Category: Readings

Students respond to some aspect of the reading for that week.

Fishing Communities

by Emily Robinson

Ben Platt the fisherman understands that not unlike the agriculture industry, restrictions and regulations threaten the fishing community. He believes that all stakeholders and experts including fisherman should work together to create fishing regulations. The narrative of their lives and their fishing communities must be heard and considered when making policy. “We (fishermen) spend more time on the ocean than any policy maker, or biologist or manager or policy advocates.” Ben advocates for the community of fishermen who are being replaced by larger commercial fishing boats due to new regulations.

Ben’s story reminded me of Cordova, a small fishing town in Alaska. With only 2239 residents, Cordova is made up of hundreds of fishermen and fish processors. This geographical circumstance creates a unique opportunity for a tight knit community. Recently it is threatened by the changing regulations and policy made by those far removed from fishing communities like Ben’s and Cordova.

A few summer ago, I had the opportunity to intern at the Copper River Watershed project in Cordova. Its mission is to foster the health of the Copper River Watershed salmon-based communities, economies and culture. On certain days of the year the whole community may be found by the docks or on the ski slope for festivals to celebrate anything from salmon or shorebirds to art. These events further bind a community that relies so heavily on their natural environment. Many years ago the community came together fearful that changes in environment and widespread commercial fishing would destroy their community and livelihood. This organization was created to work on sustainable development to assure it cannot be destroyed by any change the community cannot recover from. This was a grassroot effort by the community for the community where everyone had a seat at the table. Heather, our site coordinator often says that community members who oppose policy change or outsiders trying to change their community must “join the board”. They must get involved and start trying to be a part of the decision making instead of only voicing their opposition. But how can members of small communities in rural Alaska for example join the board? How can they get involved with policy being made thousands of miles a way?

So often we hear about the fish population declines, and the ocean temperature rising, though we never hear about communities destroyed by overfishing and large businesses and policy destroying community. I notice this theme of scraping the surface of the truth, and limited understanding is what has created much of the disparity and problems in our food system. Over the last decade or so with new technologies available to a wide range of people all over the world, there is not longer an excuse for misunderstanding. All people and narratives must be considered when making important decisions that have the potential to turn their lives upside down. These fishermen must have an opportunity to be heard. I appreciate the efforts that the why team are making to change the narrative of farmers to assure their voices are heard.

Community Problem Solving

by Chloe Kidder

I thoroughly enjoyed reading through the narratives on the why hunger website, but the piece on the Youth Farm Market Project (YFMP) in particular got me thinking:

“Princess continues, asking what the women do to find healthy, affordable food at grocery stores. Someone mentions dried mangos. Another mother wonders where you can get those. Someone says Wal-Mart sells them cheap. Another woman says you can dry them yourself for cheaper. One mother says she grew up in Brazil and they ate all their meat and veggies fresh. Her daughter is big, she says. Really big and she has asthma. She’s worried she might get diabetes. But they have a garden in the backyard and they work together in it. She makes it fun for them.”

YFMP is a non-profit that works with children and parents in some of Minneapolis’ poorest districts to teach them about farming, eating, and overall health. This excerpt struck me because of the interplay and exchange of ideas and opinions between mothers that took place over the course of less than 15min. These women were all gathered together in a room to talk about issues plaguing their families and communities using food as the starting point. They were able to talk about what challenges they’re facing and get others’ feedback. This Youth Farm and Market Project (YFMP) provides mothers and daughters (often times the most neglected and underserved demographics) a place for problem sharing and solving. What stood out to me is that YFMP is a collaboration rather than an accusation. It promotes unity and camaraderie over than blaming and anger and focuses on the solutions.

In this space that YFMP has created, women and children come together to be agents of their own change. Unlike governmental policies which can be too rigid and not responsive enough, this form of problem solving and community action is incredibly dynamic and reacts to the unique challenge of individuals. In the exchange quoted above a question was raised and then answered in various ways by various community members so that now the questioner has all of this new information given to her by the people in similar situations to her so that now she can take all this knowledge and go out and try it for herself. Instead of having to start from the bottom, she now has a jumping off point as well as support along the way.

There is also something really powerful in having multi-generational female space available to talk about these deeply personal issues. Based off of the information in the grassroots why hunger article, YFMP has done an incredible job of creating a space where people want to be and where they feel comfortable sharing very intimate details of their lives. They are making real change starting from a place of openness and honesty. This is the way forward. Community engagement has a huge role in moving towards a more sustainable food future.

 

link to article: http://grassroots.whyhunger.org/clp-profiles/item/37-youth-farm-and-market-project#.VaWBL3hHNUQ

No Matter How Small

by Erin Pickens

This summer we have had many conversations about the benefits of access to fresh and locally produced food- benefits to community health, social relations, economic development and many more. However, when talking about the benefits of fresh and local food access, it is important to make the distinction between locally produced items and self produced items. While these two categories overlap in many aspects, I truly believe there is an added benefit to self production, no matter how small the production.

I don’t have a garden of my own, but this thought came to me when visiting the home of my boss at the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, Ferd. Before we ate, Ferd and his wife showed me around their rather extensive backyard garden and new chicken coop. The garden included pretty much any summer vegetable you could imagine from squash to a variety of berries and fruit. The couple had begun the garden upon moving into the home 31 years prior. The garden provides the couple with an excess of produce year-round. Although they complained about the many Saturdays spent pruning and weeding, there seemed to be an inseparable connection between the gardeners and their garden.

I connected this experience to the story of Robin Forshee featured on the Why Hunger website. Robin was a recipient of an earth box (essentially window garden) courtesy of the Appalachian Sustainable Development program. As a low income, disabled and elderly woman, she uses this box to grow various herbs and small plants that she uses for making salsas and for cooking. She uses the herbs in ways that her grandparents and family have for generations and she even makes enough herbs to occasionally share with neighbors. Although the plants Robin grows do not provide much in terms of nutrients, she still visits the plants multiple times a day and describes her relationship with the plants as providing her life with joy.

Although these two stories may seem very dissimilar, at the root they portray the same truth about a personal relationship with crop production. The act of personal crop production, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant, provides the individual with a vital personal relationship with nature.

The Not So Sore Losers of the Food Movement

by Camryn Hellwarth

 

If you think there’s no action around the food movement taking place in a neighborhood near you, think again. The stories of Community Voices from grassroots.whyhunger.org share stories from communities in areas ranging from New Mexico to Minnesota.

As a Foodworks Fellow studying in Middlebury, Vermont, I see this state’s recognition as a leader in local food systems as being well deserved, however, the kind of mindset that promotes one region as being “the best” may minimize the push for collaboration and growth, activities which might otherwise move the food movement further.

The Strolling of the Heifers’ 2015 Locavore Index rates Vermont as number one in its commitment to locally sourced food, demonstrating the way in which Vermont’s success in fostering its local food system is quantitative and widely recognized. However, is it possible that this status has gone to our heads in a way that has stunted the future growth of sustainable food?

The ability to bring local, fresh produce to people is not limited to the borders of Vermont; ideas from across the country should be shared if quality food is to become a reality for all. Bed-Stuy, New York is evolving a food scene that tempts corporate workers out of their offices and into food shelter shelves and chicken coops (grassroots.whyhunger.org); young adults of West Oakland, California are taking their health and the health of their families into their own hands by engaging in work to bring access to fruits and vegetables to their community (grassroots.whyhunger.org). So let FEED Vermont exchange ideas with the schools in Seattle that work with FareStart to bring sweet potato quesadillas and fresh cut cantaloupe to their students, and have farmers across the country learn about the humane, mobile slaughterhouse that travels through New Mexico to offer a new processing method to farmers raising sustainable meat.

In our future work with the food system, the key to success will come from shared efforts and ideas that help strengthen the work of others, even those thousands of miles away. Let us not limit ourselves with titles of “leader” and rankings of progress, but instead use these successes in a way that pushes us to think differently and engage with those outside our normal range of collaboration.

Birmingham Teaching Farm

by Charles Mitchell

A guy named Edwin who went to school out West, fell in love with farming and then planted seeds in the forgotten soil of the urban food desert that is Birmingham, Alabama is an inspiring story. The fact that Edwin had the wherewithal to hire a teaching director and incorporate education into his farm validates the community-mindedness and life-changing intentions of this project. It is a noble project.

Today I met with a woman named Gay who had headed up food service at Middlebury’s local elementary school. She told me about the lessons she likes to do, and what helps the kids try new foods, and she had been working for ten years trying to help kids learn about healthy food and give kids the best she could in her lunches.

But she was getting tired. She was tired of watching her pay decline as her tenure increased and watching her assistants leave her for better-paying jobs. She was limited by money in a real way—she was not short in experience, creativity, expertise or motivation, and she gave it ten years and she’s losing all of that because she’s been at it for so long.

She described to me the fact that most of the kids in her school system start with her at kindergarten and have seven years with her. She sees it as a huge opportunity to give kids an education they need more than anything.

I was able to have a really meaningful conversation with her because I had been fully informed on this issue not three days before on our 5th day to NOFA-VT, Shelburne Farms and VT-FEED. She pointed to those groups as doing seriously fantastic work and she needed them to keep her in the game. Nonprofits are important in themselves for the work they do but the support they offer for policy reform and to workers on the ground is that much more vital.

I am now interested in how the business I’m involved with can speak for under-appreciated and under-funded and under-paid food service staff in public schools. School kitchens are where change can and will take place. It’s just about electing officials who are smart enough to give them the money.

Commitment and paying attention

by Dor Hirsh Bar Gai

Reading about Bed-Stay Campaign Against Hunger was inspirational. I don’t know many people who make such a change in direction during life as did Dr. Melony Samuels, whether gradual or overnight. I wonder if she always had a spark to help people, and the platform of helping just changed, but that is just friendly speculation.

The approach they take, in ensuring dignity and autonomy, is crucial as we’ve understood from the past, and the important work of reaching out to families and individuals to identify needs and opportunities should be the model of any service or technical organization. As they experienced initially, most people did not choose fruits and veggies at first because they did not know how to prepare them. Similarly, they avoid glass containers because some homeless shelters do not allow glass in their premises, thus solving a technical difficulty for some of their members.

My main interest in Dr. Samuels program is her focus on neighborhood efforts and personal development (both education and professional experience). I believe the future of urban food systems relies on this type of collaboration between blocks and neighborhoods, where productive land (soil or pavement or roof) is shared for such purposes.

I also appreciate the integration of livestock in urban environments, and I hope to see aquaponics systems as well. However, the problem with livestock at some cities is limited and limiting zoning and regulations. These usually relate to health concerns and esthetics, and are outdated at times. Luckily, there are movements to change these and I hope to see more animal production in cities. I say this with half a heart as I do belief we need to shift more to a vegetarian / vegan diet in the long run, but if urban agriculture is the solution than a transition period, or permanent, an introduction of hyper local animal products would also benefit if done correctly.

 

Being a part of something important

by Madyson Martin

“You don’t have to eat crap just cause you’re poor”, this quote struck me in reading a profile on Anna Bergman from Seattle.  She was on disability and did not have a whole lot of access to healthy food before becoming involved in a local community and urban garden.  She talks about that when she gained access to healthy food she began to want to eat healthier and also learn the ins and outs of vegetables, fruits, and all different kinds of plants.  I think that her quote should be told to many people in her similar situations.  Although access for healthy food can be limited to those living in poverty, there are also so many neat organizations that creatively bring access to people in need.  One of these is my organization I have been working for this summer, Bread for the City.  It has a rooftop garden that can be accessed by anyone in the community to harvest fresh produce for free any day of the week.  It is one of many programs in DC alone that gives access to fresh food to those in need.

Another aspect of access to healthy eating is that you can increase mood and state of mind by just simply getting involoved in your food system.  When Anna gained interests in cooking and nutrition it helped her to become informed and inolved in her health and also in her community.  The interest sparked a motivation to eat healthier and try new things that helped with her disability that deals with the fluctuations in energy and mood.  The food and gardening helped regulate and stimulate the energy and moods.I think that this is a great point to think about.  Food itself can have huge effects on your mood and state of mind.  Along with this, the agricultural side of the food systems can have positive effects on your mood as well.  Being directly involved in farming or even small scale gardening can enhance qualities like patience, mindfulness, and just get someone to become more in touch with themselves by the time spent gardening.

For me personally, becoming connected to the roots of food and having access to gardening and agriculture this summer has been an experience that I will always take with me.  The bug bites, scratches, and soaked shoes from rain will always be thought of when biting into an apple or when taking a bite of a kale salad.  I was connescted in this process and it is almost humbling knowing that I played a part in giving people access to fresh food.  Like Anna said, “when people have access to fresh food, theyre going to eat it”.  So being a part of this process will always be something I am thankful to have been a part of because I helped to get these people access to such an important and vital part of life.

Raw Milk and Food Sovereignty (Community Voices Post: Bob St. Peter)

by Emma Homans

One of my favorite memories from last fall semester is from one Sunday night, after our house meeting at Weybridge House, when I accompanied my friend Marissa to a farm just down the road to milk a cow. Marissa, two other friends, and I each took a turn sitting on the milking stool in a small red barn and milking Luna, a sweet brown Jersey cow. We milked into a metal pail and, after pouring the first milk into a bucket for Luna’s calf, poured the rest into large glass jars. Marissa stuck some of these jars into the refrigerator in the barn, and we all helped carry the remaining jars back to the car to take home with us to Weybridge. Back at the house, the milk went into the fridge and house members drank it as raw milk or used it to cook. Although I only visited Luna once or twice during the semester, Marissa went twice a week every week and always returned with raw milk for the house. I loved knowing exactly where the all milk in the refrigerator had come from (some from Kimball Brook, and the rest from Luna), and being able to connect it with the experience of trying to milk (getting the technique can be a real challenge for someone who doesn’t have experience milking a cow!).

This is the first thing that came to mind when I read the Community Voices post about Bob St. Peter, a farmer from Maine working on food sovereignty and market issues from the farmer’s perspective. His take on the government crack-down on raw milk operations was especially interesting to me, since despite the fact that no one drinking the raw milk in Weybridge ever faced health problems because of it, the question of food safety still pops into my mind and I have a hard time deciding how I feel about the product. In this sense, I understand how food sovereignty becomes a highly personal issue. For me, part of what makes the local food movement seem so important is the idea that we can feed ourselves, and in doing so rediscover trust within the food system. As a consumer, I was hesitant to drink the raw milk because the lack of government support for that kind of product made me question whether I could trust its safety. However, when I think about the issue more, I’m not sure it makes sense that I had a hard time trusting the raw milk from Luna, where I was able to see the cleanliness and health of the cow and the cleanliness and cleaning process of all the equipment, while I in general I don’t question the quality of milk that I buy at the grocery store. I understand there are many reasons why this is the case and that regulation by the FDA is in place so that consumers can go to the store without worrying about food safety issues, but my own experiences have also demonstrated to me the value in the cause that Bob St. Peter is fighting for.

In general, I found the piece on Bob St. Peter extremely interesting because after working on a vegetable farm last summer, I realized how much I loved the act of farming and working with the land. The fifth days this summer have made me question a lot about what farming entails, especially in relation to the marketing and economic sides of the work. I love how the article frames the food system issues in terms of being able to feed ourselves, because for me, eating the food that I had helped grow in the fields was one of the most rewarding parts of my work. I hope that I’ll be able to do the same kind of rewarding work again, both logistically and economically, and Bob St. Peter’s approach to changing the food system -from the producers perspective- seemed new and highly relevant to me because of this.

You are a micro food system—introduction

by Ruijia Wang

When comes to food systems, we tend to think “big.” We also tend to think the impact of the environment on our food system is out of our control, so we shrug off the responsibility and rely on others to do things for us. For many of us city dwellers, we can’t deny we have been disconnected from nature, where our food comes from, and have spent less time interacting with the environment.
According to the World Health Organization, the urban population in 2014 accounted for 54 percent of the total global population, up from 34 percent in 1960, and continues to grow. Is this good news for us? Who will take the responsibility to feed us then? And how would they help provide for the estimated 9 billion people on the planet by 2050?
If you reflect upon humans’ past experiences, history has told us that civilization was built through hard labor. This labor meant people worked together and celebrated the time they were together based on their collaborations. No one was isolated and we needed that social support to communicate and help one another. In other words, food was a pathway to bind people, and people were driven by the sense of belonging to lead their lives in a sustainable way. Therefore, people shared not only their food but also their food experiences. This is where culture comes from: food connecting people.
Food goes hand-in-hand with collaboration. If you trace back either through history or examine your own daily practices, you will find what food means in terms of relationships. From my own perspective, there are two layers of meaning in this context. First, I think of the relationship between the land and humans. The second is the relationship among people. The two layers are not parallel to each other but connected and intertwined.
With the rapid development of technology in this era, we are relying more on mass production of food to meet the needs of our fast-paced lifestyles. As technology helps us to increase our work efficiency and shorten the geographical distance between people, it also creates a gap that drags people away from manual labor and nature, while also shifting our attitudes toward convenience.
The convenience of accessing and consuming foods can have both positive and negative effects on both our health and our surroundings. Essentially, people who have the purchasing power to acquire high-quality food sometimes do not appreciate what they eat and take it for granted. The lack of appreciation and thought about what we eat and how we eat either blocks or cuts off the “relationship” we are trying to build with our environment and the people who nourish us, serve us and eat with us. Instead, we rely on mass manufacturing operations to feed us. When buying these convenience foods, we rarely ask ourselves, “Where did this food come from? Who grew it? And how the food get here?”
As food generates dialogue and creates the opportunities to help us connect to one another and the environment we live in, it also defines who we are. Like the clothes we wear, food reflects our culture and personality. We eat different food at different places; our choices are changing as we move from one place to another. Food preference is a pathway that conveys messages rooted deep in our identities.
While, as they say, “you are what you eat,” we also should recognize that our social environment shapes our diets and eating behaviors. It goes beyond individual preferences, but includes community influences, education and childhood experiences. That old saying isn’t inclusive of the various situations that help shape our food choices.
As we focus on the big picture of food systems, we should reflect on and ask ourselves those important questions, like, where is my food from? Why do I eat it? In what way can I prepare and cook my food to maximize the nutritional value? How can I preserve food and/or avoid food waste?
The point here is by simply being more aware of and taking positive action on what we can change can make a big difference regarding our surroundings — and eventually the food system as a whole. If we “think big” in terms of being aware of our environment and community, but “act small,” starting with our own daily practices, this is the key to help our planet move forward.

Protecting nature is not a luxury

by Raphaelle Ortiz

In her TED talk, Dr. Vandana Shiva claims she learned 2 lessons from her experience working as a volunteer in the Chipko movement: “First, that nature is not out there; we are a part of it. […] Second, that protecting nature is not a luxury”. Both of these statements demonstrate that everything is interconnected, locally and globally. As part of nature, our actions and decisions affect the surrounding environments and communities. Many people who live in vast urban cities feel disconnected from nature because they do not see it daily. They associate “nature” to the rural expanses outside of the city. They are unaware of the intricate connections they form with nature by purchasing food. Shiva’s talk attempts to break that illusion and foster more responsible eating decisions.

 

“Protecting nature is not a luxury”

This statement had a strong impact on me because I taught environmental justice issues in a low-income middle school in Baltimore. After class, I used to think that the information I shared with them would not help them as adults. Surely, they would have more important issues to deal with than pollution (like finding a job, getting health care…). I learned that environmental degradation is a middle class issue in my first Sustainability course. As I discovered more about Baltimore and the students I was teaching, I realized that protecting nature might be one of their most important priorities. Most of them suffer from asthma (or know someone who does). Thus, they lack access to clean air that can prevent pulmonary diseases. Perhaps the end of that statement should be: “Protecting nature is not a luxury, it’s a necessity”. For the poor communities who suffer the most from pollution and climate change, living in a healthy environment is essential.

 

This statement also reminded me of the “chicken game” developed and developing nations are playing in terms of taking action against climate change. Several developing countries believe that because they did not cause the damage, they should not reduce their emissions. They view mitigation as a luxury that Western nations can afford because they have reached a certain level of development. These arguments foster inaction and prevent humanity from acting together towards a global common goal.

 

Shiva concludes by saying: “Every time you eat, you can make a massive change”. By choosing holistic over industrial food, we are making the baby steps necessary for real change. One of my environmental science professors in Bolivia once said: “Every step against climate change is a step in the right direction”. We must recognize the importance of small sustainable choices and work as a community towards global change.