On February 13, the head of the USDA, U.S. senators Bernie Sanders and Patrick Leahy, and congressman Peter Welch all praised organic farmers in speeches at the annual conference of the Vermont chapter of the Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA).

Also at the conference there was a workshop led by Vern Grubinger, professor of agriculture at the Brattleboro campus of the University of Vermont. In his speech, Grubinger addressed topics ranging from ways to enhance soil health to how to fight global warming (by buying local food, and by heating greenhouses with wood instead of fossil fuels).

Grubinger showed the audience of several dozen farmers a picture of a beaver. “A beaver doesn’t look at the forest and say, ‘Oh my gosh, how will I ever cut down all these trees?’ He takes it one bite at a time. That’s how I like to deal with overwhelming issues like climate change,” the professor said.

After the workshop, the organic farmers gave Grubinger a standing ovation and a cake to thank him for 20 years of hard work as “extension agent.”