Hosted by the New England Association of RC&D Areas, the conference will be held on October 29-31, 2009 at the Eastland Park Hotel in Portland. The theme of the conference is “New England: Feeding Ourselves”, and is formatted to provide participants an opportunity to examine the current food system, identify the gaps that exist in moving to a strong local food system, and develop actions that can be taken to move closer to a regional system that benefits both producers and consumers.

The keynote speaker, Mark Lapping, Professor of Public Policy and Management at the University of Southern Maine, will speak on Thursday evening, October 29th. He will provide participants with an analysis of the current food economy and what we can do to survive its effects. Professor Lapping is the author of ten books and over 150 book chapters, articles, and monographs. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture and recently completed a national study for the USDA on farm viability. He is currently completing a history of agriculture in Maine.

The New England Association of RC&Ds consists of 15 RC&D Councils in the states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont.  Each RC&D Council is organized and directed by local people to meet local needs.

Resource Conservation and Development Councils play an important role in the conservation, development, and utilization of natural resources. RC&D Councils work to improve the general level of economic activity and to enhance the environment and standard of living in all communities. Councils provide a system of rural development to encourage the wise use of natural resources, and improve the quality of life in America. RC&D is a unique program that is led by local volunteer councils who work together to plan and carry out activities that will make their areas a better place to live.

The conference is open to the public and pre-registration is required. For conference information go to www.thresholdtomaine.org. For more information about the New England Association of RC&Ds go to www.newenglandrcd.org/.