Julie Little

Julie Little has degrees in journalism and education with experience in newspapers, schools and libraries. She firmly believes that words are one of humankind’s best inventions.

Author's Archive

A woman stands in the middle of a wide field filled with bright yellow sunflowers stretching to the horizon. Only her upper body is visible above the flowers. She wears a dark visor and smiles, surrounded by dense blooms under a hazy sky. The landscape is flat and expansive, emphasizing the vast sea of yellow flowers.

Citizen Scientist MJ Hatfield Fights Insect Decline

MJ Hatfield is a citizen scientist documenting insects and restoring prairie habitat just south of the Minnesota-Iowa border. Learn why insects are disappearing and how regular folks can help save them.

photo of a laptop with view of Root River Current homepage

POETRY | Root River Current Tribute

Poet Julie Little salutes Root River Current on the occasion of its third anniversary.

A full gymnasium filled with about 100 people seated in rows of folding chairs for a community meeting. The audience consists mostly of middle-aged and older adults, chatting and holding printed handouts. The room has basketball hoops, beige block walls, and fluorescent lights overhead.

Harmony Annexes 60 Acres for Possible Data Center

John Torgrimson and Julie Little report on community meetings surrounding a potential data center coming to Harmony.

A group of people, mostly women of multiple ages stand in a rustic barn. Each one is holding a tall painted pole.

Essay | “May Peace Prevail on Earth”

Julie Little shares a unique Peace Pole art project recently completed by her garden club.

<span style="font-size: 14px; color: #6c6b6b; ">A foggy morning at the confluence of the North and South Branches of the Root River, captured by photographer Renee Bergstrom.</span>

Root River Song

Harmony couple create a musical elegy to the Root River.

The author, Don Bell, is pictured by Amish Experience in Lanesboro—his grandfather’s leather shop was located on the ground floor in the 1950s. The building at one time housed the Odd Fellows Lodge.

Essay | I’m Changing My Ways with Water

Julie Little is inspired to save life-giving water at home.

Homeschoolers team up to provide group-learning opportunities for their students. At left, Odyssey Homeschool Association families explore the Ferguson Apple Orchard in Galesville, Wisconsin (submitted photo). At right, Christian Homeschoolers of Fillmore County families in front of Kapper’s Big Red Barn near Chatfield. (Photo by Mya Hagen)

Homeschooling: A Closer Look

Julie Little takes an in depth look at the growing homeschool movement.

Poetry | From a Homesteader’s Journal

Harmony poet Julie Little shares three poems of summer

This image is an artist rendering of what a manure digester plant planned for Benson, Minnesota may look like. (Graphic: Nature Energy)

Manure Digester Proposed in Lewiston

Julie Little and Loni Kemp explore the impact manure digesters may have on local communities.

Our devices sometimes make real conversation difficult and may leave us isolated. Real conversation requires face to face interaction. (Photo by Rene Bergrstrom)

Essay | Hungry for Conversation

Julie Little thinks we need to learn to talk to each other again.

Surrounded by Norway Spruce, the Harvey Benson farm south of Harmony is typical of many farmsteads in southeast Minnesota. The farm has been in the family since the late 1800s. (Photo by Renee Bergstrom)

Passing on the Farm

Julie Little reports on a Harmony landowner who struggled over what to do with his land when he passed on. He found the answer just a few miles away in a couple that shared his values.