The Wood River Seed Library is proud to present an icon of the seed saving movement, Grandmother Flordemayo. Born in the highlands of Central America under the sign of the seed, in Mayan astrology, she is a Curandera Espiritu, healer of divine spirit, and one of the founding members of the International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers. Her visions guided her to create the Seed Temple in Estancia, New Mexico, where she safe-guards thousands of seed varieties for future generations. Her talk will address the importance of seed saving and preservation of heritage seeds, in particular.
Main Library
“The Trump Administration and the Middle East” by Daniel Benaim
This program is presented in partnership with the Boise Committee on Foreign Relations.
Daniel Benaim is a senior fellow at American Progress, researching U.S. policy in the Middle East, as well as a visiting lecturer at New York University. Previously, he served as a Middle East policy adviser and foreign policy speechwriter at the White House, the Department of State, and the U.S. Senate. He was also an international affairs fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations.
Until June 2015, he was foreign policy speechwriter and Middle East adviser to former Vice President Joe Biden, traveling with the vice president to 25 countries. Before that, he wrote speeches for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former Deputy Secretaries Bill Burns and Tom Nides and served as a member of Secretary Clinton’s policy planning staff covering Egypt. Benaim also has been a professional staff member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, chief speechwriter to former Sen. John Kerry (D-MA), and a detailee to the National Security Council staff. Additionally, he designed and taught a graduate speechwriting course at George Washington University.
Benaim’s writings on behalf of government officials have appeared in numerous publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and Foreign Affairs. Publications under his own name include the International Herald Tribune, The Boston Globe, and The American Prospect. He received his M.A. in law and diplomacy from The Fletcher School and his B.A. in English literature from Yale University. He is a term member at the Council on Foreign Relations.
“Seeds and Seed Vaults as Economic Engines” by Bill McDorman
In this presentation, Bill McDorman from the Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance will talk about the essential and yet largely missing component of this burgeoning new economy: local seeds. Developing locally adapted and delicious seed stock for the region’s cuisine will assure a prosperous, resilient and sustainable local food economy. The first communities to understand this are reaping the cultural and economic rewards. Bill will give examples of how communities are using seed exchanges, seed libraries and seed vaults to help achieve their new local economic goals.
“New and innovative economic engines will keep our communities prosperous and thriving,” according to Belle Starr, deputy director of the RMSA. “Local food producers, brewers and bakers are now helping to fuel an increase in new community wealth all over the nation. Local food allows the money we spend everyday to stay local and continue to recirculate.”
The presentation will also explore the many benefits of seed saving—from economic opportunities and sustainability to social value and community wellbeing. He will also share updates about the RMSA’s many accomplishments during the last year and present opportunities for the community to get involved.
“Conversations with Exceptional Women” 2017, Annual Conference with the Alturas Institute
Poetry & Prose: Readings by Dana Levin & Sebastian Matthews
Writers Dana Levin and Sebastian Matthews read from their recent collections of poetry and memoir.
Dana Levin’s fourth book is Banana Palace (Copper Canyon Press, 2016). Previous collections include In the Surgical Theatre, Wedding Day, and Sky Burial, which The New Yorker called “utterly her own and utterly riveting.” Recent poetry and essays have appeared in Best American Poetry 2015, The New York Times, Poem-a-day, Boston Review, and Poetry. Levin is a grateful recipient of honors from the National Endowment for the Arts, PEN, the Witter Bynner Foundation and the Library of Congress, as well as the Whiting and Guggenheim Foundations. A teacher of poetry for twenty-five years, Levin serves as Distinguished Writer in Residence at Maryville University in St. Louis. For links to poems, essays, interviews, and events, see http://www.danalevinpoet.com/
Sebastian Matthews is the author of a memoir, In My Father’s Footsteps, and two books of poetry, We Generous and Miracle Day. A new hybrid collection of poetry and prose, Beginner’s Guide to a Head-on Collision, comes out with Red Hen Press in the fall of 2017. In conjunction with Woolly Press, Matthews is currently serially publishing The Life & Times of American Crow, a “collage novel in 11 chapbooks.” Learn more at sebastianmatthews.com or americancrowgraphicnovel.com.
Play Reading: “Molly Sweeney”
The Sun Valley Performing Arts Center is proud to announce their new season of free play readings with a reading of “Molly Sweeney” by Brian Friel. The reading will be held at The Community Library in Ketchum on Tuesday August 29th at 6 pm and will feature Jon Kane, Chris Carwithen and Aly Wepplo. Jon Kane will direct it and running time will be 70 minutes.
Three characters tell their interwoven stories to the audience. First there is Molly, blind since early infancy, who describes her world before and after an operation to restore some of her sight. Her husband Frank, who pushed Molly into this operation, relates his view of his wife’s journey into sightedness and his dealings with her doctor. Molly’s once famous eye surgeon, Mr. Rice, watches both Molly and Frank and reveals his opinion of them along with his own fears in handling the operation.
“Brian Friel has been recognized as Ireland’s greatest living playwright. His latest work Molly Sweeney confirms that Mr. Friel still writes like a dream.” The New York Times
