Join the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Working Group for their 25th Annual “It Takes A Region” Conference in Philadelphia this October! 

THIS YEAR’S THEME – CULTIVATING A TRANSFORMATIVE FOOD SYSTEM

It takes a region to cultivate a transformative food system that  is in right relationship to people, place, and planet.

Everything that we do requires balance. Just as plants seek the right relationship between rain, sun, nutrients, soil, and each other to flourish, we must also seek balance within ourselves, our organizations, our ecosystems, and our communities.

We are struggling with imbalance: some have hoarded resources at the expense of others, who are left with too few; some wield power, where others have little influence over their own destinies. Some go without adequate food, others suffer to produce it or are deprived of land and foodways, and all beings are harmed by continually contaminated watersheds, polluted air, and depleted soils. We grow anyway, as all life will because that is the essence of life. We survive, but we cannot thrive without the precious balance between, within, and among human and non-human alike.

What does it take to come into right relationship with each other? First, we must name the imbalances and their impacts. Then we must recalibrate, always being aware of our own power and access to resources, and acknowledging that some of us having more than we need often requires that others go without. These are wounds we can heal together, with full knowledge that this balancing restores land, community, and self. This is the beauty and essence of solidarity: our liberation is bound together.

In the midst of this grand transition, we invite you to come hear from others who are transforming our food system, to share what you know, gather resources for the world we seek together, and experience what thriving can and might feel like over a few days in the City of Brotherly Love.