Russell Wayne Libby (16 August 1956 – 9 December 2012) was an American agriculturist, poet, and environmentalist who served as the executive director of the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) from 1995 to 2012. Libby, an advocate for local food sustainability, was also a member of the school board, and a selectman for the town of Mount Vernon, Maine.
Early life and education Russell Wayne Libby was born on 16 August 1956, in Lincoln, Maine, to Ronald and Sandra Libby. He spent his youth in Sorrento birdwatching, exploring local forests, and gardening, a hobby he had picked up after being gifted seeds from his fourth grade teacher.
Libby graduated from Sumner High School in 1974, having been class president. Afterwards he attended Bowdoin College, graduating in 1978 with a bachelor's degree in economics. Sometime thereafter he also received a master's degree (MS) in resource economics from the University of Maine.
Career
Development MOFGA was founded in 1971, and Libby joined the board of directors in 1983. He became the executive director in 1995, and was tasked with finding a permanent location for the organization and its six employees. In 1996, MOFGA purchased 200 acres of land in Unity, Maine, and created the Common Ground Education Center, which then became the new site of the Common Ground Country Fair. By 2012, the fair's acreage had doubled to 400, and the organization had 30 employees.
Libby worked for a decade in the Maine Department of Agriculture as a research director. He was also an adviser to the Agricultural Council of Maine, the University of Maine Board of Agriculture, the Maine Farmland Trust, Eat Local Foods Coalition, Fedco Seeds, and the National Organic Coalition.
Theories on sustainability Libby was highly critical of the negative effects of DDT, herbicides, chemicals, and organophosphates on both human and environmental health. He also spoke against the idea of corporate food systems, and encouraged local involvement and knowledge of growing practices, in order to reclaim food sovereignty:
Libby also purported the idea of having a "shared responsibility" for the wellbeing of the environment in the face of potential future problems, like climate change:
Later years Libby resigned as executive director of MOFGA on 3 November 2012, yet would continue to assist the organization as a senior policy advisor. By the end of his tenure, MOFGA was reportedly the largest state-level organic association in the United States, with over 6,500 paying members, 418 certified organic farms, a 400-acre fairground, around 1,500 volunteers, and 32 employees.
He later died from cancer on 9 December 2012. In remembrance, state flags were ordered to be lowered to half–mast, for one day, by governor Paul LePage.
Personal life Libby operated the Three Sisters Farm in Mount Vernon, Maine, with his three daughters and wife, Mary Anne.
Legacy
Scholarship Libby is the namesake for the Russell Libby Agricultural Scholars Award, a yearly scholarship of $1,500. It is awarded to Maine high school seniors interested in sustainable farming, or to teachers or institutions intending to create an agriculture–based program in Maine.
Publications
Balance: A Late Pastoral (2007)
References