Farmscape: The Changing Rural Environment

Farmscape is inspired by the community play which documents the contemporary Midwest farmscape. Savor the taste of organic vegetables on a truck on its way to the local farmer s market, suit up in protective clothing and a mask before you enter a hog confinement operation. Experience the David and Goliath story of an organic farmer up against the economic forces of the 3500 acre agri-business operation next door. In the end, you ll understand that during the pioneer days, farming completely changed the ecosystem of the prairie. A hundred and fifty years later, this landscape is dramatically changing again. This book will feature a collection of well-known and talented contributors including: This book contains the full readers theatre script as well as commentary on both Farmscape and the Changing Rural Environment

Mary Swander (born November 5, 1950) is U.S. author of the recent memoirs The Desert Pilgrim (Ice Cube Press) and Out of this World as well as three books of poetry, Heaven-and-Earth House, Driving the Body Back, and Succession. Swander has also co-authored a musical, Dear Iowa, with composer Christopher Frank, which has been produced across the Midwest and on Iowa Public Television. Her awards include the Whiting Award, a National Endowment for the Arts grant for the Literary Arts, the Carl Sandburg Literary Award, and the Nation-Discovery Award. In 2009, she was named to a two-year term as the Poet Laureate of Iowa. A graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop at the University of Iowa, she is a Distinguished Professor of English at Iowa State University.