There is a little out-of-sight valley near where I live that is magic for me. In the midst of rolling prairie for as far as the eye can see is this narrow, steep gulch, filled with a hidden oak forest. It's a place I often retreat to, and always come out of with deeper insights into what being is really all about. It is a cut in the prairie, and reminds me that cuts of our own can be beautiful and bursting with life.

I believe we're all connected in deeper ways than we can understand yet. I'm also quite sure that we can re-learn how to truly listen to each other to solve our tough problems. Practicing togetherness means we have a lot of unlearning to do about how we value and see each other--and that journey can be so beautiful.

My work flows from social innovation, rural life, fatherhood, nature as teacher, design that matters, and the art of hosting and harvesting deep conversations. I'm a daddy, hiker, steward and vermicompster. I'm a rural change artist too; the kind of artist who helps people design a new way of being together in community to get things done. I co-create at a shop in South Dakota called Rural Weaver, and host a monthly environmental gathering called Sioux Falls Green Drinks. My wife and our four daughters live in a little village near the world's largest bull's head sculpture in South Dakota.

http://joebart.com