Food Solutions New England

The FSNE 21-Day Racial Equity Habit-Building Challenge starts next week - April 7! Register today and join thousands of individuals and hundreds of officially participating organizations in a shared journey of learning and charting a course of action to dismantle racism in our food system and our world. Reigster today at https://fsne.info/2025-rec!

For decades, communities have been building local food systems to feed and take care of each other. And strategies like the New Hampshire Food and Agriculture Strategic Plan from NH Food Alliance are exactly what’s needed, especially now. No matter the chaos, folks are going to take of each other and continue making a more just and equitable world. Read the NH Food and Ag Strategic Plan at https://lnkd.in/epeJKKWW

As the federal government continues to be rocked and becomes even more unreliable, we have to lean into the decades of work that communities have been doing to build resilience and live into the values of equity and justice, especially in the food system. This work at the local level, like advocacy for a farmer security fund by Northeast Organic Farming Association of VT (NOFA-VT) and other partners, is what will see communities through and help everyone emerge into a brighter future. Learn more about advocacy for the Vermont Farmer Security Fund at link bio or through NOFA.

Adapt, adapt, adapt. Whether it's more chaotic weather or increasingly chaotic institutions, local food producers, like sugarmakers, will need to adapt to stay afloat and keep feeding their community. Luckily, local food systems are primed for this, and with continued (and alternative) support of producers, will be able to thrive. "Bigger swings in temperature, for instance, mean a much more variable tapping window than decades past. The Wheelers are now tapping maples about two months earlier, for example. Abnormally high temperatures could cause maples to bud too soon, impacting the grade of the syrup. On the other hand, warmer weather can also make the sap flow better in areas that have historically been too cold. Either way, sugarmakers foresee more adaptation ahead." https://lnkd.in/eXhjaFPa

Collaborate for Change! Be a crucial part of the next phase of the ASPIRES project with the UVM Food Systems Research Center. On Tuesday, April 1 from 10:30 AM EST, join Food Solutions New England and ASPIRES to reflect on the themes that emerged from last year’s listening tour. Share your perspectives on the challenges and opportunities in the food systems and where a large research institution like UVM’s Food System Research Center can make the most impact. Your participation will directly influence the strategies ASPIRES and FSNE programs implement to meet the needs of your community as they work to achieve a resilient and equitable food ecosystem. To attend is free but registration is required. Register at https://lnkd.in/eEbvSPA9

"Surveys and listening sessions among people in the United States consistently show that we are more united than we are divided when it comes to certain core values, including “fairness” and “equality.” We are made to believe this is not the case by those who would keep us from working as a “bigger we” for systems that would benefit everyone. The fact is, work for justice and equity goes on every day in communities around our country, world, and in places and among people that might surprise some of us who take in messaging from the mainstream media. Come join us for this uplifting and inspiring interactive gathering where we will hear and share stories and strategies that shed light on what can be done when we remember our shared humanity." Join FSNE for its 2025 Spring Gathering on Friday, April 4 from 9 AM to 12 PM EST. Programming is free but registration is required: https://lnkd.in/eNDWfmKS.

"Dear Partners, Friends, and Community, I write to share important news with you about the next phase of Food Solutions New England (FSNE)...."

Everyone deserves to feed themselves and their families, no matter their class, race, or gender. Now more than ever, practices of equity are going to be needed to ensure our communities thrive. Join thousands and register for the FSNE 21-Day Racial Equity Habit-Building Challenge today: https://fsne.info/2025-rec

Registration for the FSNE 21-Day Racial Equity Habit-Building Challenge is open! Beginning April 7, 2025, register today and join thousands in a shared journey of learning and charting a course of action to dismantle racism in our food system and our world. Learn more and register at: https://lnkd.in/ez4N3Gi

It’s been a whirlwind of news over the week-plus and many are working hard to keep up and respond in kind. In this vein, stories are often sought out as a way to demonstrate the impact that policy and rhetoric can have on communities. This is understandable because the stories from communities and of friends, partners, and colleagues are beautiful and inspiring. However, they also come with a great responsibility.   In Teju Cole’s 2017 New York Times article - Getting Others Right (https://lnkd.in/eJDEcy2U) - he writes:   “The responsibility toward other people’s stories is real and inescapable, but that doesn’t mean that appropriation is the way to satisfy that responsibility. In fact, the opposite is true: Telling the stories in which we are complicit outsiders has to be done with imagination and skepticism. It might require us not to give up our freedom, but to prioritize justice over freedom. It is not about taking something that belongs to someone else and making it serve you but rather about recognizing that history is brutal and unfinished and finding some way, within that recognition, to serve the dispossessed.”   So when you’re thinking about what stories are going to be the most impactful - whether that’s to push back against draconian policies, lift up the joys of communities facing down existential state threats, or compile testimonials to demonstrate the impact of the litany of actions on your communities (all things that we will undoubtedly need) - don’t forget to take the time to ask one of the most important questions - what’s the impact that this story is going to have on the storyteller - and take appropriate actions to make sure that they will remain safe and supported.   This practice of Ethical Storytelling is more important than ever while we respond to an ever shifting landscape and organize for a more equitable future. Some resources to explore further: Ethical Storytelling Principles from Voice of Witness (https://lnkd.in/gtEHvujk) Immigrants Rising: Storytellers Bill of RIghts and Storytelling Principles of Trust (https://lnkd.in/ezNjK4Js) Youth Leadership Institute: StoryTellers Bill of Rights (https://lnkd.in/eCn2yibC) Radical Communicators Network (RadComms): Amplifying Voices through Ethical Storytelling Practices (https://lnkd.in/eXjdA28H) Resource Media: Ethical Storytelling Tipsheet (https://lnkd.in/e52Hf98g) RadComms: Identifying Harmful Pervasive Narratives (https://lnkd.in/eVzHm6fy)