Get to know the Food Values Dialogue series
Last Thursday, March 16th was the second dialogue in the Local Food Values Dialogue series. This session was titled ‘Justice Values’. (learn more about the first dialogue - Sustainability Values - here)
This dialogue series - a hybrid event virtual/in-person event held in the Institute for Community-Engaged Research (ICER) meeting room, is part of a course instructed by Dr. Mary Stockdale: GEOG 221: Food systems: system thinking, as well as open to the campus community and wider public. The event was hosted by ICER, UBCO Food Services, and Land to Table (L2T).
The aim is to explore the values of local food, specifically values related to sustainability and justice, and how to connect and incorporate these values into UBCO Food Services and the process of food procurement.
In the 75-minute session for Dialogue #2, participants heard a brief recap about the UBC Okanagan - Land to Table Local Food Procurement Project, listened to 2 expert panelists working on justice for farmers and farm workers, respectively, and had the opportunity to ask panelists questions and engage in dialogue about the treatment of farmers and farm workers in the Okanagan.
Robyn Bunn, founding member of Radical Action with Migrants and Agriculture (RAMA) program and staff member at UBCO, presented on RAMA Okanagan and the work they have done since 2013 to build radically inclusive and socially just farm worker communities. Ari Westhaver, BC and Yukon Coordinator of the National Farmers Union (NFU) spoke about the challenges farmers face in our global food system and actions to ensure fair treatment of farmers and increase their resilience in local food systems.
As a group we discussed the role of institutions, like UBCO, in ensuring just treatment of farmers and farm workers on the farms we procure from. Discussions also emerged around what farmers themselves can do to promote justice on their farms and how we, as consumers, can support these farmers.
If you missed the first two dialogue sessions, you’re still in luck, the last dialogue is this Thursday, March 23rd from 2:00-3:15 pm. The last dialogue is focused on confirming the values of sustainability and justice discussed in the previous dialogues and institutionalizing them at UBCO. We aim to better understand how UBCO ensures values of sustainability and justice are being met on the farms that UBCO Food Services procures from?
Want to know more, or get involved?
Click this link to learn more about the dialogue series and to register. This is a hybrid event, so you can join either in-person in the ICER meeting room (ARTS 368) or on Zoom! If you have any questions or concerns email local.food@ubc.ca. We hope to see you at our next two dialogues!
These events are part of a course instructed by Dr. Mary Stockdale: GEOG 221: Food systems: system thinking, as well as open to the campus community,wider public, and Land to Table network. A big thank you to the Dialogue Series co-hosts: UBCO Institute for Community-Engaged Research (ICER), UBCO Food Services, and the Land to Table (L2T) regional food system network, as well as local food procurement funding partner, Feed BC.
