San Francisco Chronicle, November 21, 2012 Bay Area consumers increasingly put their money where their homes are, as the “shop local” movement continues to gain traction. More people here and nationwide choose to spend their hard-earned cash on goods that are made and sold in their communities, part of a growing trend that’s transcended its… Continue reading

New York Times, November 15, 2012 Carlene O’Garro’s cake business was barely a month old when she arrived at the Samuel Adams brewery in South Boston recently to meet with business counselors, but she brought with her an agenda that hinted at outsize ambitions.  Ms. O’Garro bakes nondairy cheesecakes that she was selling at a… Continue reading

Jackson Free Press, November 9, 2012 The nation’s largest natural and organic grocery chain has begun building its first location in Mississippi, set to open in the fall of 2013. Whole Foods broke ground at Highland Village in northeast Jackson Thursday. Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. and city council members Margaret Barrett-Simon and Quentin Whitwell joined… Continue reading

Balle, October 31, 2012 Occasionally we’ll be sharing our blog space with guest voices from the Localist movement. These are the best of the best, the most awesome of the most awesome, and the all-around most interesting people we know. Here’s our first guest blog post, by Stacy Mitchell, a senior researcher with the Institute… Continue reading

Lewiston-Auburn Sun Journal, October 20, 2012 LEWISTON — “I put a lot of my making-the-world-better energy into becoming a better consumer,” said Stacy Mitchell, a researcher and writer at the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, which challenges corporate consolidation of the economy. “(But) what we really need to do is change the underlying policies that affect… Continue reading

Climate and Capitalism, October 10, 2012 As I post this, Walmart workers from 28 stores in 12 U.S. states have walked off the job to protest company attempts to “silence and retaliate against workers for speaking out for improvements on the job.” ….snip…. In 2005, the giant retailer (biggest in the world)  announced three “aspirational… Continue reading