|
|
Guest author will talk about Bethlehem, a Food Town USA city, and a panel of local food activists will participate in a discussion about how our evolving local food system is revitalizing our community.
Community food activist, writer, and trainer Mark Winne (markwinne.com) will talk about his visit to Bethlehem, the lead chapter in his new book, Food Town USA: Seven Unlikely Cities Changing the Way We Eat. Look at any list of America’s top foodie cities and you probably won’t find Boise, Idaho or Sitka, Alaska. Yet they are the new face of the food movement. Healthy, sustainable fare is changing communities across this country, revitalizing towns that have been ravaged by disappearing industries and decades of inequity.
What sparked this revolution? To find out, Mark Winne traveled to seven cities not usually considered revolutionary. He broke bread with brew masters and city council members, farmers and philanthropists, toured start-up incubators and homeless shelters. What he discovered was remarkable, even inspiring.
In Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, once a company steel town, investment in the arts has created a robust new market for local restaurateurs. In Alexandria, Louisiana, “one-stop shopping” food banks help clients apply for health insurance along with SNAP benefits. In Jacksonville, Florida, aeroponics are bringing fresh produce to a food desert.
Over the course of his travels, Winne experienced the power of individuals to transform food and the power of food to transform communities. The cities of Food Town, USA remind us that innovation is ripening all across the country, especially in the most unlikely places.
Public is invited!
WHEN: Monday, September 23, 2019
5 to 7 p.m.
WHERE: Lehigh Valley Charter High School for the Arts
The Commons Cafe
321 East Third Street, Bethlehem, PA 18015
About Lehigh Valley Food Policy Council
The Lehigh Valley Food Policy Council seeks to promote an environmentally healthy food system by strengthening the local food economy, increasing access to fresh foods for everyone, reducing food insecurity, and supporting local farming in the Lehigh Valley.
About Mark Winne
From 1979 to 2003, Mark Winne was the Executive Director of the Hartford Food System, a Connecticut non-profit food organization. He is the co-founder of the Community Food Security Coalition where he also worked as the Food Policy Council Program Director from 2005 to 2012. He was a Kellogg Foundation Food and Society Fellow, a Johns Hopkins School of Public Health Visiting Scholar, and a member of the U.S. Delegation to the 2000 Rome Conference on Food Security. As a writer on food issues, Mark’s work has appeared in the Washington Post, The Nation, Sierra, Orion, and Yes! Magazine. He is the author of Closing the Food Gap: Resetting the Table in the Land of Plenty and Food Rebels, Guerrilla Gardeners, and Smart Cookin’ Mamas, and Stand Together or Starve Alone. Through his own firm, Mark Winne Associates, Mark speaks, trains, and writes on topics related to community food systems, food policy, and food security. He also serves as Senior Advisor to the Center for a Livable Future at the Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health.
Information and images provided to TVL by:
Susan Dalandan
Coordinator, Lehigh Valley Food Policy Council
