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Natural Life Magazine Celebrated
40 Years of Publishing in 2016
November, 2016 marked the 40th anniversary of the launch of Natural Life Magazine.
We have come a long way since then, from the days of black and white photos, typesetting and paste-up by hand, print publishing on newsprint with five different editions to cover various parts of North America, and mail preparation parties in our living room. 1976 was, of course, long before personal computers and the Internet, and nobody back then envisioned the web-based magazine that you see here today.
Throughout all those years, some things have not changed. Natural Life Magazine has maintained the same independent ownership and editorial integrity. And its mandate is still the same. Here's how founder and Publisher Rolf Priesnitz put it in that first issue, for November/December 1976:
"Natural Life Magazine was created to help provide the information that each of us needs to base our decisions on, and find our personal solutions to, the day-to-day alternatives available to us and our families. We hope to demonstrate the natural alternatives which will provide the greatest chance for a peaceful, healthy, environmentally friendly co-existence. Natural Life will report on developments in the environmentally appropriate technologies; focus on the positive steps each of us can take to live as close to the natural life as possible; provide contact with people and organizations engaged in the search for the natural life; and serve as a medium for the exchange of views on how to attain a saner world in which to live."
The front cover of the first issue, pictured here, featured a traditional farm scene, while on the back was the same scenery with a "modern" back-to-the-land scenario of geodesic dome, wind generator, and other sustainable lifestyle features. That and subsequent early issues of Natural Life Magazine featured articles about home birth, whole foods, home crafts, organic gardening, homeschooling, sustainable housing, and frugal living.
We're proud that more than 40 years later, Natural Life Magazine continues this work of providing awareness about environmental and social issues, as well as personalized green solutions to natural family living and ecological problems with a new generation of readers. And we are working hard to share both new articles and many from our archives that are still pertinent today.
In 2006, editor Wendy Priesnitz created a series of 30th anniversary issues highlighting some of the solutions we've provided to readers across North America and around the world since 1976. You can read those here:
Here, also, is a complete PDF version of the September/October, 1978 issue.
Read a feature interview from 2006 with Natural Life Magazine founder and publisher Rolf Priesnitz.
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