FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Nancy Grohol, Executive Director
Thoreau Farm Trust
978.369.3091
978.369.1515 (fax)

Bill McKibben Joins Thoreau Farm Trust as Honorary Board Member

Concord, MA—The Thoreau Farm Trust, a Concord nonprofit organization dedicated to restoring and re-using the Henry David Thoreau birthplace, is pleased to announce that noted author and environmentalist Bill McKibben has joined its Board of Directors as an honorary member.

“I’ve been learning from Bill McKibben ever since I opened The End of Nature,” said Lucille Stott, president of the Thoreau Farm Trust. “Last year he spoke to students at Concord Academy, where I teach, and I was so impressed with the immediate connection he made with young people. I can’t think of anyone more suited to inspire us as we work to make the Thoreau birthplace a vibrant center for forward-thinking education and action.”

McKibben, who grew up in Lexington, Mass., currently teaches at Middlebury College. He has written about global warming, alternative energy, and the risks associated with human genetic engineering. His first book, The End of Nature, published in 1989, helped general audiences understand the implications of climate change and has been printed in more than 20 languages. His most recent book, Deep Economy: the Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future addresses what McKibben sees as the shortcomings of the growth economy and presents his vision of a transition to more local-scale enterprise.

McKibben helped found StepItUp07.org, which coordinated 1,400 demonstrations in all 50 states against global warming last year, and helped push demands for 80% cuts in American carbon emissioins on to the national political agenda. This year he and his team have launched 350.org, an attempt to build a global grassroots climate movement.

“I also spent the year editing American Earth, an anthology of American environmental writing for the Library of America. It begins with Thoreau, because that is where American environmentalism begins. And so it seems appropriate to join the effort to save the place where Thoreau began!” McKibben said.

The Thoreau Farm Trust is restoring Henry David Thoreau’s birthplace, an 18th-century house on twenty acres of farmland in Concord. Thoreau was an early pioneer of the natural sciences and among the first to advocate for the preservation of natural resources. His work urges humans to live simply and in harmony with their environment, and is also being used in current climate science research. Many consider Thoreau to be the father of the modern environmental movement.

The Trust recently obtained title to the Thoreau birth house, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The house is in serious disrepair and the Trust has been raising money for its restoration and rehabilitation. Thus far, the Trust has received more than $800,000 in donations from individuals, foundations, and corporations toward its $1 million goal. The Trust also received a Town of Concord Community Preservation grant in 2007.

The construction phase of the project began in January and is expected to continue at least until the end of the year. In an effort to honor Thoreau’s environmental legacy, the Trust is exploring ways to integrate green materials and technologies into the preservation effort without compromising the historic integrity of the structure. Once completed, the house will be used as an educational center.

To learn more about Bill McKibben and his work, please visit his website at billmckibben.com.

The Thoreau Farm Trust (thoreaufarm.org) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to restoring and rehabilitating the Henry David Thoreau birthplace in Concord, and using the house as an education and community center. If you are interested in touring the house, learning more about the organization, or how you can help, please contact executive director Nancy Grohol at 978.369.3091 or nancy@thoreaufarm.org.