Mike Hansen and his banjo Sally open up the show with an intro to Grassroots Festival coming up in Miami. Local favorites such as Hindu Cowboys and Raffa & Rainer are playing alongside a diverse lineup: Chaka Khan, Arrested Development, Fishbone, Donna the Buffalo, The Lee Boys and many more.  Betcha want to listen to Mike play Sally all night long. Go ahead, you can play that part two or three times, we will totally understand. Watch a short video of Mike & Sally here

Next up is Emma Kruch and Jenn Dolan representing ArtsFest. ArtsFest is a celebration of Central Florida arts and culture that takes place for the entire month of February 2012. ArtsFest includes 302 FREE arts and culture events held in 87 locations throughout Lake, Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties. Of course, Leah and Julie rummage through the extensive lineup of events.

Here’s an excerpt:

A New York City subway train holds 1,200 people. This blog was viewed about 7,900 times in 2011. If it were a NYC subway train, it would take about 7 trips to carry that many people.

Click here to see the complete report.

Occupy Orlando

Orlando is set to stand in solidarity with the 99% who are Occupying Wall Street and hundreds of cities across the nation and globe. A lively discussion about the revolution sweeping the nation and our own neighborhood with a fine group of free thinkers including:

• Charles Eisenstein is the author of Sacred Economics and his recent commentary No Demand is Big Enough has swept the web. We spoke with Charles in depth a month ago (pre-occupation) and that hour long interview can be listened to here.
• Orlando District 36 Representative Scott Randolph (D) is one of those politicians that is an exception to the rule, in our hostesses humble opinion. He’s real, and gets it. He is the first politician ever to enjoy a seat on our program.
• Susannah Lindberg Randolph is the Executive Director of Florida Watch Action, an organization dedicated to strengthening the progressive movement in Florida. The group has made headlines with campaigns such as DirtyHari.com and PinkSlipRick.com.  She was recently made famous for her uterus, which is currently, happily, occupied.
• Kat & Julie (not the host Julie, another Julie) have been organizing as part of a leaderless group of the 99% for Occupy Orlando. They are regular folks who have been moved into action, inspired by the Occupy Wall Street revolution.

Would YOU like to Occupy the Front Porch? Please contact us if you can come on air next Wednesday between 4 and 5pm to tell your story of why you stand in solidarity with the 99%.

Nina Streich is the Producer of the Global Peace Film Festival now in it’s ninth year here in Central Florida. This podcast discusses the festival and several filmmakers filled the studio to share about their films and the important topics they are so passionate about.

• Lisa Tillmann, director of Off the Menu and a Rollins professor
  Whose political and economic interests are served by the ways people in the U.S. tend to relate to our own bodies, to others’ bodies, to eating, and to food? In the arenas of body and food, who has what kind of power? Who profits, and at whose expense? How can everyday people—like us!—resist and promote healthier relationships with body and food? Off the Menu documents a collaboration between 24 students and one professor of a course called The Political Economy of Body and Food. Through research, personal narratives, and critical art, contributors interrogate body and food-related assumptions, stereotypes, attitudes, values, and practices. 
• Aleksey Siman, director of Food for Granted
  Food for Granted explores the issues of food waste and ostensible overproduction of food in restaurants, buffets and convention centers. Food industry tosses away tons of good, unused food everyday, while one in five people in United States struggle to put food on the table. Using Central Florida as the example of this underrated subject matter, filmmaker Aleksey Siman poses candid and inquisitive questions to food industry professionals in hopes to find a solution to a food waste epidemic. 
• Emmanuel Itier, director of a film in last year’s festival - The Invocation - and he has a work in progress called ”Femme: Women Healing the World” http://www.wonderlandentgroup.com/?n=news
  
• Bob Frye, director of In My LIfetime

ELLA Fest

Robert Johnson is the Producer of ELLA Fest, which is celebrating five years this October. The event is the only Central Florida fest that celebrates Florida Female Artistry with music, visual art, poetry, and crafts.  The event showcases a wide range of super talented females including rising star Dani Shay who returns for the third year in a row after her career recently sky-rocketed during a stint on America’s Got Talent.

Charles Eisenstein

Charles Eisenstein is the author of Ascent of Humanity and Sacred Economics. He writes about civilization, consciousness, money and human cultural evolution on the web magazine Reality Sandwich. He is a Yale graduate with degrees in Mathematics and Philosophy and currently serves on the faculty of Goddard College and is currently featured on the cover of Ode Magazine.

Sacred + Economics = Past & Future

Charles tells a story about how to create the more beautiful world our hearts tell us is possible. We talk about bringing the sacred back into the economy with a particular interest in local economies and living in the gift.

Charles believes the time has come to stop making people pay for intellectual property. That is why the entire text of The Ascent of Humanity is on line (and Sacred Economics is being released on Reality Sandwich). He offers this as a gift. If you feel grateful and would like to sustain his work, you may give a gift to Charles as well. Speaking of gifts, this radio program is also a gift to you, and if you would like to give back, here’s a way.

Click the arrow to listen in:

We welcome Rollins College student Kristin Urban house manager of the Mowbray House, a sustainable “living lab” located on the Rollins College campus and Ann Francis, adviser to Eco-Rollins and manager of the student-run sustainability program.

As part of her move, Kristin used plastic, recycled moving bins called BungoBoxes. Tom Cannon joins us again on the Front Porch to share the fantastic progress that this local start-up has made.

INTERESTING TIDBITS: 
– The Mowbry House: A five-bedroom, three-and-a-half bath, 2,800-square-foot residence houses seven eco-minded students.
– A worm farm: The Red Earthworms eat students’ food waste, junk mail and dryer lint.
– Organic soap-making station: Students sacrificed part of the kitchen to make their own soap.
– Medicinal plant garden: Tomatoes, radishes, broccoli, carrots and even okra.

Orlando's Newest Food Business on the Block

Click the arrow to listen in:

I start talking after about 15 minutes – I was late (oops!) for the days show!

This is a super info packed show filled with tips, resources and trends for the budding food entrepreneur in Central Florida.

Annual Events/Festivals to Hawk Your Wares

• Central Florida VegFest
• Eat Local Week by Slow Food Orlando
• Winter Park Harvest Festival  —> Featuring an Entrepreneur showcase!

• Cottage Food Industry Act (Florida)
• I PAC / Co-Pack

• http://edibleorlando.com - Summer 2012 Edition
• Sustainable Food Guide by the Simple Living Institute
• Florida Market Maker
• Local Harvest plus http://www.localharvest.org/ark-of-taste.jsp (Endangered Varieties)

• Online Labels (DIY)   —> Longwood
• Label USA (Longwood)
• Express Label (Longwood)
• http://allamericancontainers.com/ —–> containers from miami & tampa

Distribution

• http://localrootsdistribution.com/ —-> Farm to Restaurant Distribution
• http://homegrowncoop.org/  —> new store front, Home Delivery & Pick-up
• Orlando Organics —> Home Deliver Service

Sharon Yeago

An informative discussion of the current state of farmers markets in America with Floridian Sharon Yeago, President of the Farmers Market Coalition.

We highlighted the new Florida Cottage Industry Food Act, SNAP & EBT Access at Markets, Tips for Market Success, Fresh From Florida, Florida Market Maker and the benefits of Farmers Markets outlined below. Also mentioned was the Audubon Park Community Market and the newly forming Mills 50 Community Market.

Seven Ways to Celebrate Farmers Market Impacts

• Farmers markets and community education: Innovative partnerships that allow markets to serve as hubs of information
• Farmers markets and public health : Promoting good nutrition and healthful habits
• Farmers markets as economic engines: Business incubation, job development, and local spending
• Farmers at the center of the system: Governance and policies that put farmers first
• Farmers markets and food equity: Improving access to healthful foods in underserved neighborhoods
• Farmers markets and civic engagement: Growing social capital and engaging volunteers
• Farmers markets and rural renewal: Supporting agricultural diversity and farm viability, while inspiring a new generation of producers

Sharon Yeago is the President of the Farmers Market Coalition and has been involved with small farmers for the past ten years. She is a past Chairman of the Board for the Florida Association of Community Farmers Markets and developed Buy Local Florida, one of the first programs supported by the USDA’s Farmers Market Promotion Program. Sharon developed this program that has increased the number of community farmers markets in Florida by 30% through mentoring, creating new  markets, and educating market managers on working with small farmers, value added products, and best management practices.

Sharon has been a community farmers market manager for the past nine years and recently retired as the manager of the High Springs (FL) Farmers Market, which she founded. She recently completed the High Springs Food Security Project, a grant funded program sponsored by the Project for Public Spaces and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Prior to joining the agricultural community, Sharon developed extensive experience in the nonprofit world through her work with cultural and music programming.

Local music legend Matt Butcher is moving to Nashville to see what happens next. Here’s a listen to how he got here with a preview of tracks from his new album, Ghostwriting.

Enjoy the video below that was mentioned on air.

“Stickin’ Around” by The Heathens from Benjamin Piety on Vimeo.