Hi Everybody,

I am moved by the renewed passion I am seeing around the gun control issue, but it is a shame that it takes a mass killing to get people motivated. It breaks my heart to think of schools as a fertile ground for a deranged person, but it scares me beyond belief to think of teachers getting a bonus to carry a concealed weapon. That is not the right answer!! Organizers of a rally against mass shootings are planning a March on Washington next month, Saturday, March 24th. They are expecting up to 500,000 attendees, and there will be sister marches in cities around the country. Please join the movement and let’s get this under control, once and for all!!

I just read a report from the Bureau of Investigative Journalism and the Guardian that found shocking statistics of the amount of people in this country who get a food borne illness per year, compared to those living in the UK. In the U.S., there were 14.7 percent (48 million people) who came down with some form of a food borne illness as compared to 1.5 percent (1 million people) in the UK.  The cause (you guessed it) is our industrial food system and the lack of regulation and inspections in the factories. They cite meat contaminated with fecal matter, grease and blood on meat processing equipment, and chicken dropped on the floor and then rinsed with chlorine and put back on the production line. It’s completely disgusting and unacceptable, yet it seems to be the status quo. And with our POTUS in office, regulations are only getting weaker and corporate control is getting stronger. So that means, “We the People” need to get stronger too! We need People Power to stand up to the greed built into our capitalist society. Sign the petition to tell Costco we don’t need another factory farm, and tell your Congress people to support a Farm Bill that supports sustainable agriculture!

My guest this week on the Progressive Radio Network is Ruth Richardson, the Executive Director for the Global Alliance for the Future of Food. The Global Alliance is a unique coalition of foundations committed to leveraging their resources to help shift food and agriculture systems towards greater sustainability, security, and equity.  Ruth serves on the Steering Committee of TEEB (The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity) for Food and Agriculture led by UNEP, and on the Advisory Committee of the Global Urban Food Policy Pact. She also sits on the Board of Ecojustice – Canada’s only national environmental law charity with a 25-year track record of winning legal victories for people and the planet. I’m really looking forward to talking with Ruth and learning more about the work of the Global Alliance for the Future of Food. Please join us on Thursday for this great conversation.

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With love and gratitude,

Bhavani