Toby Herzlich and Nina Simons, co-facilitators of the
Women's Leadership training in Sonoma, CA, April 25-30
As Katherine Gustafson wrote this week in recognition of International Women's Day, it is not possible to address issues of food production, purchase and preparation, or food insecurity without also considering the status and role of women. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, women grow more than half of the world's food. And in developing countries, they grow more than 80 percent. (Bringing Women to the Table, by Katherine Gustafson)
It's also not possible to consider the sustainable food movement without looking to San Francisco. The food community here is deep, diverse and active - not to mention exciting. There are very good reasons for Blogher to have lauched its Blogher Food conference in San Francisco last year - and bring it back again this year, this time for two days instead of one. (Announcing BlogHer Food '10, October 8-9 in San Francisco).
A lot is happening here. San Francisco boasts great farmers markets, numerous neighborhood eateries serving up local food, street food vendors galore, the oldest employee-owned food coop in the country, fair trade coffee companies and a very active social networking scene that pulls the whole food community close and keeps everyone in the loop.
And, yes, San Francisco foodies do politics and social justice. Last week over 130 people turned out at the Ferry Building for a standing room only discussion about the possibilities for a more equitable food distribution system (Produce to the People: Collaborating for Food Access). San Francisco also has an incubator kitchen for women in La Cocina, a cookbook store that has quickly become so much more (Omnivore Books), and a new community space where art and food converge (18 Reasons)
There's more, of course. And in San Francisco as elsewhere, women are integral.
For women in the food community who are working for positive change, as well as on their own abilities to effect that change, there's an opportunity coming up next month that might be of interest.
The Women's Leadership Program, a project of Bioneers and the Collective Heritage Institue, has a workshop scheduled in April just north of San Francisco in Sonoma County. The workshop is designed for social change activists, social entrepreneurs, educators and donor activists who are actively working toward a more just, healthy, and ecologically sane world. It will be facilitated by Nina Simons and Toby Herzlich. Registration is limited to just 18 to 24 participants, so expect a very personal and participatory gathering of women from diverse racial, class, age, sexual orientation, personal and professional backgrounds and areas of focus (not just food!).
2010 Women's Leadership Program
Westerbeke Ranch
Sonoma Valley, California
April 25-30, 2010
Application deadline: March 15, 2010
If you're not able to participate in the session in April but would like to attend, a second workshop is planned later in the year in New Mexico.
Ocamora Retreat Center
Northern New Mexico
July 19-24, 2010
The registration deadline for the Sonoma session is fast approaching. For more information, to register, or to be informed of future CWL events, contact: women@bioneers.org, or call: 505-986-0366, x129. For more details about the event in April in Sonoma, visit the Bioneers website.
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