• What: Dreaming of Home: A Community Art Project to Share Housing Issues & Cooperative Solutions
• When: Fall and Winter 2022
• Where: Kick off in Saranac Lake with future events in Lake Placid, Malone & Plattsburgh
• Who: Saranac Lake partners include Adirondack Almanack, ADK ArtRise, the Adirondack Center for Writing, BluSeed Studios, Historic Saranac Lake, Saranac Lake ArtWorks, & the Saranac Lake Free Library
• Who else? YOU!

All opportunities to engage are free and open to all.

Build Your Dream Home. Share Your Story.

Join ADK ArtRise for a cardboard house building workshop on Sunday, October 23, anytime between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. Learn more at adkartrise.com/housing-project.

Submit a written piece to the Adirondack Center for Writing. Read others' entries at adirondackcenterforwriting.org/news.

Fine art pieces may be submitted at BluSeed Studios for display. We are thrilled with the submissions that have already been contributed.

Learn about other projects at adirondack.org/dreamingofhome.

The morning started off crisp and cold, but the bright sun, rolling hills and fall colors warmed us up throughout the day. What a stunning October day we had for Bike the Barns! Thank you to all the farms, businesses, sponsors, volunteers and riders who made the day such a success. 

For a peek at some views along the route and folks who joined us for the ride, check out a selection of photos and testimonials on the Bike Adirondacks blog page.

You can also read about the day's event in the Plattsburgh Press-Republican. 

Stay tuned to our website and newsletter for dates and location for next year's Bike the Barns!

"The turnout for Bike the Barns was tremendous. Not only were riders able to bask in the beauty of the magnificent fall foliage on our bucolic country roads in the greater Reber area and Essex, but they were treated to three of our many amazing farms who work hard to bring fresh farm food to tables near and far."

~ Ken Hughes, Essex Town Supervisor and Bike the Barns Rider

Farewell to our Fearless Director

We were sad to announce the departure of ADI's inaugural director, Dr. Nicole Hylton-Patterson, earlier this month. We thank Nicky for sharing her vision, energy, passion and courage with us — and people and communities across the region — over the last three years.

We are committed to carrying on this work building a more welcoming and inclusive Adirondack North Country. We will be sharing the job opening for the ADI Director position in the coming weeks. 

Read more in the Adirondack Explorer, Adirondack Daily Enterprise and Plattsburgh Press-Republican and NCPR.

Adirondacks for All

Join Adirondack Experience and ADI for a week-long "Adirondacks for All" symposium. Each session takes place virtually, 7:00-8:00 p.m.

• Reframing Adirondack History: Tuesday, November 1
• Wilderness For All: Wednesday, November 2
• Using Policy and Preservation to Foster an Adirondacks for All: Friday, November 4

Free Trainings this Fall

Help your community understand how to manage responsible clean energy development by attending one or more free virtual clean energy trainings, provided by ANCA, NYSERDA and community partners.

Please share these free training opportunities with members of your community who may be interested — planning and zoning board members, code enforcement and building officials, etc.

Energy Jobs with our Partners

Are you or someone you know interested in helping your North Country neighbors utilize clean energy technologies like heat pumps, electric vehicles and community solar?

Please help us spread the word about three new Energy Advisor job openings with our clean energy partners at Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County. These positions will serve Jefferson & Lewis Counties, Essex & Clinton Counties and Hamilton County.

Building upon the success of our September event in Saranac Lake, ANCA CPR and ADI are hosting two additional, free opportunities to participate in Building Welcoming & Belonging in the Workplace. In this interactive workshop, we’ll explore different methods to better articulate feelings, needs, requests, and boundaries. These useful techniques are designed to help us negotiate challenging conversations and learn how to celebrate the diversity in the workplace. 

These free events are open to all, including business owners and staff, aspiring entrepreneurs and nonprofit personnel. 

Business Sellers' Workshops

Thinking about selling your business, now or in the future? Center for Businesses in Transition partners with the Saranac Lake Area Chamber of Commerce and Franklin County Economic Development Corporation are offering two in-person sessions where you'll learn the detailed steps of selling or transitioning your business, and the skills necessary to value, market and sell.

Session 1: Tuesday, November 1, 5:00-7:00 p.m. includes an overview of the selling process

Session 2: Tuesday, November 15, 5:00-7:00 p.m. includes valuation process, sell sheets, marketing your business

Compost for Good Workshops

The Compost for Good Team is offering two workshops next month: 

Farm to Compost Kick Off: Thursday, November 3, 12:00 p.m., for small and mid-sized farms (REGISTER HERE) 

Grant Writing 101: Thursday, November 10, 12:00 p.m., and for people and groups interested in implementing commercial .composting in their communities: (REGISTER HERE)

News from our Board of Directors

We are thrilled that long-time ANCA board member and vice president of external relations at Clarkson University Kelly Chezum (pictured) will represent ANCA as our first woman board chair in our 67-year history. Congrats Kelly!

We thank Jim Sonneborn for his years of service as board president. His contributions to ANCA are many and meaningful. 

We also recently announced an updated slate of board officers with Noah Shaw of Foley Hoag LLP as vice president, J. Daniel Mohr of Adirondack Bank as treasurer, and Katie Malinowski of Tug Hill Commission as secretary. We also welcomed new board member Antonio DeSpirito (pictured), managing director of BlackRock.

We look forward to another strong year under the leadership and guidance of this exceptional Board of Directors.

Check out our jobs page for openings with member and partner organizations and regional nonprofits:

• Fundraising Communications Specialist: Adirondack Land Trust  
• Horticulture/4-H Educator, Lewis, NY: Cornell Cooperative Extension

Have an opening you want to promote? Send a web link to jobs@adirondack.org.