Pressing the "reset" button
Below this post are two quotes from two of our forefathers that speak volumes about the value we once placed on agriculture. Of course, this was a much different time in our nation and planet’s history but they do beg some critical thinking.
As a TIME magazine cover story recently suggested, perhaps it may be time for a “Reset” in American culture. Our economy relies on seemingly incessant expansion – or what Wendell Berry and Wes Jackson would refer to as an “extractive economy”. How do we restore our economy, ensure jobs, nourish eaters (this includes humans, plants, animals, bacteria, fungi, insects) all while attempting to avoid the excess and extraction that has landed us in our current predicament?
Following the lead of Woody Tasch and his concept of “Slow Money” , I would argue that we must shift our focus and begin investing as if “food, farms, and fertility mattered”. Of course, I am no economist and cannot provide specific examples but the goal of this post is to suggest that there may be a better way. Many minds that are much brighter, more experienced, and articulate than myself have been working tirelessly to pave the path for a new train of thought here in the 21st century. We must restore the dignity to agriculture and one way to begin this process is investment in a food system that is socially, economically, and ecologically sound.
How do you invest? The first step would be to ask questions about your food – where did it come from? How did it get here? How was it produced? As you ask these questions, think about what you are okay with and what you are not okay with. If you aren’t okay with it, ask yourself why and then start using your own two hands to make it better (of course only if you want to).
“Cultivators of the earth are the most valuable citizens. They are the most vigorous, the most independant, the most virtuous, and they are tied to their country and wedded to it’s liberty and interests by the most lasting bands”
- Thomas Jefferson
“Finally, there seem to be but three ways for a nation to acquire wealth. The first is by war as the Romans did in plundering their conquered neighbours. This is robbery. The second by commerce which is generally cheating. The third by agriculture the only honest way; wherein man receives a real increase of the seed thrown into the ground, in a kind of continual miracle wrought by the hand of God in his favour, as a reward for his innocent life, and virtuous industry.”
- Benjamin Franklin, Positions to be Examined, April 4, 1769
Date: May 28th |
|
Panel to follow screening:
Theresa McCulla (Moderator), Manager, Harvard’s Food Literacy Project
Joel Salatin, Founder, Polyface Farms
Will Allen, Founder, Growing Power
Henrietta Davis, Cambridge City Council
Michael Leviton, Chef, Lumiere Restaurant
Ana Joanes, Director & Producer of FRESH
From Paula at Civil Eats.
Sunday, there will be a new sustainable agriculture chat on Twitter. The focus of the two hour-long chat will be education and the messaging around sustainability. We will begin at 8pm ET and last until 10pm. All are welcome to join the chat, just please announce yourself at the beginning by telling everyone your name and affiliations, and use the #sustagchat tag on your tweets in order to create a searchable dialog. Nicole de Beaufort is this week’s moderator, and for the sake of transparency, no one had paid for her to perform this service. She comes by her own desire to discuss these issues. You are welcome to send questions to the moderator, @sustagchat. But here is how the chat will proceed, including questions to get you thinking about the topic written by Nicole:
INTROS
Q1. What are some of the things we do to feed people in this country that are “unacceptable but accepted”? This in relation to Michael Glantz talking about feeding starving kids in Haiti salted clay. He also said we don’t need technology to fix things. We need “a social invention.” An example: organic. or “looking at nature as a bank.” What ideas can we generate from this notion?
Q2. Why is aquaculture not a regular part of the public discussion of agriculture? Can aquaculture and agriculture co-exist in our minds under the sustainable agriculture heading? How can sustag and sustaqua work together to help each other succeed?
Q3. How can sustainable agriculture address access and social equity? At the Sustainable Seas Institute conference this week in Monterey, Thomas Keller said Americans “tend to want the very best, and spend the very least for it.” Does this hurt those who have the very least but also want the very best?
FREE FOR ALL: Q’s on your mind, requests, helpful links, people2follow
My questions:
How to connect the dots of a sustainable food system with economic, ecologic and human healthy questions?
How to make 'soil' 'worms' 'farms' glamorous, hip, trendy, cool?
Keeping the momentum of the movement focused on food democracy for all. Increased funding for sust ag/peer reviewed research?
Options for city dweller and arid regions that can't grow food to gain access and not be dependent on fast/convenience food?
Co-opting of 'local' and 'sustainable' by industry. The conglomeration of food industry and their power in policy. How to break?
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | M - Th 11p / 10c | |||
| Little Crop of Horrors | ||||
| ||||
Winter is over and Farmers Markets are back!
We know you’ve missed us, but don’t despair, the wait is over! The Federation of Mass Farmers Markets is pleased to announce the opening of our local farmers markets. In just a few days – on Tuesday, May 19th – the Copley Square market in Boston will open for the season. The Copley Square market is one of our largest and runs from 11:00am to 6:00pm every Tuesday and Friday from May 19th through November 24th. Buy your fresh veggies, local meats, artisan breads, jams, delicious sandwiches, and fruits of all kinds here. It’s so much more vibrant than the produce aisle at the supermarket.
If you don’t live near Back Bay you still have plenty of other options. Other markets run by Mass Farmers Markets include:
* City Hall market in Boston, which begins May 27th and runs on Mondays and Wednesdays
* Davis Square farmers market in Somerville, which begins May 27th and runs on Wednesdays
* Central Square market in Cambridge, which begins June 1st and runs on Mondays
* Framingham Village Green market, which begins June 11th and runs on Thursdays.
Visit www.massfarmersmarkets.org for a complete list of the 180-plus farmers markets opening across the state over the next few months.
Once the markets are open you can look forward to fresh produce local to your area. Great finds in May include arugula, mesclun mix, and chard. You’ll also see tender asparagus, tangy garlic scapes, fava beans, and maybe fiddleheads if you’re lucky. Radishes, rhubarb, strawberries, and peas will follow as May blends into June. And don’t forget: cheese, baked goods, preserves, locally raised meat, and other goodies are always available and locally made by our vendors.
So, stop by the market closest to you. You'll help support local farmers, learn about your community, and get a fantastic meal in the process.
About Mass Farmers Markets
Mass Farmers Markets is a non-profit organization that harnesses the power of farmers markets to create healthy communities across the state. MFM is the only organization working state-wide to facilitate relationships between farmers and consumers of all income levels in order to improve the livelihood of farmers and increase access to fresh, local food. For more information, visit www.massfarmersmarkets.org.
