Hello, my name is Chris. I am one of the interns working at Bertrand Farm this summer. I am currently a senior at Indiana University South Bend, with a major in psychology and a minor in sustainability. My future goals are to get my master’s degree in social work at IUSB and to become a farmer at home. I also plan to work with community gardens after my internship.
While I have only been working as an intern for the farm for a short time thus far; I have found myself to be in good company with very like minded people. Some of the goals of Bertrand Farm are to grow food for our present needs, while growing farmers for our future needs. People learn through imitation and example and at Bertrand Farm; we grow farmers by actually showing children and adults how to raise food in sustainable ways. The goals of Bertrand Farm are goals that I deeply believe in and value.
I am happy to announce that Bertrand Farm is adopting the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development (FSSD). As part of my internship at Bertrand Farm (BFI) I am walking BFI through the FSSD framework and I would like to share it in my blogs as well. I have been studying sustainability as my minor at IUSB over the last few semesters. In learning about sustainability, I have also learned about the non-profit organization called The Natural Step (TNS). The framework that we are adopting was created by TNS for businesses, organizations, and families – including people like you and me. The framework is going to help us become more sustainable by defining sustainability, while also providing a strategic approach to becoming more sustainable in our practices of farming. Perhaps you would like to join us in becoming more sustainable by adopting the framework for your home or business as well?
The FSSD framework defines sustainability as: Meeting our current needs, without compromising the ability for future people to meet their own needs. Our goal continues to be working toward creating a sustainable society. We have found that our view of sustainability is the same as that found in the FSSD framework, and the view of sustainability as held by The Natural Step.
Here is a short video that explains the FSSD framework, The Natural Step, and sustainability.
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