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(04/30/14 4:54pm)
The desire to eat local, real food has become rooted in our food culture on campus. Defining real as local, fair, humane and ecologically sound, members of Eat Real set out to discover how much food in the dining hall fulfilled at least two of the four criteria mentioned. After tracking food production last October and March, the club discovered that 23 percent of the food provided by our dining halls was real, according to Eat Real’s standards. From this research, Eat Real has established a commitment for dining halls to reach 30 percent by 2016.
Real Food Week was created to celebrate Eat Real’s past successes and address what still needs to be accomplished. From a barbeque with local meat to sharing a meal with Head Chef of Atwater Ian Martin and the Executive Manager for Dining Services Robert Cleveland to listening to a discussion on migrant labor in Vermont featuring a panel of real food challenge interns, the camaraderie behind the various activities of Real Food Week demonstrated that the dining hall’s pursuit of local, sustainable food is one of the top priority on campus.
Abbey Willard, the keynote speaker of the week’s festivities, came to campus to talk about her job as the Local Foods Administrator for the Vermont Agency of Agriculture. With a Bachelor’s degree in Soils and Environmental Science from Montana State University and a Master’s degree in Science in Environmental Studies from Green Mountain College, Willard highlighted her efforts to increase local food procurement in Vermont and support community-based food system collaborations within the state and throughout New England, as well as how such efforts of local, sustainable food production evoke change in communities.
Willard believes that local food systems and community go hand and hand.
“What I love about this is that growing local food systems is about building a community that recreates agriculture as an honorable occupation, sees Vermont’s rural character as a driving force in our state’s economy and works towards access for healthy and local food for all,” Willard said.
This relationship between community and food is driven by Willard’s experiences as a child. Raised in rural Peacham, Vt., Willard and her three siblings grew up attending multi-generational family gatherings oriented around “enjoying the meal preparation, sitting down and appreciating good food that tastes good,” she said. “I came at agriculture from a different place … a place of love for food and for family. Meals represent a sense of community, family, healthy habits and love.”
With a background sensitive to collaborative food production, Willard and her partner started Ridge Meadows Farm, which raised 100 percent grass-fed beef and lamb and pastured pork and poultry.
“Through my on-the-ground experience, I even more now can value the labor of love that accompanies our food production,” she said.
A year and a half ago, Willard decided to give up the farm, however. Worn down by the demanding and difficult lifestyle it required, she approached the issues of food systems and agricultural production from a new angle.
Willard pointed to the transition from a traditional supply chain to a value chain as the spark behind the eating local movement.
“No longer are we just trying to get more people, more food. Instead, consumers are so much more aware of where their food comes from, who produces it and how it’s being grown,” she said. “We are now assigning value to our food.”
“We believe these are important questions to be asking and it is also important to recognize that Real Food Week fosters discussion about these topics but does not seek to answer them necessarily, since they are inherently complex,” EatReal intern Robin Weisselberg ’16.5 said.
Willard said that 1 in 6 Americans go out of their way to buy local products. Specifically in Vermont, there are 81 farmers markets (a 351 percent increase from the 19 that existed in the state in 1986), over 100 organic CSA farms, 20 winter farmers markets, Farm to School programs in 85 schools (which is 26 percent of the state’s public school system), 20 different food hubs that have regionally organized to work on local food issues, 3 new processing facilities and expansion among existing facilities.
“You all live in a state that is a success story of community based agriculture and that’s because we recognize that local and regional food system development is about relationships, communication, and building trust amongst people at the community level,” Willard said. “And our small town and rural character really makes us good at that.”
With the goal being to increase local food consumption, Willard addressed the complexities of defining what it means for food to be local.
“Local is not universally defined and there are no regulated standards behind it,” she said.
For example, the Vermont Fresh Network, which works directly with Vermont restaurants and retail establishments, defines local to mean anything purchased from producers in the state of Vermont. Black River Produce, however, defines local as anything that can be picked up on a day’s drive, meaning the establishment relies on produce from parts of Massachusetts and New York and does not reach parts of Vermont.
Health Care Without Harm, an organization that works with health care establishments around the country, defines local as anything with greater than 50 percent of ingredients produced or processed within 250 miles of each establishment. Similar to our school’s own challenge to define what real food means, efforts to define local is equally controversial.
“If we can’t streamline and create a common definition of what it means to be local, we need to recognize that Made in Vermont has a reputation outside of our state and that local has value within our state as we build a local and regional food system,” she said. “[The bottom line] is that we need to connect and learn from our communities and be honest and appreciative of what we each can contribute to this movement.”
The Farm to Plate initiative, for example, which focuses on increasing local food production, evolved through an intensive, comprehensive community effort. The Vermont Youth Conservation Core Farm Enrichment program, a non-profit youth, leadership, service, conservation and education organization, teaches students how to think differently about food systems and deepen their relationships with the food that they eat. Partnered with Central Vermont Medical Center and Fletcher Allen Health Care, the farm offers CSA shares to food insecure families. In the 2014 season, 200 Vermont families, over 1,000 individuals, will benefit from this program. Willard points out, however, that the “Health Care Shares program provides more than just educational opportunities for VYCC members and nutritious for needy families; it is about building community and resiliency in our food system.”
Through her talk, the audience learned about the collaboration and innovation at various geographical scales needed to create a local food market. “Clearly the work is not easy,” Willard said. “But I think it is creating change, and certainly people are better off.”
(03/19/14 11:43pm)
On Saturday, March 15, GlobeMed at Middlebury held a dodgeball tournament to raise money for Gardens for Health International.
GlobeMed is a national organization that has chapters at over 50 college campuses across the U.S. Each chapter is partnered with a unique, non-governmental organization to address health disparities and improve global health. The College’s chapter is paired with Gardens for Health International (GHI), which is located in Rwanda.
Students in GlobeMed are educated and trained to advocate for a long-lasting solution to chronic childhood malnutrition. Through its partnerships with grassroots leaders and the Rwandan government, GlobeMed works to give families the tools, knowledge and resources to create a sustainable solution to nutritional independence, rooted in prevention and self-sufficiency rather than dependency on short-term food aid. Since its partnership started in Fall 2011, GlobeMed at Middlebury College and GHI have raised $15,000 to support the organization’s efforts.
This year’s grant money is focused on the capacity-building needs of the organization. Inspired by their experiences working with GHI in Rwanda last summer, Cate Stanton ’15.5 and Ryan Brewster ’14 decided that fundraisers targeted towards funding operational expenses, such as transportation costs and staffing needs, would help the most to expand GHI’s impact on the surrounding community.
Stanton, Margaret Reed ’14 and the rest of the GlobeMed promoted, advertised and staffed the tournament. In total, five teams played, and each team paid a $5 entry fee. Greg Swartz ’17.5 competed in the tournament on the Channel Four News Team – he promised that even though his team did not win a single game, “we’ve got everyone right where we want them for next year.” Participants agreed that they would like to participate in this event in the future.
Stanton states that although the club did not reach its financial goal, they hope the tournament will become a popular event in the future. To improve for next year, Stanton says the club will not host the event on the morning of St. Patricks Day, and will do more to market and endorse the event.
GlobeMed’s objective of providing a lasting solution for nutrition underscores the college’s interest in international affairs, providing aid at different geographical scales, and applying classroom concepts to real world situations.
GlobeMed has several events planned for the rest of the semester, including an April 4 concert featuring student bands, a five-kilometer race and an event at Two Brothers Tavern. The club is also hosting a screening of the film Escape Fire on April 1 and is hosting speaker Joel Lamstein from John Show Inc. on April 21. Both events will be free and open to students and members of the community.
(03/12/14 6:51pm)
Whether it was in the panini line at Proctor, in the midst of conquering a snow mound, or inaudibly over the loud base of Atwater, I have tried to approach every new face with an open mind and faith that the kind act will be reciprocated. Like blinking, introducing yourself to new people is a natural reflex of the human condition that has eminent faith in new beginnings.
I have realized however, that the way we interpret first impressions has changed and gone viral. Social media makes virtual appearance just as important as physical, texting just as relevant as face-to-face conversation and proving your past just as important as discussing it. Since history suggests that the blend of self-containment and approachability are key to the initial stages of friendship, how do we transfer the iceberg version of ourselves onto the Internet?
I wish it were as simple as clicking “Add Friend.” Facebook makes a button the only obstacle in obliterating privacy, the like/dislike button as our only choices for opinion, and the “get to know you” stage of friendship achieved through arrow keys and scrolling. Should I put more emphasis on choosing my profile picture or outfit? Is it more important to be a good texter or conversationalist?
After I got accepted to Midd as a Feb, I immediately joined the 2017.5 Facebook group. Without speaking or interacting, I got to know my classmates as more than just a name on a page. By time I reached orientation, none of the faces were new to me even though this was the first time the figures were life size and not a still life; comments like “the pictures from your febmester looked amazing” and “you seem really into (insert creative hobby here)” demonstrated that our in-person interactions lagged behind our virtual ones. Even though I still asked the basic get to know you questions, I realized they were out of formality instead of necessity. How does getting to know someone’s picture persona differ from their actual persona? How does the beginning stages of friendship play out online versus in real-life? Even though orientation only lasted one week, the Feb class became such a tight knit group because we arrived on campus having already done our homework and ready to fill in the questions social media left unanswered.
These realities do not just ring true for the Feb class. Facebook can be used as a cheat sheet to the social scene at Midd. The college’s virtual voice has helped me navigate what clubs to join, parties to attend and even what clothes to wear. A new kid does not have to search much further than his/her computer to uncover social norms and friend groups, demonstrating that the feelings of feeling new and overwhelmed have not changed, but the agents for integration and investigation have.
The virtual world however, still carries some of our real world tendencies. Social media has made it much easier for people to hide their vulnerabilities and redefine their identity. Self-conscious? Hand-select and add filters to your photos before you upload them. Embarrassed by a hobby or passion? Don’t put it on your profile. Want to seem happy? Smile in every photo. As a new kid, it’s been challenging to establish at what points the computer-generated and authentic versions of Middlebury are in agreement versus disagreement. I’ve realized that it’s not simply choosing to follow one narrative or the other, but rather trusting that only time will tell how these two worlds coexist and contradict.
Ideally, you get to know a person and place in stages. My fear is that agents like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter reveal too much too soon about a person or place and take away the mystery, and possibly incentive, of getting to know someone or something further; with the power to scroll as far back into someone’s profile history without having to talk to them directly, how do we prevent the novelty from wearing off? How do we prevent disappointment when the virtual and real worlds are not in sync?
I want to unplug. I want to sit and let a conversation twist from awkward silences to gut-bursting laughter at its own pace. I know Middlebury is the right place for me and that the people here are the right people, but I’m struggling with how to connect both on and off line. Strip away the stigma and the natural tendency to build a protective shield and the doubt. Don’t just like my profile picture or tweet, like me for me, and trust that the rest will take care of itself.
Artwork by CHARLOTTE FAIRLESS
(02/26/14 6:55pm)
If I were to try to describe it, I would root my answer in dichotomies: overwhelming yet exhilarating, unknown yet expected, intimidating yet motivating, and most importantly fearful yet rewarding. No, I am not talking about skydiving or meeting Will Ferrell, but rather the trials and tribulations, the rewards and frustrations of being a new kid.
This communal experience is not only something I can relate to, but is my current way of life. As a freshman feb in my first semester at Middlebury, my life is rooted in awkward eye contact, the hey-hi-how-are-you millisecond conversation, the endless scan of the dining hall, and the looming question of how my voice will blend into this unified college community. Therefore, my friend (yay to making new friends!), we are truly in this together.
If I were to be meeting you for the first time, I would show you my widest smile and make sure I made welcoming eye contact. I’d probably talk about growing up in Westchester, NY, coming from a divorced family and having three siblings. I would not forget to mention my love of doing anything outdoors and my passion for photography, even if I do not do it as much anymore. Anything with peanut butter, 500 Days of Summer, and Brett Dennen would be my responses to all the basic food/movie/music questions, with my voice cracking as little as possible. I’d try to make a joke. I’d hope/wait for you to laugh. We definitely would not talk about my fears of being alone or not knowing what I want to do with my life… at least at first. I would give you a hug goodbye because I am a sensitive person and would walk away wondering what that first encounter meant.
But I am getting ahead of myself.
I am here to uncover what happens once the preplanned meet-and-greets and orientations come to an end and all you are left with is your room key, class schedule, and a deep knot in your throat that is encased with fear. How do we as human beings learn to socialize, adapt, and co-exist with our environment? How do we create relationships and friendships out of thin air without letting preconceived notions cloud our judgment? Do we ever transition out of new kid status into seasoned professional? If we all come from different backgrounds, how do we all eventually homogenize into “Midd kids with our Nalgene low?” Why, if everyone at some point has experienced it, is being new so hard?
I want you to be the primary witnesses to the unsung heroes of this campus: those who are willing to put themselves out there and truly be themselves in an environment where cliques and reputations are the status quo. Those who are willing to trip and back track and even momentarily lose faith are the role models I want to focus on, because if the end goal is finding your niche in college, the road is going to be bumpy.
This column is for everyone; it’s about anyone who has been that someone with no one to sit with, or no one to rely on, and yet does not get discouraged. In the end we all find our people and our place and laugh at the time when we did not know whatwhowherewhenwhy, but that is not what I want to focus on. Continue reading if you can handle the awkwardness, the insecurities and the questioning that is crucial to finding your identity.
Believing that “not all those who wander are lost,” I introduce you to a New Kid on the Block who is eager, excited and nervous to meet you.
Artwork by CHARLOTTE FAIRLESS