Permanent link for Connecting Community to the Classroom on June 16, 2020

Head west of Traverse City and, if you know where to look, you might find a unique community of families sharing a co-owned property of nearly 90 acres with sustainability in mind. Grand Valley State University faculty advisor Kate Fairman is one of those residents, and her commitment to community and sustainability is reflected in her life and her work on campus.

 Kate is a co-creator of Telford Farm, an intentional community in Cedar, Michigan which is devoted to ongoing practices of consensus decision-making and environmental best-practices. This includes implementing a conservation easement, bird sanctuary, and invasive species management as well as several “small experiments” in raising pigs, cows, chickens, maintaining a vineyard, fruits, vegetables, and forest edibles. Kate’s work as a sustainable home designer and builder (straw/clay construction and reused material) has been featured in Reuse Building Material tours and the Grand Rapids Press.  It seems that the Telford Farm community provides an excellent life-long learning opportunity for her to practice and fulfill her passion for sustainability and reverence for the environment.

Kate’s educational journey started with a BS in “Creative Process in Education” with specialization in Environmental Studies from the University of Vermont and also includes a MS in Natural Resource Planning, Management, and Behavior from University of Michigan (1996). “When I first moved to Traverse City, my husband and I started an environmental education consulting business and helped develop curricula for several area organizations including the watershed center, the regional math, science and technology center and New Designs for Growth. Notably, “we implemented a “Water Watch” program with 20 to 25 area schools, getting teachers and students involved in water-quality monitoring, understanding watersheds, and presenting their data and results to the community at a “student congress” of over 500 students and community members.” 

At GVSU, Kate currently teaches a number of courses that relate to sustainability.  A favorite course is a Wicked Problems in Sustainability class, focusing on the “wicked” complexity of energy issues. Kate involves students in community problem solving, and encourages students to experiment with their own project of sustainability efforts.  Fairman says “We examine various sources of energy, address the pros and cons of each, but more importantly, student groups experiment with implementing a small project helping our community to move towards positive solutions.  Students have worked on solar projects, brought awareness to single-use plastics or pipeline issues by organizing film screenings, and met with governmental representatives,” to name a few of the many action-oriented student projects.

Kate has been the primary faculty advisor for the Traverse City Regional Center since 2013, and she has taught for GVSU since 2007.  

GVSU’s Traverse City Regional Center is well-suited to help students in the Integrative Studies Program make their scholastic ambitions a reality, helping students create a unique course of study that can associate with immediate needs in the local community—and the nation.  “Integrative Studies is, in part, learning to be an active member or an active citizen within your community,” she said. 

For more information about the Integrative Studies Program or to connect with Kate Fairman the Faculty Advisor at the GVSU Traverse City Regional Center, contact Shannon Owen, Director of Northern Michigan Programs for Grand Valley State University at 231.995.1785 or gvsu.edu/traverse.
 

Posted by Jacquelyn Abeyta on Permanent link for Connecting Community to the Classroom on June 16, 2020.