Announcing the 11th Annual Agricultural Literacy Week 2020: Building Resilient Communities!
November 16th-19th, 2020, 6-7:30 pm nightly
Tune in for this week-long (virtual) celebration to inform, educate and create community around the topic of resiliency in all its forms. Each night will feature a webinar bringing together the voices of our community: farmworker rights group Migrant Justice, Abenaki chef Jessee Lawyer, students of gender studies and agriculture at Bennington College and organic farmers building healthy soil and feeding their communities. While we know community events will look a little different this year, we are thrilled to share the details of this year’s offerings. All events are free and open to the public.
2020’s Featured Events
Monday November 16th, 6-7:30 pm
Workshop: Exploring Abenaki Foodways Cooking Class
Guest Speaker: Chef Jessee Lawyer
Description: Roll up your sleeves and gather in the kitchen for this virtual instructional cooking class taught by Abenaki chef Jessee Lawyer of Sweetwaters. Jessee will demonstrate how to create a seasonal dish showcasing Native techniques and pre-colonial, Vermont-grown ingredients. Recipes will be included so you can create the dish for your own family and friends.
Tuesday November 17th, 6-7:30 pm
Workshop: #MilkwithDignity: Advancing the Human Rights of Farmworkers while Fostering a Sustainable Northeast Dairy Industry
Guest Speakers: Migrant Justice
Description: The Milk with Dignity Program, created by Migrant Justice, brings together farmworkers, consumers, farmer owners and corporate buyers with the principal goal of fostering a sustainable Northeast dairy industry that advances the human rights of farmworkers, supports the long-term interests of farm owners, and provides an ethical supply chain for retail food companies and consumers. COVID-19 has further proven how essential farmworkers are, as they continue to work day in day out to produce the milk and dairy products to feed our communities. Join us for this workshop to learn more about the Milk with Dignity Program, farmworkers' continued struggle for justice and how you can get involved to help expand this powerful solution to the Hannaford supermarket’s supply chain.
Wednesday November 18th, 6-7:30 pm
Workshop: Building Soil Health Resilience**
Farmer Panel: Misse Axelrod (Drift Farmstead), Nic Cook (Cedar Circle Farm & Education Center), Tyler Webb (Stony Pond Farm), Kate Spring (Good Heart Farmstead)
Description: Farms that build soil, sequester carbon and grow nutritious foods for their communities are webs of life. Mimicking the natural world and the deep ties of how we are all connected, resilience starts with soil, and builds out into whole-systems thinking. Join this panel of Vermont farmers as they share how their farms are an extension of the natural world that steward deeply interwoven systems for plant, animal and human communities to thrive.
**[Optional] Pre-Screen this Film: Rent the film Biggest Little Farm from your local library and watch the film before attending this workshop. This film is also available on Netflix.
Thursday November 19th, 6-7:30 pm
Workshop: Gender, Agriculture, and Food Access
Guest Speakers: Ike Leslie, Postdoctoral Researcher in Food Systems at the University of New Hampshire; Tatiana Abatemarco, Visiting Faculty of Food Studies, Bennington College; Bennington College students enrolled in Gender, Subsistence, and Agriculture class
Description: In this workshop, students will share the results of an oral history project, interviewing farmers, gardeners, consumers, and advocates who work in a variety of local food access programs. Specifically, the research focuses on the intersections between food access projects and gender identity. The students will share their research results in conversation with local expert, Ike Leslie, who has researched and published on the topic of gender and agriculture. The students' research is part of their work in the class, Gender, Subsistence, and Agriculture at Bennington College.
Are You a Library Interested in Hosting Your Own Agricultural Literacy Week Event?
- Host a “prepare at home” community supper. Details here for a virtual Simple Supper
- Host a virtual book club or film viewing & discussion - using books and films available through your library or ILL
- Find a list of themed books and films available here
Please let us know what you’re doing. We’d love to promote your event.
Help us Spread the Word!
- Join and promote the week’s virtual events
- Share these events with your community through newsletters, event calendars and social media
- Post the events on your local Front Porch Forum
- Create and host your own special event
Agricultural Literacy Week is a project of The Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA-VT), Vermont Department of Libraries and the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets.
Questions? Contact NOFA-VT.