Second Annual Session – Building Our Resilient Food System: Cultivating Connections

#rethinkfood #foodaction #foodjustice #foodsystem #leaf

Help us continue to shape a sustainable food future for Santa Barbara County! Join us on Tuesday, November 13, 2018 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. for the second annual free community listening and activation session for the Santa Barbara County Food Action Plan.

Last year, over 100 individuals representing businesses, schools, neighborhoods, and organizations of all types came out to share and connect with others engaged in making a secure food system for our county. Come find out next steps for implementation of the plan, inform others of your work, and learn about the progress of exciting projects in action, including how:

• Activists in Cuyama and Lompoc are making sure thousands of residents have both access to healthy food and family-friendly classes on how to prepare it
• Higher education institutions like UCSB, Allan Hancock College and Santa Barbara City College are addressing student hunger
• Local community members are seeing health benefits for the whole family through prescriptions for fruits and vegetables
• A local network is flourishing that prevents tons of restaurant-quality food from going to landfill and instead feeds the hungry
• Ranchers and farmers are seeing measurable results from regenerative agriculture practices that increase their bottom line while drawing down carbon from the air
• Organizations are working to establish a more robust and visible Food Action Plan network

Attendees—including individuals, businesses, schools, and organizations of all types, will once again be encouraged to inform the process by sharing about their own regional work to create a more secure, sustainable food system. A networking session will provide time to seek out new partnerships and opportunities to support each other.

The event is being organized by the Community Environmental Council, the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County, and the the Santa Barbara Foundation. Co-sponsors are Santa Barbara Food Alliance and the Santa Barbara Permaculture Network.

The Santa Barbara County Food Action Plan is a community-driven strategic plan that assesses and provides recommendations for how we grow, distribute, consume, and dispose of food. The Foodbank of Santa Barbara County and the Community Environmental Council spearheaded the project, with major support from the Santa Barbara Foundation. Community gatherings are an essential component of the Food Action Plan, which is designed to create a more resilient food system that supports a healthy economy, healthy people, and a healthy environment.