In the immortal words of Willie Nelson: On the road again!!!
We learned so much from our visits last year, especially to rural farming and fishing communities. The common themes that emerged were:
Problem with corporate consolidation and concentration of power
Economic disempowerment - lack of fair price, inability to get cost of production
Lack of access to resources, infrastructure, markets, money, knowledge
“Nobody comes here” - feeling of disenfranchisement
We need more power and need to be aligned with other movements
We need to have a better way of talking about what’s happening in our communities and food systems
Of those the only one that surprised us was the fourth bullet. Nobody comes here. Think about that. Most of the people we are collectively working to lift up feel they live below our collective radars. Since the tour we've been asking ourselves the question: why and when did that happen? Are we spending too much time around conference rooms and not enough time around kitchen tables?
In the spirit of ending the isolation of rural communities, less time behind conference table, and more time with grassroots communities, we have decided to continue traveling to the communities where those who lead our work live and work.
In the coming months, you'll hear more about mini America The Bountiful Tours. So please stay tuned.
If we can visit you along the way, please get in touch.
See you somewhere along the blue ribbon highway!