“We’re trying to change our lives,” event organizer Rob Content said in a recent interview. He looked at Jorie Sieck, a youth organizer, and added, “as grownups, this is a challenge.” Content thinks that events like the Earth Day Fair bring people together, and that working together is what makes personal change possible.

Living Green co-owner C.J. Williams defines “green” as anything with a focus on sustainability that is good for the Earth and good for individuals. More than 20 tables representing green individuals, green businesses and green non-profits are confirmed for the day, she said.

Some say starting a garden is an act of faith, a passive act done best when the moon is right. Others, like a new local community gardening group, plan for a good crop by building beds of e-mail list serves and germinating ideas at community potlucks.

This loosely networked bunch of area gardening enthusiasts and hopeful amateurs has scattered seeds of intention across the village and Miami Township that just might sprout up in the form of shared gardens, seed swaps and educational activities near you.

With the first toll of spring, the village will be transformed into an organized arts and culture hop as the Yellow Springs Arts Council jump-starts another year of seasonal programming.

Illustrating how money circulates through small economies, area contractors can often be found downtown on early weekday mornings and around the lunch hour. When local property owners support local contractors, the contractors in turn support downtown merchants, whether it’s a few extra parts from the hardware store or lunch from the deli.

Amidst a national economic recession that has led to job loss, lower housing values and less-accessible consumer credit, all contractors surveyed in recent interviews were looking at creative ways to stay afloat. While many felt Yellow Springs is spared of the gravest economic fallout, each has encountered economic ripples in some aspect of their business.

In response to concerns that Yellow Springs district officials have reached for controversial measures such as drug dogs in lieu of networked student support services, a group of dedicated personnel would like the community to know that there are eyes and ears on the ground to help troubled students in the Yellow Springs schools.

A police investigation’s slow-motion footage reveals muggers stealing something not usually kept in your pocket. A quaint church meeting worships a surprising deity. The “unluckiest girl in the world” is finally recognized as an unsung hero. An odd old man offers “Good Jerky” (recommending restraint in consumption) to an un-content boy who wishes to be different. “Kitten Kove,” an alliterative and improvised reality show audition, has something to do with outerspace and promises a different performance each showing.

The 18th annual production of Yellow Springs High School student-written one-act plays includes all of the above and more, representing the social commentary one might expect from a group of bright and energetic teens contemplating the world around them.