Photo of Eric McHenry by Kelly Magerkurt

“Eric McHenry: Kansas Poet Laureate: An Interview With Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg, and ’16 Suite,’ a Poem” features the writing and latest considerations of Kansas’s current poet laureate as he’s interviewed by a past Kansas poet laureate. “I’ve always loved talking and I’ve always loved music, and I think my love of poetry is sort of a marriage of those two enthusiasms. I remember being transfixed, as a kid, by a recording of an Irish musician reciting a Yeats poem, and by my Mom reciting ‘Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening,’ and by the first rap songs that I heard, and on a hundred other occasions when someone used language musically and memorably. Poetry and I were on a collision course.” Read more here from Eric McHenry – Kansas Poet Laureate Interview

“Heating Up: Artists Respond to Climate Change” features artwork by Lora Jost and poetry by Dennis Etzel. Poet Dennis Etzel and artist Lora Jost are currently collaborating on a project about climate change. This poem and drawing were shown together in the exhibit Heating Up: Artists Respond to Climate Change in 2016, held at the Percolator Gallery in Lawrence, Kansas. Read more here Healing Up – Artists Respond to Climate ChangeHealing Up – Artists Respond to Climate Change

“The Sunrise Project: Food, Community and Nature” is an interview with the project’s executive director, Emily Hampton, by Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg to learn more about this vibrant project. “Our program participants are the ones who inspire us to continue this important work. It’s amazing to discover all of the untapped energy, knowledge and skills in our community and it’s a true privilege to be able to offer space and opportunities to utilize our community’s strengths to make social change.” Read the whole interview at Sunrise Project.

“Beyond Patriarchy” by Joyce Marshall: Learn more about Marshall and co-leader Pat Webb’s workshop to examine the architecture of patriarchy, and how it influences us all. “We live in a cynical and self-critical era, full of insecurity and lack of confidence in human wisdom – a result of thousands of years of patriarchy.” Read more here about Beyond Patriarchy

“Elegy for the Wakarusa Wetlands” by Elizabeth Schultz is a poem commemorating wetlands altered for a highway project. “Sluggish, steaming water,/ dense with microbes and/ beavers. Still and somber/ through winters, come/ spring explosive…” Read more here from Elegy for the Wakarusa Wetlands

“Memories of Jerry Sipe” by Daniel Bentley: A tribute to Jerry Sipe, long-time bioregionalist photographer and member of KAW Council. “I first met Jerry and his family in 1977 when a small group of friends met around the idea of forming an Appropriate Technology interest group via the Free University at KU.” Read more here about Memories of Jerry Sipe

“In Memory” is a tribute to Carl Barnes, “known for his years of work with heritage corn, enabling many Native tribes to recover and reunite with their sacred seeds.” Read more here of In Memory: Carl Barnes

“KAW Projects: Brief Reports” by Daniel Bentley: Summaries of recent KAW Council projects and initiatives. Learn about the Kaw Valley Seeds Project, Bill Hatke Project, and lots of fascinating links. Click here to read more about KAW Projects

Flint Hills and big sky by Joanne C. Hickey