"The idea of bringing poets and politicians together was a natural for the state that plays a unique role in U.S. politics," says Harris. "During the primary season, New Hampshire is where a lot of the key issues facing our country get defined and debated. We want to make sure that culture and, specifically, poetry, is part of that discussion. While the tradition of state poet laureate has been around since the 1930s, most state poets laureate have never met. There wasn't even a central list of who they all were until we began to put this together, " Harris explains. Her initial brainstorm broadened into the three-day event with the involvement of the New Hampshire Writers' Project and the Academy of American Poets.

The conference has three primary goals, according to NHWP Executive Director Katie Goodman. "We want to gather the poets in one place and provide informal opportunities for them to exchange information, ideas, and concerns. The role of the laureate is not well defined in any state, and it seems to be up to the individual to interpret the position and to initiate presentations, programs, and occasional poetry to address the place of the poet in society.

"Secondly, we want to make sure that poetry and culture are part of the political discussion in the upcoming election season. So we're not just putting poets and politicians in a room together, we're taking the visiting poets, along with our native New Hampshire poets, into New Hampshire communities.

"Finally, we see this not as an end in itself, but rather the beginning of the discussion that will certainly continue, in one form or another, for years. And, although we have no expectations of specific outcomes, we're confident that the issues raised will serve to ignite further exploration of the poet's public role," says Goodman.

Events begin Friday, April 25th when the poets laureate travel to the reading venues, accompanied by New Hampshire poets. On Saturday, the Poetry & Politics: Nations of the Mind conference will take place at The Highlander Inn and Conference Center in Manchester. Panel discussions include the Poet as Citizen; Poetry and Education; Poetry and Community; Human Creativity and the Brain; Poetry and the Media; Poets and Politicians; and Poetry and the Spirit.

Saturday night, a gala dinner at The Center of New Hampshire will celebrate the gathering of poets and recognize the state's supporters of poetry and the arts, with a keynote speech by the new Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, poet and essayist Dana Gioia.

For more information, contact Katie Goodman at the N.H. Writers' Project at 226-6649.