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WORKSHOPS & CONFERENCES
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Green Fair Folk Festival, Little Falls
August 4, 2010
4:00 – 8:00 p.m.

The Franciscan Sisters of Little Falls will be hosting a wonderful event!  The Green Fair began 3 years ago and has grown into one of the most successful ecologically minded events in central MN.  In 2009 we were host to 40 vendors and almost 850 attendees.

There is something for everyone, music, food, kid’s activities, artists, educators, exhibitors, a farmer’s market, health and wellness promotion and so much more!  This year we will be having a Fiddle Festival hosted by the St. Francis Music Center.   For more information check out our website & if on Facebook – become a fan of the Green Fair Folk Festival.

Questions/More Info., contact Jennifer Basch, Green Fair Coordinator, Franciscan Sisters of Little Falls, 116 8th Ave. SE, Little Falls, MN 56345, (320)  632-0691, www.fslf.org.

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FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
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Green Enterprise Assistance Team
Starting a green business? Looking for expansion or relocation opportunities for your clean-technology or renewable energy company? Want to improve your company's efficiency? Let our Green Enterprise Assistance team put you on the right track in Minnesota.

A collaboration of several state agencies, the Green Enterprise Assistance team can help you cut through the thicket of programs, services, and agencies to find the right answers and right resources for your company. From financial assistance to navigating legal and regulatory matters we'll guide you to the resources and expertise you'll need.

Eligibility - We’re looking for clean-technology and renewable-energy firms. By statute, we help companies whose technologies use energy from renewable resources and support energy efficiency and conservation. Businesses that are working to reduce gashouse gases, protect and conserve water and improve biofuel production may also apply for our services.

We Can Help at Any Stage - We help companies at any stage of development, from new ideas to business startups to established companies with products and services ready to market. If you have a product or service ready to sell and want assistance, the GEA Team is happy to work with you. We’re just as interested in hearing about your business startup and how our team of experts can facilitate your growth. 

Contact Us - The GEA is facilitated by the Department of Employment and Economic Development and includes representatives from numerous state agencies. Call 651-259-7437 for more information or complete and submit this electronic form and we will contact you.

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Region Five Development Commission Announces Grant Funds Available for Community Garden Activities
The Region Five Development Commission in partnership with the University of Minnesota Sustainable Partnership and the Pines & Lake Country Local Foods work group announce that grant funds of up to $500 are available to educate groups engaged in community garden activities. Grant funds will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis. You need not be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Individuals are not eligible, but individuals representing community gardening groups are encouraged to apply. Region Five oversees funds to provide grant dollars to community garden groups for education.

Eligible educational activities include: To increase yield, to educate on marketing techniques, to educate on increased distribution and to learn about gardening for optimal nutrition. Funds cannot be used for land purchase/rental, the purchase of seed, supplies, water or equipment. The project must be completed within one year.

Any group interested in applying for this funding opportunity should contact Anne Hanson at (218) 894-3233 or ahanson@regionfive.org. The application and more information is available on the Region Five website at www.regionfive.org.

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National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Grants

Bring Back the Natives: A Public-Private Partnership for Restoring Populations of Native Aquatic Species
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), Bureau of Land Management (BLM), U.S.D.A. Forest Service (FS), and Trout Unlimited (TU), is pleased to request pre-proposals from nonprofit organizations, universities, Native American tribes, and local, state, and federal agencies interested in restoring, protecting, and enhancing native populations of sensitive or listed aquatic species, especially on lands on or adjacent to federal agency lands.

Funding for the BBN program is administered through NFWF from federal agencies cooperating to support this program. This funding suggests a $2 non-federal match for each federal dollar requested by applicants. Since 1991, BBN has supported 279 projects and benefited over 120 species, 29 of which are federally listed as threatened or endangered.  Typically applications are due on Dec. 1st, 2010.  For more information visit:  http://www.nfwf.org/bbn.

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Five Star Restoration Grant Program
Provides modest financial assistance on a competative basis to support community-based wetland, riparian, and coastal habitat restoration projects that build diverse partnerships and foster local natural resource stewardship through education, outreach and training activities. These grants are typically due in mid-February. 

The Five Star Restoration Program is open to any public or private entity; however, grants funded by PG&E’s Nature Restoration Trust are restricted to non-profit community-based organizations, conservation organizations, local governments, and school districts.

Requests must be for $10,000 to $40,000.Grants will vary in size, duration and scale. In general, smaller-scale, one-year projects will be eligible for grants up to $20,000. Two-year, larger-scale projects will be eligible for grants up to $40,000. We anticipate the average grant award will be $20,000 to $25,000. Partnerships should include at least five organizations (“Five Stars”) that contribute to project success through funding, land, workforce support, technical support and/or other in-kind services. 

For more information visit: http://www.epa.gov/wetlands/restore/5star/.

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THINGS TO KNOW
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Calling All Writers
We all have a special lake. Maybe you have a cabin next to it, maybe it's in the city and you visit it all the time or maybe you've only been there once but your memories are fond. Whatever your reason, we want to know what lake matters to you and why.

Photographs and videos will be collected from May 13 through September 6, 2010. All submissions must legibly include the words "This Lake Matters," and feel free to get creative! Young people are especially encouraged to submit photos and videos.

http://www.seek.state.mn.us/article.cfm?id=5048

Want to be one of the Minnesota voices for our continuous blog of thoughts, feelings and observations about our Minnesota natural resources? Conservation Minnesota is always seeking original Minnesota stories linking your life to our Great Outdoors, from your back yard to the Boundary Waters.  Check out http://www.conservationminnesota.com/news/?cat=73, and contact Dave Dempsey if you would like to give us your stories 612-767-2444.

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Eco Camps offered by Happy Dancing Turtle in Pine River

Happy Dancing Turtle will host five sessions of Eco Camp this summer. Children attending Eco Camp will learn about ways to live more sustainably through experiments, projects, crafts, games, field trips and activities. The camps will focus on energy conservation, food and water security, and environmental stewardship.

Families have the option to choose one or more of the following sessions, according to what grade their children will enter in the fall of 2010:

• "What Color is Your Planet?," Grades 3-5, July 12-16;
• "What on Earth?," Grades 2-4, Aug. 16-20;
• "Act Natural," Grades 5-8, Aug. 23-27.

Each weeklong session runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday and will be on the Hunt Utilities Group Campus on Highway 2 West of Pine River. Tuition for each session is $50, which includes snacks, supplies, fees and a T-shirt. Registration forms are available at www.happydancingturtle.org or can be picked up at various Pine River & Pequot Lakes locations.

For more information, contact Happy Dancing Turtle at (218) 587-2303, barbhines@happydancingturtle.org or visit www.happydancingturtle.org.

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Activities at the Audubon Center of the North Woods
(Sandstone, MN)

Becoming an Outdoor Family
July 31 – August 1, 2010
Audubon Center of the North Woods
Cost: $65 per person / $245 for family of four / %55 each additional family member.

Bringing families and the great outdoors together… reconnect while learning new skills!

Spend quality time with your kids out in nature while learning basic outdoor skills that will help you and your family enjoy the outdoors. Expert instructors from both the Audubon Center of the North Woods and Minnesota Department of Natural Resources will teach classes including archery, bird banding, high ropes/zip line, aquatic ecosystems, animal signs, forest ecology hike, spin cast and fly fishing, survivor – north woods, orienteering and birds of prey.

Cost: $65 per person, OR $245 for family of four and $55 for each additional family member. Optional $10 fee per person for Friday night stay— no meals or activities available on Friday or breakfast Saturday.

For more information visit http://www.audubon-center.org/2010_BecomingOutdoorFamily_brochure.pdf or contact them at (888) 404-7743, fenner@audubon-center.org.

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North Woods Wilderness Adventures Summer Youth Camps
– July & August 2010

The Audubon Center of the North Woods is a leader in offering meaningful nature experiences to people of all ages and through our North Woods Wilderness Adventures program this summer, we will provide a different kind of summer camp experience – an opportunity to engage kids in nature through immersion in the wild outdoors to promote environmental awareness, compassion, leadership and an ethic of care for the earth.

This summer we are offering a variety of camp experiences for ages 10-17 years as well as a family fishing camp. Accommodations for our on-site camps are in our Crosby Lodge or Lowry Lodge, which are dorm-style buildings. Expedition camps start with one night at the center to prepare for the trip.

Forts, Fires & Fishing
July 11-16; 10-14 yrs
Cost: $249

Voyageurs National Park Expedition                  
July 18-23; 15-17 yrs w/ canoe experience                
Cost: $420                

Rocks, Ropes & Roughing It 
August 1-6, 13-15 yrs
Cost: $249

The Way of Wildlife                          
August 1-6; 10-13 yrs                    
Cost: $299                           

Namekagon River Expedition 
August 8-12; Beg. canoeists 12-15 yrs;
Cost: $350

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Women's Wellness & Adventure Weekend
October 1-3, 2010

All-inclusive, complete holistic retreat - comfy lodging, wonderful food, and a variety of classes and activities to choose from, such as (for example only – not all classes are offered every season):

• Adventure & Challenge (examples include high ropes course, Nordic walking, canoeing, etc.),
• Wellness & Nature (examples include yoga, massage, reiki, hikes, bird banding, facials, medicinal plant classes, etc.), and
• Creative Expressions (examples include art classes, flower arranging, belly dancing, scrapbooking, etc.).

Lodging, meals, all programming and 10 minutes of massage or reiki are included in the weekend fee (additional massage or reiki available for an additional fee). All-inclusive weekend package rates $245-$265.

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This newsletter is designed to share funding opportunities, resources, and conferences or training events of common interest for program participants and supporters of the Initiative Foundation. For more information about these and other training opportunities, contact Don Hickman, Senior Program Manager for Planning and Preservation.

If you wish to be removed from this mailing list or if you have other names/e-mails to add please contact Jolene Howard.

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