Professor to present lecture on self-sufficient living at the Vermont Folklife Center

Associate Professor of Religion and Environmental Studies Rebecca Gould will present a lecture on self-sufficient lifestyles on Thursday, July 23, at 7 p.m. The lecture, titled “Sacred Natures: The Nearings, Homesteading, Localvores and the Way Ahead” will take place at the Vermont Folklife Center in Middlebury. The event is free and open to the public.

Gould will explore the spiritual dimensions of homesteading life and examine the extent to which voluntary self-sufficiency includes environmental action, and social and economic reform. The lecture will also include reflections on the experiences of Scott and Helen Nearing, two of the most prominent members of the back-to-the-land movement in the United States.

The lecture is the second of four events organized in conjunction with the exhibit “Almost Utopia: In Search of the Good Life in Mid-Century America,” on display at the Vermont Folklife Center through Sept. 5.

The Vermont Folklife Center is located at 88 Main Street in Middlebury. For more information, call 802-388-4964 or e-mail info@vermontfolklifecenter.org.