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The Joy Trip Project

The Joy Trip Project

Reporting on the Business, Art and Culture of the Active Lifestyle

The Joy Trip Project

The Joy Trip Project

The Joy Trip Project

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Assignment Earth, Environmental Journalism, Environmental Protection, Sustainable Living / 23.03.2011

  Making the growing season grow longer, that’s the idea for Daphne Yannakakis, an organic farmer in western Colorado. Along with husband Don Lareau on Zephyros Farm, they’re growing vegetables in wintertime as part of a study by Colorado State University. The vegetables grow under the protection of unheated green houses called high tunnels, which hold in heat stored by the Earth at night and capture solar heat during the day. They also provide protection from the wind. These farmers plant a variety of cold hardy vegetables at monthly intervals and record weather data electronically with custom software. The data is collected from five farms across Colorado and will be compiled and made available to other small-scale farmers. Funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and called the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program or SARE, the study is intended to help small-scale farmers in the Rocky Mountains remain productive and profitable through much of the winter by utilizing high tunnels. Even when outside temperatures reach sub-zero extremes these simple structures allow vegetables to survive harsh winter conditions and enable farmers to grow more.
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Afghanistan, Banff, Film Festival, Interview, Podcast / 20.03.2011

Millions of people around the world have read the bestselling book Three Cups of Tea. Written by David Oliver Relin and Greg Mortenson it’s the amazing true story of one man’s journey to turn a failed attempt to climb K2 into an international movement for peace. Working to build schools in the most remote regions of Afghanistan and Pakistan Greg Mortenson has inspired the production of a one-man play about his life starring Curtis Nielson. A Literature to Life production of The American Place Theater This stage adaptation of the popular book brings to life the spirit of exploration that delves to find the common threads of humanity that bind us all together. Three Cups of Tea is playing to captivated audiences across North America. This one-man show is a dramatic and heartwarming reenactment of the book. But Curtis Nielson’s portrayal of Greg Mortenson is a story in itself. In this interview recorded at the Banff Mountain Film Festival in Alberta, Canada Curtis tells us how his journey as actor has led him to discover many wonderful gifts on the stage of life.
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Camping, Environmental Journalism, Film Review, Kids in Nature, Outdoor Recreation / 18.03.2011

“The landscape of childhood has changed.” From the opening frames of Play Again, directed by Tonje Hessen Schei, the documentary makes it clear that the world we knew as children is fundamentally different than it is today. With a proliferation of technology that captivates both the time and attention of young people, a generation of humanity is emerging out of touch with the natural world. And as teenagers spend more and more time playing video games and surfing the web indoors the producers of this feature-length movie warn that as they grow to become adults they may be deprived of the very experiences that make us human.
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Assignment Earth / 17.03.2011

It is one of the most ecologically rich places on Earth. It harbors the highest diversity of mammals in the United States and the second highest in the world. In southern Arizona, the San Pedro River flows north from Mexico across the U.S. border. And with it flows a stunning variety of life. “The San Pedro riparian corridor is such a huge influence on migratory patterns for all kinds of animals but especially birds,” said Randy Serraglio of the Center for Biological Diversity. “For the entire continental United States it’s a very precious place.” But like many desert rivers the San Pedro has lost a good deal of its flow because the ground water pumping in the area has drawn down the water table. Expanding industry and development in nearby Sierra Vista and the Fort Huachuca army installation are the biggest users of water in the region. As more water is pumped from underground, less water makes it to the river itself. As a result the river is shrinking. Along with a diminishing water supply laws designed to protect the river’s many threatened and endangered species, and by extension the San Pedro itself were recently relaxed for the sake of local industry. The Renzi Rider as the legislation was called exempts Fort Huachuca and the surrounding community of Sierra Vista from the requirements of the endangered species act. Activist hope to reverse the exemption but for now, without laws that would ensure adequate water flow, community members are doing what they can to preserve this disappearing natural resource.
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Capital Region Business Journal, Charitable Giving, Magazines, Skiing / 15.03.2011

Winter in Wisconsin is a wonderful time for outdoor recreation. Despite the cold weather and waist deep snow thousands turn out each year to engage in sports that range from downhill and cross-country skiing, to snowboarding and cyclo-cross bike riding. With so many snow sports to pick from winter is for everyone. And thanks to local attorney Donald Becker, even people with disabilities can experience cold weather fun. Having financed the creation and mass production of an adaptive snow vehicle called a sit-ski, Becker is making it possible for those unable to walk to glide over frozen terrain.
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Assignment Earth, Environmental Journalism, Environmental Protection / 11.03.2011

  Collisions with automobiles make it pretty clear where Mule Deer don’t make it across the road. But what researchers want to find out is where they do. The answer is important as officials in Wyoming get ready to expand major highways -some up to five lanes- that run through this wildlife rich gateway to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks.   “If we can figure out where animals are crossing, we can at least hope to reduce some of those wildlife vehicle collisions, which will help from a population perspective to keep the animals alive,” said Embere Hall of Teton Science Schools. “Secondly it will help improve human safety. No one wants to hit an animal with their car.” A three-year study is underway to better understand the highway-crossing behavior of mule deer. At a cost of my more than $300,000 this labor intensive project aims to discover exactly how animals maneuver through this increasingly busy valley.
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