…from OCO:
The Organic Council of Ontario (OCO) needs your input!
Help guide the future of organics in Ontario.
Take OCO’s survey by January 28th for the chance to win prizes!
from Nathan Schwartz, HFAN
Huron Food Action Network requires four (4) more board members who are willing to commit to attending monthly board meetings, as well as working on projects. Without this, the existing board will be forced to dissolve HFAN [read more]…
2016 was a very productive year with two completed projects (2016 Food Report and the Food Hub Assessment), continued participation in a Huron County tourism initiative focusing on culinary tourism, and the development of several grant proposals. HFAN partnered and/or discussed future partnerships with Huron Business Development Corporation, Huron County, Huron Manufacturing Association, Huron County Chef’s League, Huron County Library, Huron County Museum/Gaol, The town of Goderich and many more. HFAN even organized a very successful and widely acclaimed festival that has improved tourism in Goderich’s ‘shoulder’ season and proved HFAN’s ability to become self-sustaining.
If you have an interest in serving on the board, are willing to commit to a monthly meeting as well as taking on at least one other project, contact Nathan Swartz, HFAN Chair at
huronfoodactionnetwork@gmail.com before December 30th, 2016.
A new case study from our ongoing ‘Social Economy of Food‘ research highlights DIG (Durham Integrated Growers for a Sustainable Community). Compiled by Mary Anne Martin, DIG was collected through interviews with the president of DIG, the coordinator of one of its member projects and one organization that has benefitted from regular delivery of produce from a member garden. In addition, it draws on documents and observations from: DIG’s website, its member projects, its annual general meeting, an executive meeting and a meeting of the Durham Food Policy Council (of which DIG is a member). As a participatory action research initiative, this research involved a collaborative project with DIG and the Durham Food Policy Council that analysed municipal policy in Durham Region to assess its support for urban agriculture and food security. The findings from the policy research also informs this report. Read or download the report!
Your 2015 food sales numbers still matter! Help us to gather the evidence of Ontario’s growing regional food markets.
Receiving data for the 2015 business year and growing season would be of tremendous benefit—assisting funders and policy makers to better understand the challenges that you face.
We need a snapshot of your 2015 regional food sector activities so that we can better provide the facts—about important growing regional food markets and hubs—to agri-food sector policy-makers and funders.
The Nourishing Communities research group is conducting the second annual OMAFRA-funded survey to identify existing and potential regional food hub demand in Ontario. We need your input so we can provide the most up-to-date summary of food hub activity in Ontario for the 2015 growing season.
The goal is to enable you to get more local and/or sustainable food into the hands of consumers, apply for loans/grants, and give you a snapshot of your local food system. The survey results will also help funders understand more about community and business needs, where funding/resource gaps exist and how to effectively support operations such as yours.
We will be grouping the survey responses by regions to get a better picture of existing food systems and where there are more opportunities.
Thanks to everyone who participated in the first survey of food hubs in 2014 – we are happy to share results.
November 22-23, Belleville ON
http://www.eastontlocalfood.com/eastern-ontario-local-food-conference-2016/
The Eastern Ontario Local Food Conference is just around the corner and this year’s focus is all about resilience in the face of climate change and other contemporary challenges. Join us, and best-selling local food author and CBC columnist Sarah Elton, as we explore ways that Eastern Ontario local food and its producers, processors and influencers can meet those challenges and seize opportunities that are unique to Eastern Ontario local food.
This year’s conference includes:
To register or for further details:
http://www.eastontlocalfood.com/eastern-ontario-local-food-conference-2016/
Open Call for Submissions for a Special Issue of the Built Environment Journal
The Built Environment journal will publish a special issue to address how the growing engagement of the planning and design disciplines within city and regional food systems subverts, reinforces, or exacerbates inequities and injustices. Authors are invited to submit articles that explore how planning and design may be used to create and strengthen city and regional food systems, while explicitly considering imbalances in equity, justice, and power.
About the Special Issue
The guest editors, Samina Raja, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York and Kevin Morgan, Cardiff University, invite submissions from scholars from across the Global South and Global North. Manuscripts from early career scholars, including tenure-track faculty members, post-doctoral scholars, and doctoral students are highly encouraged. The special issue is expected to include 12 articles, not including the editorial. The issue is expected to be published by fall 2017.
Authors are welcome to write about one or more sectors of city and regional food systems. Articles may focus on scholarship that addresses food systems at varying scales, ranging from small towns to large cities and regions. Manuscripts must address the following:
Prize for Early Career Scholar
Published papers by early career scholars will be considered for a Best Paper Prize. Early career scholars include tenure-track faculty (e.g. Assistant Professors), post-doctoral scholars, and doctoral students. The author of the winning manuscript will receive an honorarium of $1000 (US), and the winning manuscript will be published as an Open Access article.
Submission of Abstract
To have a manuscript be considered for the special issue, interested authors must submit an abstract of no more than 300 words (not including references) to editors by November 14, 2016. The abstract must describe the thesis or research question, the research design and research methods, and report key findings and recommendations. The abstract must demonstrate the link between the article and the focus of the special issue on equity, justice, and power in food systems. References must be cited using the Harvard system. Abstracts must be submitted in a Word document by e-mail to foodsystems@ap.buffalo.edu. The subject line of the e-mail must specify “[Author’s Last Name]: Built Environment Journal” and the abstract must be attached (in Word format). Authors whose abstracts are judged to be a good fit for the special issue will be notified by November 21, 2016.
Submission of Manuscript
The full manuscript cannot exceed 5,000 words. Completed manuscripts will undergo a peer-review process prior to selection for publication. Complete manuscripts will follow the format and style of the Built Environment journal published by Alexandrine Press. Additional guidance will be provided to invited authors. Full manuscripts must be submitted no later than January 30, 2017.
Questions
Send questions about content of the special issue to Samina Raja at sraja@buffalo.edu. Questions about the submission process should be directed to Enjoli Hall at foodsystems@ap.buffalo.edu. Please use the subject line “Built Environment Journal” in all e-mail correspondence.
Land over Landings RFP
CLOSING DATE AND TIME:
October 12, 2016, 3:00 P.M.
Land Over Landings wants a qualified firm to undertake a comprehensive study of the maximum agricultural economic capability, the rural growth opportunities, and other economic benefits to be had from restoring permanent agriculture to the remaining Federal Lands in Durham Region — while also ensuring the preservation of the area’s existing watersheds and natural habitat.
Land Over Landings intends to use the study report’s data and conclusions in future communications strategies, to make the case to political leadership and the general public that an agricultural and rural-growth economic vision exists as a viable alternative to an airport and other economic development on the remaining Federal Lands.
Please don’t hesitate to contact landoverlandings@
For the month of September, the Freedom Caravan—consisting of migrant workers and allies—is travelling across southern Ontario discussing migrant farmworker issues, reflecting on the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program, and holding solidarity action events. Please check the schedule for an event at your university or community space.
The 2016 BCFN YES! Research Grant Competition invites worldwide researchers to submit proposals for a research project on food and sustainability.
Due July 27, 2016. Top ten proposals invited to present in Milan, November 2016.
The BCFN Foundation focuses on young talents by supporting higher education and interdisciplinary research, to advance the knowledge base in food and sustainability. The BCFN YES! Research Grant Competition invites young talents [under 35] to submit proposals for a research grant of 20,000 euro.
It is provided for PhD and postdoc students, participating as individual or as a team. The BCFN YES! Research Grant Competition encourages the participation of teams from different disciplines and/or countries who wish to combine their expertise in innovative approaches.
Potential Topic Areas
The BCFN YES! Research Grant Competition offers the opportunity to put into action concrete proposals that will have the objective of making more sustainable one or more themes of the agri-food system (in terms of environmental, social, health and/or economic aspects). Among others, we consider the following areas of particular interest:
– Sustainable and healthy diets;
– Urban food systems and policies;
– Resilient agriculture, land use change and agroecology;
– The nexus between climate change, energy and food;
– Sustainable water management;
– Food supply chains;
– Ecosystems and ecosystem services;
– Healthy lifestyles;
– Food waste reduction;
– Food policy development;
– Food security: availability, access, utilisation, stability;
– Communication technologies and networks;
– Youth and women’s involvement in agriculture
La Chaire de recherche en droit sur la diversité et la sécurité alimentaires (Chaire DDSA) de la Faculté de droit de l’Université Laval et l’Association RESOLIS annoncent la sortie du journal RESOLIS intitulé « Systèmes alimentaires territorialisés au Québec : 100 initiatives locales pour une alimentation responsable et durable ».
Cette publication présente une analyse de 100 initiatives locales d’alimentation responsable et (IARD) contribuant à construire et à structurer les systèmes alimentaires territorialisés (SAT) au Québec. Elle vise à mettre de l’avant la présence d’IARD sur tout le territoire québécois et dresse un portrait des acteurs variés à l’origine de ces initiatives, en précisant les actions menées par ceux-ci, puis en identifiant les externalités positives principales de ces initiatives, qu’elles soient de nature environnementale, sociale, culturelle ou pédagogique. Lire la suite…