Getting out of the kitchen, and then back in

I've been getting out of the kitchen a lot lately, that is, doing a lot of outreach related to local, ethical food. In just a few weeks time I was on a panel talking about organic, local food at the local temple for their Hadassah group and two programs in the residence halls. Well, two for residence life, one was in a hall the other was at the farmers market, but a program run by a residence assistant.

Doing these kinds of programs always excites me, but makes me a little nervous, too. It is exciting because I get to talk about something I am passionate about to a whole new group of people, people not yet "converted" usually to the virtues of local, organic, sustainable food. And nervous because I never know exactly how to pitch a non-academic talk. I am much more comfortable talking to academics or in the classroom.

The talk for Hadassah was over brunch and with two other local food experts. The Jewish women of the group were almost all dressed up. They were excited to be kicking off some of their programming for the year. It was really nice and fun. I grew up in a community with a lot of Jewish families and it had been a long time since I had been in that community. And, there is no lack of interest when talking to Jewish people about food--it is such an important part of their culture and religion. I even got through a couple of lines of the blessing in my head before I forgot what was coming next. But I suppose as a Catholic I can be excused for not knowing Hebrew.

The two residence life programs were very different from one another, but both really interesting and fun. The one last weekend was entitled "Girls Go Green." They walked to the farmers market from campus and I met them there, gave them a little tour, talked about local food issues, the Co-op and answered some questions. They were polite and at the same time, distracted by the bounty that was available. We talked about cooking and how to make meals more sustainable. It was a glorious day weather wise and I think they had a nice time. And one thing about GU students that always impresses me, they are thankful--I got a note from the RAs who planned the event, signed by all the girls who went. I hope they are now more thankful for their food, too.

And Thursday night I did a little cooking class. The RA who approached me about this program also works in my department office. We planned a menu of my chicken tortilla soup and cornbread. It was not a glorious night weather wise, it was rather, a dreary, rainy night as we get deeper into fall. Soup was appropriate. I had forgotten how poorly equipped Res Hall kitchens tend to be. I brought some cooking equipment with me, but we still lacked a few things that would have made things a little easier. Nevertheless, though, we made enough soup and cornbread to feed 26 college students in half and hour. As the soup finished simmering and the cornbread got that lovely golden color to the crust, I talked to the students assembled about local food and sustainable food and how this food really is healthier. As the students ate, I walked around to each little group and we chatted about what was important to them -- when the farmers market is open, could they get Filipino food at the farmers market, what about Chinese food at the farmers market, what do we do on campus, is any of the food in the caf local. The RAs for this program washed all the dishes and things I bought and had the thank you note to me the next day. These students, too, know how to be thankful for a meal.

People want to know about their food. The food system has just gotten so complicated that it makes it difficult and lots of people threw up their hands in frustration. But that frustration seems to have been turned into action as more and more people want to learn and then do something about it, change the way they eat.

The more people I meet and the more I talk to about the ethics of food the more I find who are interested. A few years ago when I started doing this people either thought it was weird or were surprised there was such a thing. No longer. More often now I get questions about when my class meets, will it be offered again, and from non-student adults I get the question of whether or not they could audit the class.

I take all of this as a good sign. People do care and are getting primed to act. These are all activist rebel types. They tend to be educated folks who are realizing that their food dollars are supporting things they wouldn't otherwise support and are concerned about their health and the environment's health. this is where things come full circle. I know I have inspired some to make changes about their food and they in turn inspire me to continue to do this work.