest & Farmland Center is engaged in a cyclical process of farm and forest planning.

Every ten years, MFFC staff, board members, and leading experts collaborate to assess farm and forest health, identify key objectives that balance a host of factors, and formulate a plan that is intended to promote sustainability and exemplify best practice. This work is by no means done in a vacuum—the planning team leans heavily on advice from outside experts, recent scientific research, and stewardship plans from peer organizations with complementary lands and objectives. Among the experts supporting this work is MFFC Advisory Committee member and Dorset Historical Society Curator Jon Mathewson. Jon is preparing a set of documents that provide a sweeping view of the history of working lands in southwestern Vermont from pre-European contact through today. This four part series, which the planning team will use to contextualize its work, will be shared over upcoming Ridgelines accompanied by updates on the planning process.

These articles were originally designed to share with our Northshire Grown: Direct CSA customers.