Event about food insecurity and poverty hosted by the Community Food Centres
Posted: March 15, 2017
Categories: Events / GoodFoodBites / News from Sustain Members
The Community Food Centres is hosting an event called Fair Food Nation: Envisioning a future where food is a basic right on April 7th from 7:00 pm- 8:30 pm at the Isabel Bader Theatre in Toronto. A more detailed description from the Community Food Centres can be seen below.
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When it comes to the issues of poverty and food insecurity in Canada, it feels like we are at an impasse. For many, the idea that no one should have to worry where their next meal is coming from seems obvious. Yet we have somehow gotten to a place where governments and citizens accept systems and policies that make that impossible: from meagre social assistance rates, the entrenchment of food banks, pervasive social isolation, lack of affordable housing, a big and growing burden of chronic disease, and the continued chasm in services and supports between aboriginal populations and the rest of Canada to name a few.
With talk of a poverty reduction strategy and national food policy in the air, and truth and reconciliation work underway, political and citizen support for much-needed systemic change is mounting. Yet to get from consultations and strategies to funded and coordinated action, we need to go beyond critiquing the status quo and instead craft a compelling vision for a future in which everyone has a right to healthy food.
Over the course of an evening, a panel of outspoken advocates from the healthcare, indigenous, and food justice communities will paint an inspiring picture for a fair food nation while articulating a path to get us there.
Featured Panelists:
Tabitha Martens is a mixed ancestry Cree researcher, educator, writer and student. She is a PhD student at the University of Manitoba, studying indigenous food sovereignty. She spends much of her time on the land, working with her people, and learning traditional Cree food practices. Tabitha works for the University of Manitoba in the Faculty of Social Work, the University of Winnipeg, and the Four Arrows Regional Health Authority.
Andy Fisher has been at the forefront of the community food movement since its inception in the mid 1990s, as the co-founder and former Executive Director of the Community Food Security Coalition. He is currently working on a book about the anti-hunger field, and is also in the process of starting a new organization focused on food policy. He lives in Portland, OR.
Debbie Field became Executive Director of FoodShare in 1992, and has helped build it into Canada’s largest food security organization. She believes passionately in the healing power of food, and the ability of food to strengthen communities and bring people together. Throughout her career, Debbie has been credited with numerous awards recognizing her commitment to social justice and food security including the Ophea Award for Outstanding Contribution (2012), Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Medal (2012), OPSEU Bread and Roses Award (2012), was named Social Justice Scholar in Residence at Congregation Darchei Noam (2011).
Moderator:
Nick Saul is President and CEO of Community Food Centres Canada, a national organization that builds vibrant, food-focused community centres in low-income neighbourhoods. All of the programs and services at these centres are based on the idea that good food is a powerful force for health, equity, and social change. A long-time community organizer, Nick speaks regularly on issues of justice and the Community Food Centre model of food access, health, and community building.
For tickets click here