While Sen. Bernie Sanders has been railing against the high price of gasoline in Chittenden County, a buyers' cooperative in northwestern Vermont is focused on the cost of a different kind of fuel. The Hilltop Energy Buyers Group, a new fuel-buyers' cooperative that launched over the summer, uses the collective... Continue reading

Laurie Essig has never shied away from controversy. In fact, there have been plenty of words used over the years to describe the professor of gender studies at Middlebury College —"controversial," "freethinker," "threatening to the status quo" — but "shy" isn't one of them. Thus, it wasn't surprising when Essig,... Continue reading

There's probably no greater honor for an aspiring photographer, short of winning a Pulitzer, than to have one's work recognized by National Geographic. This month, that honor belongs to Zoë Barracano of Burlington, whose photograph, "Magnetism," was chosen as one... Continue reading

About a year ago, I wrote this story on the unusual case of Dan Scott, a St. Albans amateur photographer who works a day job at the Burlington office of the U.S. Social Security Administration. Scott, who enjoyed taking candid... Continue reading

In late 2010, while my fellow Seven Days staff writers were busily poring over their stories from earlier in the year in search of possible updates for our annual year-end wrap-up, I was digging into Burlington's more remote past —... Continue reading

Ed. Note: During the last week of the year, we asked our writers to reflect on the highs and lows of 2010. As much as I'd like readers to assume that we Seven Days staffers are continually poring through national... Continue reading