Food is Never Just Food: A Virtual Workshop with Vanessa García Polanco

Food is never just food. It is part of the political, social, physical, and psychological process of explaining culture, society, and systems of power and oppression. Our food system encompasses everything from the farm to table, and even food waste. With this workshop Vanessa will start conversations to define food itself, its power, and the many meanings it has across gender, race, generations, borders and much more. We all experience and interact with our local, state and regional food systems in different ways and at different levels every single day. As food systems practitioners, farmers, advocates, and eaters, how we interact with food systems tells stories of privilege, oppression, comfort, struggle, passion, and sadness. This virtual workshop hosted by Mt. Pleasant Library invites you to use writing and introspection to tell your food systems story. Participants will identify tools to reclaim, write, document and showcase how they experience their food system and how it shapes them.

Register through Eventbrite.

Vanessa García Polanco is an experienced leader, researcher, speaker, writer, and organizer. She works with food, agriculture, and climate stakeholders to create and strengthen communities with policy and advocacy. As a policy advocacy professional, she is passionate about advocating for young people, minorities, immigrants, and refugees in food, agriculture, the environment, and natural resources. As a Dominican immigrant, she incorporates her experiences and identities into her research and advocacy.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT is a three-part series hosted by the Community Libraries of Providence in partnership with the URI Cooperative Extension’s Master Gardener Program and Food Recovery for RI. Inspired by the URI Honors Colloquium, Just Good Food, this series engages communities in discussions about local food systems, identity & culture. Learn more and register at clpvd.org/foodforthought

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