Posts Tagged ‘Tennessee’
Progress for Tennessee Wilderness
By Molly Moore Efforts to preserve wild lands in East Tennessee took a step forward this spring when a bill to designate nearly 20,000 acres in the Cherokee National Forest as wilderness passed the Senate Agriculture Committee. First introduced by Tennessee Republican Senators Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker in 2010, the Tennessee Wilderness Act would…
Read MoreNew Trillium Species Discovered in Eastern Tennessee
By Meredith Warfield When Mark Dunaway and his wife purchased land in eastern Tennessee, they had no idea they would be moving in with an unheard-of species living in their backyard. The couple came across an unfamiliar, yellow-petaled wildflower while on a plant walk along their property one day, and after searching their field guides…
Read MoreConnecting the Dots of the Southern Appalachian Loop Trail
By Matt Kirk What unites many of us in the Southern Appalachians is a love for hiking along the hundreds of miles of trails in our region. Ten years ago, I discovered that many of these paths form a loop measuring over 350 miles in length. Pieced together, this route, known as the Southern Appalachian…
Read MoreTennessee Invests in Main Street
By Nolen Nychay The Main Street Festival of Gallatin, Tenn., celebrates its 16th anniversary this October, keeping community traditions alive with local music and homemade food and craft vendors. Last year, the event drew more than 25,000 visitors looking to enjoy the rustic charm that the small communities of Tennessee pride themselves on. The Greater…
Read MoreVolunteering in Tennessee
Birdhouse An open space in Knoxville for sharing art, music and educational programs, Birdhouse functions as a venue for voices otherwise not given much space in the community. This multi-faceted building serves as a community center for do-it-yourself workshops, gardening, and exhibition space for artists, musicians and comedians. Volunteers maintain the space and help with…
Read MoreProtecting Tennessee’s Scenic Vistas
The Volunteer State once again has an opportunity to stop mountaintop removal coal mining from destroying more beloved mountains.
Read MoreAn Unforgettable Lesson, Forgotten
Just after midnight, a thunderous swell of sound peeled apart the silence that had settled onto Harriman, Tenn. A mountain of black coal ash — the waste byproduct of burning coal — descended upon the surrounding neighborhood, snapping trees and ripping three homes from their foundations.
Read MoreSpotlight on Eastern Kentucky Economy
By Molly Moore When more than 1,700 citizens gathered in Pikeville, Ky., to discuss ideas for regional economic revitalization at the Shaping Our Appalachian Region (SOAR) Summit last December, the crowd was diverse. In attendance were concerned citizens, grassroots organizers and many of the state’s government and business leaders. During breakout sessions, participants discussed topics…
Read MoreKnoxville: “The Sustainable City”
By Nolen Nychay Knoxville, Tenn. ranks second in the nation for growth in green jobs and is one of only a handful of American cities to have fully bounced back from the economic recession, according to a recent Brookings Institute report. Since 2006, the city has reduced carbon emissions by 17 percent, and under Mayor…
Read MoreRalph Davis: Exploring Appalachia’s Future
By Nolen Nychay In his 21 years of journalistic work at publications such as the Jackson County Sun, Paintsville Herald and Floyd County Times, Ralph Davis developed a close relationship with the small communities of eastern Kentucky and the rural lifestyle the region prides itself on. When Davis began work on his master’s thesis in…
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