Example of educational outreach to young women at Potomac Vegetable Farms.
The Relevance of Farm-Based Education
By Sophia Maravell
The 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 insecurity, 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, business owners, consumers, chefs, restaurant owners, researchers, policy makers, scientists, librarians, 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 agricultural education since its inception more than 50 years ago through informal training and mentorship of countless young and beginning farmers, school tours, and informative articles in its newsletters.
We are not powerless
Vandana Shiva, Indian scholar, environmental activist and food sovereignty advocate, was once asked in a Mother Earth News interview: “What are the most concrete things we as individuals can do to restore food sovereignty (the right to 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 straightforward 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 effects on people, animals and the planet are crucial to making informed decisions about where you buy your food. Farm-based education can also give people the knowledge to advocate for the kinds of policies that have an impact on important social issues and the environment.
Planting gardens, saving seeds, understanding your purchasing power, and becoming familiar with how food is grown, distributed, taxed, subsidized and made cheap through the exploitation of certain people are the kinds of actions that can begin to change the fabric of our society. With a little inspiration, education and caring, so much good could be set in motion.
What if librarians started seed libraries of pollinated seeds among their bookshelves? What if parents demanded of their school boards that all students deserve access in their cafeterias to nutritious locally grown food? What if housing developers built homes into the landscape with green roofs for growing vegetables, or homeowner associations set up CSAs to support local farmers and receive boxes of seasonal produce every week?
Tremendous ground could
be gained in simple ways if people really understood how many
decisions within their control—both collectively and individually—could contribute to a more socially and environmentally just and healthy food system—one where everyone thrives.
Sophia Maravell grew up on a seed saving organic farm in Montgomery County, and works at Potomac Vegetable Farms as a community educator and farmer. She is committed to bringing “culture” back into agriculture as well as generational healing through connecting to grief, land and our collective histories.