Victoria Scanlan Stefanakos is a wife and mother, a homesteader, a writer. When she’s not gardening or cooking or picking up wooden toys, she writes stories for national magazines and Web sites about living simply, naturally and well. You can read several of late in Martha Stewart Living and Real Simple.
So Victoria and her family to live lightly and pitch in: growing, making, putting by, selling and sustaining themselves with whatever they can on seven rugged acres. You can follow her chronicle of their adventure at Project Homestead
Lauren Mangion is a writer, engaged citizen, and an eco-coach from Calgary, Canada. Lauren’s personal life and work are intimately intertwined, both being experiments in more sustainable, lower-footprint urban living.
Through Conscious Home, an eco-coaching service, Lauren educates and inspires her fellow Calgarians with tools and resources toward reducing the individual ecological footprint.
Denise founded, designed and manages a national childbirth education program and movement called BornClear — empowering scores of women and couples. Preparing them for the ‘new addition.’ Her work has been reviewed in The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Vogue and NBC's Today Show to name a few. Her clients include: Google, Ogilvy&Mather, Conde Nast, Credit Suisse, Citibank, BBC, Tishman Speyers.
Her first book will be out in early 2009 with Wiley Publishing.
Latham is the founder of a boutique holistic lifestyle practice called- Tender Shoots Wellness. Specializing in maternal and child wellness, Latham served as Program coordinator for the Healthy Moms-Healthy Babies project for the B-Healthy organization. She has been featured on Fox 5 news as an expert on organic foods and kid’s health. She is the co-founder of Panela Productions, a company that educates parents and children about food, through cooking classes, and events.
Latham teaches plant-based culinary classes at Whole Foods Market and Natural Kitchen Cooking School, where she is a part of the guest faculty, and for a host of private clients. She gives lectures on plant based nutrition at Laughing Lotus Yoga Center, North American Vegetarian Society's Summer Fest, and Excellence Charter School, to name a few.
She currently teaches prenatal yoga classes at Om Factory, Golden Bridge Yoga, and Yoga Sutra.
Latham contributes to Working Mother Magazine, Naturally Savvy, and Yoga Mom Magazine.
A freelance writer specializing in environmental and health topics, Linda recently was part of a core team of writers who developed content for GreenYour, a website devoted to greener living.
She wrote an environmental column for five years for Good Housekeeping magazine called Green Watch. You can find her articles in Plenty Magazine’s online newsletter, Fit Pregnancy, Good Housekeeping, Arthritis Today, Profiles (Continental Airline’s in-flight magazine), and Microsoft’s Encarta.
She served on her town’s environmental commission for 15 years and remains an active volunteer. Her personal essay column for the local newspaper offers her take on the natural world and on environmental topics in her neck of the woods.
Lynn Fantom’s commitment to eco-travel is in direct proportion to her passion for Acadia National Park in Maine, where she hikes, climbs, bikes, and kayaks with her daughter Luisa. Lynn is publisher of OUR ACADIA. a Web site devoted to exploring, eating, and relaxing on Mount Desert Island.
Lynn posts on www.mdislander.com range from where to find great lobster rolls to what to do with kids on rainy days.
When not in Maine, Lynn lives in New York City, where she is an executive in the media industry. In 2008 her company was named one of the Best Places to Work in New York City in Crain’s New York Business.
Loretta White is a writer, educator and scholar who gained huge diversity of experience within varied industries; energy, government, high tech and more. The last fifteen years she brokered deals with the top multinational companies globally, her Rainmaker skills are unsurpassed and she remains an authority on BD, BI, sustainability and the Global Marketplace.
Frugality was the voice of her elders who endured wars, rationing and Depression, raised to respect, love and to co-exist with nature through sustainability, self reliance, need and RRR practices. Loretta’s juxtaposition of ideas, deep love for the planet and her Yankee sensibilities are the foundation of a lifestyle that is in partnership with nature. Loretta indulges her passions for renewable energy, organics and being green on her 17.5 acre farm in central Massachusetts.
Recently Ms. White has lead an Assoc. of Caregivers providing support to those caring for parents, disabled, and others.
Loretta is invested in the community of our species and our planet and her diverse background in technology and green living gives her a unique perspective on how to live with nature and with our own gifts of technology.
Ms. White’s work has been published by Corporations, magazines, readers digest and many others.
Heather O'Neill is the founder of Eco to the People, a green living blog.
Before founding Eco to the People, Heather O’Neill wore so many hats in the field of journalism that even the Queen Mother would envy her collection. She has worked as the managing editor of a beauty trade magazine; as a copy editor for an online tech magazine; as the associate editor of a city magazine and as a newspaper reporter and columnist, and as the senior editor at the popular online newsletter ecofabulous.
Her work has appeared in many publications, including Parenting, Alternative Medicine, Natural Solutions, Marin Magazine, Greenwich Magazine and HOME.
Heather earned a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing from California College of the Arts. She lives and works in San Francisco.
Marie Oser is a best-selling author, columnist, and host/producer of VEG TV. A vegan lifestyle expert, and environmental advocate with a focus on nutrition and its role in disease prevention, Oser specializes in creating original gourmet recipes with a solid nutritional bottom line.
Many prominent medical and nutrition professionals endorse her work, including Dr. Colin Campbell, Professor Emeritus, Cornell University and principal researcher of the groundbreaking CHINA STUDY, and Neal Barnard, M.D. founder and president of Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington, DC.
Marie is president of VEGTV, Inc., a video production company producing content for TV and new media. VEGTV streams hundreds of lifestyle videos to more than 1,000 sites globally. In her role as Director of Product Development at Smart Planet Kitchen, she has created, Marie Oser’s Lean & Green, a new line of vegan and Fair Trade Certified products. Marie has appeared on CNN, ABC, National Public Radio, QVC, WUSA, WNBC, KCAL, KOVR, Home & Garden Television (HGTV), FINE LIVING, TECH TV, and Discovery Channel.
Vegetarian since 1971; vegan since 1990, Marie left a career in TV advertising to pursue her interest in food, health, and nutrition. Born and raised in Philadelphia, PA, she studied psychology at St. Joseph’s University. Marie is a gourmet cook and organic gardener living in California, writing her 5th book and hiking every day with Travis, her Yellow Lab companion.
Ted is always looking for ways to minimize his ecological footprint. Professionally, Ted is working to gain the skills necessary to turn his passion for sustainable development into action, as an entrepreneur or financing sustainable businesses.
Ted studied economics and international business at Saint Louis University’s campus in Madrid, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude and was honored as the Distinguished Student in International Business for his class. As the founder and president of the SLU Madrid Business Club, Ted focused the club’s activities on sustainability.
While working for commercial real estate multi-national Jones Lang LaSalle’s Madrid office, Ted strove to implement sustainable practices both within the firm and for its clients. He proposed and designed an Environmental Sustainability Action Plan for JLL Spain. Green Building and Environmentally Sustainable Development remain a passion for Ted: he believes that the intersection of sustainable infrastructure and sustainable attitude is where we’ll find a sustainable society.
Ted currently works for a private equity firm in Madrid, learning skills that he hopes to apply to finance Environmentally Sustainable Development in the United States and around the world.
Unemployment numbers and 401K statements don’t put any of us in the mood for planning a great summer vacation. But before you give up and give into a staycation, consider Mount Desert Island in Maine.
It is the third largest island on the East Coast and has such spectacular scenery that it is regularly ranked among the most beautiful islands in the world. Yet, for families on a budget, it offers affordable places to stay, lots of dining options, and a variety of activities to appeal to different ages and interests.
What To Do
The main reason to visit – or, I would say, covet – Mount Desert Island is because it is home to Acadia National Park. Occupying two-thirds of the island, this national treasure has 130 miles of hiking trails, including those to the top of Cadillac Mountain, the highest peak on the eastern coast of the U.S., which you can also summit by roadway.
There are also 57 miles of car-free carriage roads, where walkers, cyclists and horse-drawn carriages wind around lakes, streams, and evergreen forests. For parents who want to “get the kids outside,” this is the answer.
An entrance pass to the park costs $20 and admits one vehicle for seven days. But it’s also your pass for a lot of entertainment. Park rangers host daily walks, talks, amphitheatre programs, and cruises. Parents will be as eager as the kids to learn about birds of prey, insects in a stream, and the stars over Sand Beach.
Or families may want to split up — while Dad takes the kids to look for frogs and tadpoles during “A Frog’s Life,” Mom can get a lesson on photographing wildflowers. Most programs are free, although some do require nominal fees; many are customized for different age groups.
Oh, did you say teenagers? Don’t worry. My experience with teens in Acadia is they enjoy the hiking, biking, and kayaking as long as you also schedule some beach time at Sand Beach. Another big benefit is the island offers a free Island Explorer bus on eight different routes, so that teens can head into town independently to explore the shops and visit the Internet café.
Apart from the many activities in Acadia National Park itself, there are museums, whaling trips, miniature golf courses, and lots of other great things to do with kids on Mount Desert Island, especially in its largest town, Bar Harbor.
Where To Stay
If you have camping equipment, you can cut your lodging expenses to $20 a night and enjoy the beautiful wooded campgrounds of Acadia. The two primary park campgrounds are Blackwoods Campground and Seawall Campground, both within a 10-minute walk of the ocean. The island’s towns, especially Bar Harbor, also offer a wide range of motels, cottages, and B&B’s.
But a great way to save money is to rent a house so that you can avoid eating all of your meals in restaurants. Bring some basics from home and go to one of the local markets and farm stands on arrival.
I just checked the listings at one of Mount Desert Island’s top realtors and found a new 3-bedroom log cabin-style house with a deck — five minutes from the national park and 10 minutes to downtown Bar Harbor – that is $1250/week. Some realtors have told me that there is actually a greater supply of rental properties on MDI than demand, so this may be a good year to try some bargaining.
Getting There
Mount Desert Island is a little over three hours north of Portland. For a family it can be a great drive with a lot of interesting places to stop. Another option is to fly to Portland on JetBlue, which has low-price fares from New York’s JFK, and rent a car there. Because there’s the free bus service on the island, you may even want to consider one of the eight car-free options of getting to Mount Desert Island.
More Money-Saving Tips
Bring your own bikes to cut out those steep rental fees.
If you’re renting a house or cottage, look for one that also offers a kayak.
Take the Island Explorer bus around the island and save on gas.
Research options to some of the more costly cruise tours. Local museums research laboratories have touch tanks — even if there aren’t all the bells and whistles of the commercial operations.
Do a little research and find an outdoor concert, book sale, or national park program as an alternative to more expensive movies or shopping trips.
Cook out ocean-side at one of Acadia’s great picnic areas, including Seawall and Pretty Marsh, with grills provided by the park service.
When you finally splurge on lobster (as you should!), choose a lobster pound that offers options for your kids if they prefer grilled chicken or even PB&J.
For more information on how to explore, eat, and relax on your visit to Acadia National Park, visit OUR ACADIA
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