The SOLV Beach and Riverside Cleanup Presented by the Oregon Lottery will take place on September 17, 2011. Volunteer for the SOLV Beach and Riverside Cleanup to pick up trash and enhance watershed health at over 100 sites across Oregon before the fall rains wash litter downhill into storm drains, waterways, and out to sea. By preventing trash from reaching the ocean, you are sending a gift of clean water, healthy people, and abundant wildlife downstream. Visit SOLV's web site to register today.

The Talent, Oregon Ford Institute Leadership Program mural project will proceed faster than expected. The city planner is drafting an amendment to the current sign ordinance that would allow the council to approve the mural as an art installation. The mural will depict what makes Talent different from surrounding towns, and it will be created on a number of panels using a paint-by-number approach to allow community participation. For more information, read the article in the Mail Tribune in its entirety.

Alex “Papu” Rincon, a young entrepreneur from Montana, was invited to participate in the White House Champions of Change Roundtable this week. The White House Champions of Change Roundtable is part of a series of meetings that are being held across the country this summer as part of the White House Rural Council and the White House Business Council. The purpose is to coordinate programs across government and encourage public-private partnerships to improve economic conditions, quality of life, and job creation in rural communities. Read the entire article, Youth Entrepreneur Talks at White House, in the Helena Independent Record.