2025 Rust Belt Fibershed Symposium Feature
Thursday Evening Webinar Speakers
Part 1: Virtual Webinar, Thursday evening, January 16
7:00-8:30pm (recording will be available for registrants)
While the main conference takes place on Saturday, January 25th, in person, we'll start the festivities a week beforehand to lay some foundational groundwork about why natural fibers and dyes are so amazing. We'll hear from a panel of experts on specific different natural fibers and dyes. Learn a little more about the power of wool, alpaca, angora, hemp, flax, and natural color! Registration included in your ticket and recording will be available for a limited time afterwards.
ALPACA: Caliegh Bussard / The Buzzard Farm / Beaver, PA
Caliegh Bussard is the CSO (chief shepherd officer) at The Buzzard Farm which operates as a small fiber farm in western Pennsylvania with a focus on alpaca fiber. To demonstrate the groundwork of producing cloth, she hand spins fiber from her farm to make biodegradable, dye free hats in limited quantity each fall to sell in her online store.
Caliegh will share about alpaca fiber. “Alpacas are pivotal in the movement to distribute biodegradable cloth. Their hardiness, ease on the soil, and husbandry requirements make them the most environmentally conscious fiber animal.”
Instagram: @fiberinthefoothills
Website: Www.thebuzzardfarm.com
WOOL: Denise Williams / Something Beautiful Handcrafts / Cleveland, OH
Teacher by day, artist by night. Denise Williams' passions stems from the need to create handmade textiles from start to finish. From sheep to shawl, from the wash bin to the wheel, from locks to luxury goods, every stitch is made with love. Local and sustainable, when possible.
“Wool is so Cool: Do you know there are more than 200 distinct sheep breeds, with specific characteristics, which lend them to different usages?. I would like to share some of those characteristics with you, to help you decide which wools are best suited for specific projects.”
Youtube: Something Beautiful Handcrafts
ANGORA: Sara Guren / One Bunny’s Wool
As the creative behind One Bunny's Wool, Sara Guren began her journey with fiber arts in 2020 when her family brought home an English Angora rabbit. Taking care of the rabbit, Patches, requires frequent brushing of her long fiber which can be spun into yarn. Learning to hand-spin rabbit fiber then led Sara to explore knitting with locally sourced alpaca fiber, growing flax and foraging for natural dyes. Working with these materials to produce hand-made garments brings Sara so much joy and satisfaction, confirming her belief that we can regenerate ourselves while transforming our connection to the clothes we wear and love.
“I love working with Angora rabbit fiber because of its softness and the drape it can bring to a project. AND... having an animal who brings so much joy to our family home is a bonus to creating one-of-a-kind pieces from her hand-spun fiber.”
website: saraguren.com
instagram: @onebunnyswool
FLAX: Jess Boeke / Rust Belt Fibershed / Peninsula, OH
Jess is the co-organizer of the Rust Belt Fibershed and the lead organizer of the Rust Belt Linen Project, a six-year and counting community project focused on growing flax both for fiber and as well as a creative means of collectivism, connection, and education. Jess has has worked in partnership with over 100 different growers in the Rust Belt Fibershed, and was a founding board member for the North American Linen Association.
HEMP: Laura Sullivan / Hemp Fiber Artist / Northern New England
Laura is an Artist and farmer whose work hinges on the belief that clothing is agriculture. She has worked with UVM Extension since 2021 growing hemp for fiber, and is also earning an MFA in Visual Art through Vermont College of Fine Art focused in Hemp fiber. As a member of the Northern New England Fibershed advisory board, she is working to advocate for bast fiber farmers and processing facilities in the Northeast. Before moving to Vermont, she received a BA from Colorado College in fine art, wwoofed on farms throughout Portugal, and interned for a felt artist in the Netherlands. She has over twenty years experience as a textile artist, over ten years experience in farming, and over seven years experience working with hemp fiber. In 2020, she performed R&D for a startup company utilizing locally grown Milkweed floss for clothing insulation. Her passion lives at the intersection between art and agriculture and her long term goals include reviving the Fibershed of the Northeast to include working landscapes of hemp and flax fiber.
Instagram: @hempfiber.artistfarmer
Website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/PipeDreamHempworks
NATURAL DYES: Amber Rose Ostaszewski / Weavers Guild of Greater Cincinnati / Campbell County, KY
Amber Rose Ostaszewski is an artist, educator, and author who has been fascinated with textiles since childhood. She draws on her heritage to inspire her creative practice and is passionate about regenerative, natural materials, including processing and spinning fiber, natural dyes, and the creation of mindful, intentional textile work. Her work has been published with the New York Botanical Garden's Steere Herbarium, Wovenutopia, and Piecework Magazine. She recently has shown work at Wave Pool Gallery via the One Year, One Outfit Project as Artist in Residence with the Rust Belt Fibershed, taught at the National Education & Fiber Conference in Burlington, KY, Convergence in Wichita, KS presented by the Handweavers Guild of America, and regularly teaches at Sew Valley and the Weavers Guild in Cincinnati. She is the President of the Weavers Guild of Greater Cincinnati and a board member of the Rust Belt Fibershed.
Amber will be sharing about “Natural dyes--why are they an important, connective piece in the regenerative garment cycle. We'll briefly cover the reasons that go beyond practical applications for using natural dyes, showing how specific dye materials and color create meaning in our lives.”
Instagram:
@weaversguildcincinnati
@sticks.and.stones.co
Websites:
www.weaversguildcincinnati.org
amberroseostaszewski.com
Saturday Morning Speakers
Part 2: The Main Event, January 25 (morning speaker audio also available with a virtual ticket)
The main event on Saturday, January 25th, kicks off with a wide array of speakers who all play a part in a regional soil-to-soil textile system! Learn from community leaders in the fields of fiber farming, research, mill innovation, manufacturing and design, natural building, waste wool application, creativity, and more.
While we could have chosen to spend the morning digging in deep with a couple of speakers over a narrow subject related to regional textiles, we listened to feedback from last year where people expressed that they really enjoyed more speakers for shorter time blocks. We opted to invite all of the following speakers to share their experience, passions, and dreams with you in these shorter time blocks again this year! It will be a little like going out to dinner and ordering all small plates or appetizers instead of one huge entree— and we’re so excited and honored to have such wonderful engagement from our talented and passionate speakers.
Morning speaker series will be followed by a Material Memory Fashion Show, a Clothing Swap, Learning Demos, and Vendors!
For full weekend agenda and details, please see the main symposium page.
C Stonebraker-Martinez /
IRTF Cleveland / Youngstown & Cleveland, OH
C will open our morning speaker sessions with a grounding ritual to connect us with the land, peoples and waterways we’re existing in, around, through and with.
About C: C is a movement chaplain and the co-director of @IRTFCleveland, a grassroots human rights collective that uses popular education, mutual aid and direct action to transform consumer behaviors, corporate and government policies for our collective liberation. Founded after US trained and funded military forces killed two Clevelanders working in solidarity with refugees in El Salvador in 1980, they are proud to center those impacted by state violence from Colombia to Canada in our shared work, especially Afro-indigenous communities, workers, queer and disabled folk.
They’ve co-founded the Cleveland Pandemic Response, the Ohio Fair Trade Network, the Immigration Working Group of Cleveland, the North East Ohio Worker Center and the North East Ohio Medic Collective (among other projects).
C’s maternal family is indigenous to Colombia and their paternal family has spent many generations in Appalachia. They grew up in Youngstown, spent 6 years in rural Ohio and have made Cleveland their adult home for many years. C is a first generation grad of Hiram College and Kent State University.
Website: irtfcleveland.org
Melissa Duhaime /
Michigan Fibershed & University of Michigan /
Southeast Michigan
Melissa will present research on microplastics pollution, especially the oil-based plastic microfibers that make up the majority of clothing produced worldwide, and their impacts on our Great Lakes biomes. She will discuss the role regional Fibershed affiliates can play in sustaining thriving living systems (textile, agricultural, economic, human, etc.) by supporting natural fiber alternatives to plastic textiles through place-based research, advocacy, and education.
About Melissa: Through her research and teaching, Melissa Duhaime, an Associate Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, has applied her expertise in microbial ecology to address pressing Great Lakes issues such as microplastics pollution and biodegradation, algal blooms, avian botulism, and oil pipeline risks. As an active community scholar, she has testified before the US Senate on microplastics pollution in the Great Lakes, trained as a Science Communication Fellow, and has hosted and participated in numerous community science events in Detroit and Ann Arbor. Currently, Dr. Duhaime is supporting the Michigan Fibershed through research, advocacy, and curriculum development to promote regional regenerative alternatives to fossil carbon-derived plastics.
Websites:
https://websites.umich.edu/~duhaimem/ https://www.michiganfibershed.org/
Kelly Powers/ Powers Acres & Powers Acres Fiber Mill /
Medina, OH
Kelly will be sharing alongside Beth Lomske about how fiber animals can be used to improve soil quality— a vital part of an enlivened planet.
About Kelly: Kelly is farmer and entrepreneur behind Powers Acres & Powers Acres Fiber Mill (coming soon to Northeast Ohio!)
Instagram: Powers Acres
Facebook: Powers Acres
Beth Lomske/ Oxbow Orchard /
Cleveland, OH
Beth will be sharing alongside Kelly Powers how fiber animals can be used to improve soil quality— a vital part of an enlivened planet.
About Beth: Beth Lomske began farming in Northeast Ohio nearly 15 years ago, working with organic farms, markets, and farm education non-profits. Since 2016, she and partner Kyla Werlin created and operate Oxbow Orchard on the north end of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park. They raise sheep and poultry on pasture, grow produce and flowers, curate a local foods shop, and host a wide array of craft workshops and live music events throughout the season.
Instagram: @oxboworchardohio
Website: Oxbow Orchard
Facebook: Oxbow Orchard
Lauren Hirtle / OEFFA
/ OEFFA works throughout Ohio and also other states in the mid-west
Lauren and Casey will talk about OEFFA's state policy work focused on grassroots advocacy and soil health. They’ll share updates on current soil health legislation in Ohio and across the country and highlight how soil health is at the core of healthy food, water, economies, communities, and fiber!
About Lauren: In her role as a Grassroots Policy Organizer at OEFFA, Lauren works toward a just, equitable food system. She has been at OEFFA since 2018 and has worked on farms and for non-profits throughout central Ohio, New York, and New England as a field worker, educator, and community organizer.
When she is not working toward a just, equitable food system, she enjoys running her small landscaping business, making art, and spending time with her husband and dog.
Instagram: @oeffapolicy and @ohioecological
Website: oeffa.org
Casey Brooks / OEFFA
/ OEFFA works throughout Ohio and also other states in the mid-west
Lauren and Casey will talk about OEFFA's state policy work focused on grassroots advocacy and soil health. They’ll share updates on current soil health legislation in Ohio and across the country and highlight how soil health is at the core of healthy food, water, economies, communities, and fiber!
About Casey: Casey has more than 20 years of experience in sustainable agriculture, environmental education, and natural resource management and is currently a Sustainable Agriculture Educator for OEFFA.
Instagram: @oeffapolicy and @ohioecological
Website: oeffa.org
Nathan Rutz/ Director of Soil at Rust Belt Riders /
Cleveland, OH
Nathan will speak on compost and the impact that composting textiles could have as a non-waste resource.
About Nathan: Nathan Rutz is a professional composter which means he gets to drive big machines, start hundreds of seedlings, think critically about our social-agri-eco-system, and talk about poop and corpses in professional settings. He works as Director of Soil at Rust Belt Riders Composting in Cleveland Ohio, a worker-owned cooperative that rescues food from the landfill and makes and sells compost and compost based products for home gardeners and organic growers under the name Tilth Soil. He is glad to be living on Earth and hopes that compost can play a role in healing broken places while making use of squandered sunshine.
Instagram: @rustbeltriders
Website: rustbeltriders.com
Monica Bongue/ Muddy Fork Farm & Great Lakes Natural Fibers Inc. / Wayne County, OH
Revitalizing Wool: Sustainable Pellets for Horticulture and Economic Growth
Great Lakes Natural Fibers is launching a wool pellet production project to explore the use of wool in the horticultural industry, create a sales outlet for sheep producers, and generate income for Great Lakes Natural Fibers.
This initiative addresses the collapse of the wool market in the U.S. and Ohio while offering an environmentally friendly alternative to mined horticultural products like peat, vermiculite, and perlite. A wool shredder and pelletizer system will be installed in West Salem, Ohio, and will become operational this fall.
Wool pellets, approved by the National Organics Board and OMRI, provide a sustainable solution for organic growers. This innovative project merges environmental stewardship with economic opportunities for the wool industry.
About Monica: Monica brings 28 years of experience in regenerative farming, ensuring the organic integrity of products while fostering the diversity and resilience of both wild and cultivated habitats at Muddy Fork Farm. Her journey into farming is rooted in a scientific background, where she studied the impact of nutrient deficiencies on plant metabolite production.
As an accomplished entrepreneur, scientist, and leader in cooperative ventures and non-profits, Monica combines expertise with innovation. Her passion for finding sustainable uses for excess wool on the farm led to the creation of the Great Lakes Natural Fibers project.
Em Good / Good Building / Place Based Building /
Cleveland, OH
Em Good of Good Building will shine light on our regions housing crisis, and how a place-based practice within construction can create a healthier world for people, planet, and workers.
About Em: Em Good is a carpenter and founder of Good Building, a carbon-capture construction company. They have over 15 years of building experience and have dedicated the past 4 years to finding scalable, bio-based solutions to address our regions unique housing crisis.
Good Building is carbon-capture construction for people and planet. We are a team of carpenters, designers, building scientists, architects, researchers, and activists. Our work confronts overwhelming material toxicity and environmental destruction abundant within conventional construction. We collaborate with homeowners, contractors, architects, farmers, and developers to create beautiful spaces using a post-carbon, post-waste mindset. We are proudly based in Cleveland, Ohio and are bringing non-toxic homes to the working class.
Good Building is a 100% women owned and operated construction company.
Good Building is a worker coop.
Good Building is creating a regional supply chain of high-quality, natural building materials.
Good Building fosters a culture of compassion in construction.
Good Building trains new builders in carbon capturing manufacturing and construction.
Good Building is obsessed with material health and building science.
Good Building invests in research and development focused on advancing carbon storing materials for practical application in working class homes.
Good Building works with local organizations and leaders to find creative financing opportunities for lower cost housing access.
Good for People.
Good for Planet.
Good for Workers.
Instagram: @goodbuilding
Website: www.goodbuilding.co
Jordon Masters / WVU
/ Morgantown, WV
Jordon Masters (WVU) will present recent developments in open-source fiber processing equipment, highlighting two years of research focused on advancing sustainable textile practices. The presentation will explore efforts to create a program that enables farmers and co-ops to access and utilize this equipment, allowing them to process their fiber into yarn for higher returns on investment. Additionally, the project will discuss strategies to help these producers sell their yarn, further increasing their economic opportunities.
About Jordon: Jordon Masters is a researcher at West Virginia University (WVU) with a strong focus on sustainable textiles and eco-centric design. Their research interests include natural fibers, natural dyes, regional textile development, and the integration of environmentally conscious practices into textile production. Masters' key area of expertise lies in the development of open-source fiber processing equipment, aimed at advancing hyper-regional textile supply chains. Through their work, Masters strives to promote local, sustainable approaches to textile production, enhancing both environmental and economic sustainability.
Instagram: @wvufarmtofashion
Aidan Meany / Found Surface / Cleveland, OH
Aidan will present the project he’s been working on with Jordon Masters from WVU.
About Aidan: Aidan Meany is the founder and CEO of Found Surface, a Cleveland-based factory specializing in apparel and soft goods. Aidan leads the company’s innovation in digital knitting, blending technology with traditional craftsmanship to create high quality and sustainable goods. Found Surface partners with Rust Belt Riders to compost factory waste and is actively bringing commercial natural dye to market. The company is also pursuing the production of regional animal fiber at scale in partnership with Jordan Masters at West Virginia University. Aidan’s focus on transparency and collaboration positions Found Surface as a leader in responsible American production.
Found Surface is a one-stop-shop for clients looking to design, develop, and produce their soft goods sustainably in the USA.
Instagram: @foundsurface
Website: foundsurface.com
Sarah Pottle & Jess Boeke / Co-Founders, Rust Belt Fibershed / Medina & Peninsula, OH
Sarah and Jess will share about how we can see fiber and textiles as holding a thousand entrypoints towards an enlivened place.
About Sarah and Jess:
Cleveland born and raised, doing life together since womb-times, we found ourselves as public school teachers in Baltimore in the mid 2000s, working on organic farms in the summer, and looking for a creative side project. We started Drift Lab Dye Studio, a natural dye project, in 2010. In the process of Drift Lab unfolding, we became familiar with fellow natural dyer and founder of Fibershed, Rebecca Burgess. We remember the first Fibershed video we saw on this-new-platform-called-instagram where the panelists were talking not just about fiber, but about farming and ecology and health and fair trade and art and fashion and climate and economy and education and we instantly thought: THAT’S IT! THAT’S THE THING. So when we moved back home to settle in Cleveland in 2014 (Jess) and 2016 (Sarah), we felt compelled to promote the Fibershed movement in our home bioregion.
In 2018 the Rust Belt Fibershed was born, and in 2022 we finally became a 501(c)3. This project and movement have flourished in the most unpredictable and abundant ways, and we are truly grateful to be a part of it.
As co-founders of the Rust Belt Fibershed, we are truly just looking for ways to facilitate creative connections among people and planet. We have decades of experience in teaching, leading, learning about and through food and textiles, and challenging the existing extractive systems with abundant participation and philosophies of “more life”!
We are still naturally dyeing textiles through our project Drift Lab Earth, where we host workshops educating on place-based systems through local color and are excited about our other joint current art projects, like We Are Verbs and Color Portal.
Websites: rustbeltfibershed.org and Driftlab.earth
Special Fiber “Crankie” Performance!
Margaret Sankey and Molly Murray
Margy and Molly will tell a special fiber-related story via their “crankie”
A "crankie" is a storytelling device that uses an illustrated scroll wound onto spools inside a box with a viewing window. Margy and Molly have collaborated in making a large crankie to display a story with their artwork onto fiber. Both natural dyers, plant enthusiasts, and fiber artists, Margy and Molly work together to make an abstract and whimsical performance through their unique medium.
Please note we do not have the capability to make this portion available via a virtual ticket.
For full agenda and details, please see the main symposium page.