Help our friends at EcoRI News

Thanks to you, we made it to our fifth birthday. It's been a challenging but rewarding journey fostering a start-up news organization in a turbulent media landscape. We continue to watch as venerable media stalwarts such as the Providence Journal lay off their reporters and shrink their coverage. And the tragic loss of The Providence Phoenix reminds us that our local media ecosystem is indeed fragile.   More than ever, you need strong independent media keeping an eye on things, and we're proud and humbled to continue to serve you as your environmental watchdog. That said, we still face the same revenue challenges as mainstream media, but the good news is our readership is growing (up 40 percent this calendar year) and our operation is small and nimble (we continue to operate without a central office), so with the full support of our growing community of readers, like you, we can find a path to long-term sustainability so that we may continue our work, deepen our coverage and serve you even better. You are the key to our success as a viable community news organization. For those who have supported us with a contribution this year, we thank you. If you would like to renew your support, please visit the Donate page of our website to pledge your support. Thank you for recognizing the importance of local environmental journalism. Sincerely, Joanna Detz ecoRI News executive director/co-founder Frank Carini ecoRI News editor/co-founder e c o R I   N e w s   B o a r d   o f   D i r e c t o r s Chip Young (president), David Stookey (vice president/secretary), Isaac Lavoie (treasurer), Chuck Allott, Drew Carey, Bari Freeman (George), Krystine Ritzen, John Torgan A Subscriber Goal with a $25,000 Challenge Joseph Rand signs up a new reader at the Connecting for Change conference in New Bedford, Mass. (Marion Institute) In early 2013, a generous Rhode Island family foundation offered to award a $25,000 challenge grant to ecoRI News if we reach 11,500 e-newsletter subscribers by the end of this year. Thanks to the efforts of our outreach team, Joseph Rand and Dana Goodman, we've grown our subscriber base 40 percent this year by tabling at events, conferences, markets and festivals all over southern New England. We still need 821 more subscribers in order to meet our goal. You can help by sharing our e-newsletter sign-up link on your social networks. The link is www.ecoRI.org/read. Encourage your eco-minded friends to sign up. There's cash on the line.

We're Muckrakers in the Literal Sense ecoRI News programs manager Kevin Proft picks up food scraps at a customer's home. (Rhode Island Foundation) Not many media organizations can say they also run a successful food scrap-collection program. Our outreach arm's residential compost program, ecoRI Earth, entered its second year this summer. It now serves 100 customers in Providence and Pawtucket and has diverted more than 25,000 pounds of food scrap from the Central Landfill since June 2013. Environmental Studies Class at Brown Studies ecoRI News (istockphoto) A section of professor Dawn King's Environmental studies class at Brown University has adopted ecoRI News for its civic engagement project, which pairs students with a community organization. Students will be working with ecoRI News to address some of our organization's critical challenges: raising brand awareness, increasing our subscriber base and activating our long-ignored Instagram account. ecoRI News reporter Tim Faulkner recently finished a series on advances in renewable-energy technology for the Island Foundation. Tim's reporting brought him to Martha's Vineyard, where he spoke to the owner of a solar cooperative who aims to make solar energy available to low-income renters and homeowners alike. He also examined the role of some emerging technologies such as tidal and wave energy and small-scale wind projects play in adding to southern New England's renewable-energy portfolio. This fall, we added a news section that highlights businesses that have adopted sustainable practices in order demonstrate that sustainability and economic progress can go hand in hand. In the past few months, the Local (eco)nomy has featured food business incubator Hope & Main; Sabella Studios, a Westerly-based furniture furniture maker working wil salvaged wood; an ice-cream sandwich-maker with a tricycle delivery system and more. W e   w a n t   t o  h e a r   f r o m   y o u .  Got a story idea? Want to tell us how we're doing? We love to hear from our supporters. Drop us a line at 401-678-0206 or e-mail jo@ecoRI.org. Donate button not working? Click here. Don't want to donate online? You can send a check to: ecoRI Inc. 111 Hope Street, Providence, R.I. 02906