2010 – Issue 3 (September/October)
Annual Photo Competition Celebrates Appalachia
By Jillian Randel Three men pushing a Christmas tree bailer, a single set of footprints on a snowy highway, morning shadows over the Blue Ridge Mountains… how can one capture the essence of Appalachian life in a frame? That’s the challenge of the 8th annual Appalachian Mountain Photography Competition, which is accepting submissions now through…
Read MoreSaving a Species: North carolina’s Red Wolf Recovery Program
By Josephine Butler The Alligator River National Wildlife Refuge rests on 154,000 acres of marshy swampland just south of the Albemarle Sound in coastal North Carolina. Among the high and low pocosins, fresh and brackish water marshes and swamps, the refuge is home to an array of native species like the American woodcock, the Atlantic…
Read MoreYou Say Goodbye, I Say Hello!
This last year has been an excellent one, with a team full of talented writers. As this issue goes to press, there are tearful eyes in the newsroom. But as we say goodbye to our Managing Editor, Maureen Halsema, our Voice summer interns Megan Naylor and Derek Speranza (who both have stories in this issue!),…
Read MoreWe Had Some Crazy Times Together…
Review by Jed Grubbs Superfreakonomics is like that outrageous friend of yours from college. Initially, all the scandalous things he says and does are highly entertaining and engrossing. Time goes on, though, and you begin to wonder what this guy won’t do for attention. You start to feel it’d be nice to wake up without…
Read MoreVisions for the Future: Build It Up, W.Va.
The opinions expressed in Viewpoints are those of the author’s and are not necessarily reflected by The Appalachian Voice By Joe Gorman Appalachia’s population is aging and its youth are leaving. This is a critical moment: for a sustainable future we need to give youth a reason to stay here. Currently, the Appalachian economy is…
Read MoreAcknowledging A Time For Transition
A friend of mine has a son who is serving in Afghanistan. His home is in the mountains of Boone, North Carolina, where tourism and a sizable state-run university dictate a relatively stable economy and jobs to be had once he—God willing—returns. But there are many such sons and daughters with homes in coalfield regions…
Read MoreA Glance at the Political Landscape of Appalachia
By Derek Speranza What is in store for the future of Appalachia? With midterm elections approaching in November, it might be more appropriate to ask: who is in store for the future of Appalachia? Inextricably tied to its deep-seated history of coal, yet looking toward the future of sustainable energy, the Appalachian region is in…
Read MoreNatural Gas, Is it Right for Appalachia?
By Derek Speranza It’s the middle of July in West Trenton, N.J. More than 600 protesters have gathered outside a meeting of the Delaware River Basin Commission, speaking out to protect the region’s drinking water and water reserves from contamination. The issue? Natural gas drilling – a controversial practice that has been by some labeled…
Read MorePond Scum Solutions: Turning Pollution Into Fuel
By Maureen Halsema The concept is simple—take one of the most effective photosynthetic life forms on earth and put it to work. The secret weapon: algae. Algae are organisms that grow quickly in aquatic environments via photosynthesis, CO2 and nutrients, and they can be used to produce biomass and biofuel. Algae have several advantages over…
Read MoreBiofuels: Local Gives Way to Large Scale
By Bill Kovarik ASHEVILLE, N.C. – Melita Kyriakou watches as a big blue fuel truck with a green biodiesel logo grinds past the fuel tanks, under the bridge and up the hill – off on another delivery to one of the four biodiesel retailers in the mountain city. The good news, for Blue Ridge Biodiesel,…
Read More