2019 Young Farmers Conference

People of color are anticipated to be the majority in the United States by the year 2050. In light of that demographic shift, what changes can we anticipate in a complex and fragile food-system? This workshop will provide an Indigenous Perspective on power dynamics, poverty, nutrition, farming, food access, and public health. We will weave a narrative that brings community, ecology and viability together culminating with a cooking demonstration and tasting. 

It's important for farmers to know that you are not an island unto yourself, and that the ways you show up to your community beyond the fence-line matter. How can you create an inspired community through seeds, food, culture and storytelling? We will talk diversity, difference, power, access, and how we show up, learn and contribute as farmers. We'll begin by building your own community map, and identify the ways in which you can actively and deeply listen to the histories, needs, challenges and character of your larger community.

Discussions on labor, immigration, and race are often some of the most difficult to have in farming. But to understand the present tensions around these issues we will think about the past and the historical trajectory of Mexican labor as both undocumented and guest workers on U.S. farms. In addition, we will talk about contemporary debates around the expansion of the H2A program and recent Central American migration.

Many land workers of color have immersed ourselves in agriculture here in the United States with plans of returning home to continue the work. How do we go about this intentionally? What are the necessary steps to build trust within and in communities we may or may not be in relationship with? How do we reclaim land if we’ve never/rarely been there? Where are the opportunities for intergenerational and intercultural learning and exchange? Who are we accountable to?

This workshop and community dialogue encourages people of color to hone in on and find empowerment in our reasons for returning home, question ways of potential savior mentality in response to our first world privileges, to dig deeply around our privileges as part of the diaspora, and more.

Some of our most cherished sustainable farming practices have roots in African wisdom. Yet discrimination and violence against African-American farmers has led to their decline to less than 2 percent of farmers today, and many Black communities lack access to fresh food and nature. Join us to learn how you can join the national effort for food and land sovereignty for all growers. Together we will (1) Learn how specific sustainable farming practices, like raised beds, polycropping, rotation grazing, the CSA, et al. have roots in African agrarianism; (2) Explore the legacy of land-based oppression that has impacted the Black community and examples of resistance over time; (3) Engage in conversation about current and future land sovereignty work in Black-Indigenous communities.

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The growing number of land trust and protected State and NGO lands offer unique opportunities for collaboration that supports regenerative farming while also furthering ongoing conservation goals. This workshop will cover principles of generative agricultural conservation and discuss the framework to write a Conservation Action Plan (CAP) with a partner organization, using examples developed and implemented by Stone Barns Center and the Rockefeller State Park Preserve, a New York State park. We will also discuss the mutual benefits and potential that exists for farmers to develop a conservation stewardship partnership for improved land management.

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This session has been designed to extend and deepen farmers’ understanding of Indigenous food sovereignty and settler colonialism in the US and Canada. Join Rowen White and she lays the groundwork and facilitates a conversation with participants for discussions around how farmers can act in solidarity with Indigenous peoples. Plan to come ready to engage in meaningful dialogue.

To build the world we want to farm in, we must change state and federal policies that are oppressive, outdated, or ineffective at meeting the needs of young farmers and farmers of color. You already have the most crucial element in any policy campaign: lived experiences that have the power to inform and persuade policy makers to pursue the change you know you need. In this session, you’ll learn a framework for approaching policy and advocacy, then put that framework into practice, collaborating with your peers to envision and plan for meaningful and equitable policy change. No experience in policy or advocacy required!