WHERE IT ALL BEGAN:
ORGANIC FARMING AND GARDENING
WHERE IT ALL BEGAN:
ORGANIC FARMING AND GARDENING
Q: Maria, what was it like growing up in the Rodale family?
A: Both wonderful and odd. Wonderful because I lived on the original organic farm my grandfather and grandmother started. We had pigs and cows and chickens and a big barn filled with hay and kittens everywhere, so it was a kid�s dream. What was odd though was that there were always people showing up because the farm had become a mecca. We�d be sitting at the dinner table and curious people would come and look in our kitchen window.
Q: Did you develop your love of gardening on the farm?
A: I couldn�t help but absorb it. What�s interesting is that while my grandfather and father were the intellectual pioneers and very interested in agriculture, my grandmother and mother were the gardeners. They were creating beauty everywhere. I�m kind of a hybrid. To me gardening is really about creating an environment that�s beautiful and productive and delicious.
Q: What prompted you to found Organic Style magazine, and what do you think of the new online version?
A: When we started saying �organic style,� people called it an oxymoron. They thought �organic� meant ugly, undyed, unelegant. I helped push the market for well-designed, elegant, yet ethical products. Now nobody questions that organic can be stylish. I love that the new Organic Style is online rather than on paper. We�re thrilled to see the brand live on under the direction of Gerald Prolman, the founder of Organic Bouquet, who has used the Organic Style brand as an umbrella for a group of ethical businesses that have come together as one company, and for the re-introduction of the magazine.
Q: How do you live today?
A: My husband and I built an eco-house two years ago. We have photovoltaic panels and solar-heated hot water. Almost everything in the house is either nontoxic or recycled or locally found. In my refrigerator, I have eggs from my mother�s farm and a lot of organic milk, because I have a one-and-a-half year old. But I also have Miracle Whip and Frank�s Hot Sauce.
Q: What advice do you have for people who want to buy environmentally friendly products but are confused by the labels?
A: Most people still don�t understand the difference between �natural� and �organic,� and �green� is a whole new can of worms. You have to do a little homework, not just read the labels. Know a little about the company that�s making the product and try to think through where it came from and where it�s going after you buy it. Consider buying organically and locally grown products: You�re voting with your dollars.
Q: What�s the biggest lesson you�ve learned from your parents and grandparents, and what can the rest of us learn from them?
A: Change takes courage and time, and the courage comes when you have to stand up to people who laugh at you and think you�re crazy. My grandfather and my father never lived to see the impact of their courage, which is why as a family we see our mission of enabling and inspiring people to improve their lives and the world around them as multigenerational.
Q: What are your goals for Rodale?
A: One of our major goals is to look at ways to build the connection in people�s minds between the environment and their health, so it�s not just about being green, saving the planet, or saving energy, but about saving your own health and the health of your children.
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