P L E N T Y SUMMER 2019 Plenty Summer 2019-joomag copy | Page 43

The Relevance of Farm-based Education
BY SOPHIA MARAVELL
T
he poet, writer, small family
farmer and activist Wendell
Berry, wrote, “The need for
agricultural education is great
and urgent.” With the ravages of
climatic disturbances, food inse-
curity, and poor nutrition leading
to myriad health issues, how might
farm-based education impact our
present political moment?
Today’s farmers can play
a significant role in educating
and equipping our youth, our
political leaders, teachers, busi-
ness owners, consumers, chefs,
restaurant owners, researchers,
policy makers, scientists, librar-
ians, environmentalists, doctors,
health practitioners, architects,
builders, landscapers, and so on, to
make decisions that help restore
and rejuvenate our food system.
One local example: the farmers of
Potomac Vegetable Farms, based
in Northern Virginia, have formally
and informally practiced agricul-
tural education since its inception
more than 50 years ago through
informal training and mentorship
of countless young and beginning
farmers, school tours, and informa-
tive articles in its newsletters.
We are not powerless
Vandana Shiva, Indian scholar, envi-
ronmental activist and food sov-
ereignty advocate, was once asked
in a Mother Earth News interview:
“What are the most concrete things
we as individuals can do to re-
store food sovereignty (the right to
Example of educatinal outreach to young women at Potomac Vegetable Farms.
healthy and culturally appropriate
food produced through ecologically
sound and sustainable methods)
and build a sustainable society?”
Her response: “Save seeds and grow
a food garden.” This is one of the
many important things farm-based
education teaches. When people
have the knowledge of how to grow
their own food and save their own
seeds, they can gain some control
over what ends up on the dinner
table and enjoy better nutrition
in the process.
Another simple and straight-
forward response to this question
would be to follow the words of
American author, journalist, and
activist Michael Pollan: “Vote with
your fork...three times a day.” In
other words, choose where you
spend your money within our food
system. Understanding how food
is grown and an awareness of its
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