Thirty Ways WE Can Be Food System Changemakers!

click on each bubble to learn more.

Protect pollinators;
create a pollinator pathway,
leave the leaves and
raise the blade

Learn the ways in which the industrialized food system is founded on and perpetuates exploitative, extractive and harmful practices

Solutions are nuanced, understand
the complexities as there is not
one silver bullet  

Consider True Cost Accounting when
you ask; why is local, artisanal
produced food so expensive

Learn about the
CT Farm to School Collaborative and bring
Put Local On Your Tray to your public school 

Protect the integrity of taste and
flavor by seeking out heritage breeds, heirloom varieties + artisanal foodways,
the Slow Food Ark of Taste
is an excellent resource 

Let your legislators know that farmland, woodland, waterways and open space are important to you as they protect our
regional foodshed

Start a school garden, where all children can learn how to grow and celebrate food

Understand how and why food apartheid is real, learn its origin story and how it impacts communities today, and then be proactive in supporting BIPOC farmers, initiatives and businesses that foster a just and equitable food system

Donate to your municipal and state land trust; protected land and waterways protect our foodshed and support resilience

Engage and support your municipal food policy council and if you don’t have one --
start one

Source food as if the health and
well being of your life, that of your family, your community and of future generations depends on it;
because it does

Access to fresh nutrient dense food is a human right, all recipients of SNAP, WIC and low income seniors should have access to fresh produce at their local Farmers' Market, check out National Farmers Market Coalition and learn more about activating these programs in your community, and if your Farmers Market is already on board --help spread the word

Ask your local grocery stores, restaurants, and caterers to put seasonal, regional and sustainability produced food on the menu 

Support bans on toxic pesticides, chemicals and gas-powered equipment that harm ecosystem services 

Eat intuitively, resist diets, fads and habits that disconnect you from your body and culture; honor what feels good for your body's constitution; enjoy, take pleasure in eating, nurture yourself with the life force produced from the earth provides naturally

Check out the CT Food System Alliance and the CT Food Policy Council and learn about the CT Food Action Plan  - share your thoughts and ideas

Bring a nutritious meal to
an elder

Show up for BIPOC farmers -- purchase food at the markets that convene BIPOC producers 

Divert organics out of the waste stream; set up a compost in your yard, or food scrap recycling drop off in your community 

Shop mindfully + thoughtfully -- consider the seasons, where you make your food purchases
and the quantity; 
conscious consumerism works

Acknowledge the Indigenous people who
were the first stewards of this land, the
forests and waterways and who continue to
cultivate foodways that are in balance
with natural cycles

NEVER
underestimate
the POWER of gathering

Learn the barriers and challenges that
new, beginning and BIPOC farmers face in CT, then reach out and ask how you can best support and help them to succeed 

Support your local food economy -- shop at
the farmers’ market, independently owned
food market, or join a CT CSA and get to know
who produces your food 

In addition to donating to food security organizations, invest in the economic empowerment of low wealth communities through food entrepreneurship,
land ownership and a seat at the
decision making tables

Familiarize yourself with the
food system lexicon

Host a dinner party and serve food that you cooked from your kitchen 

Become a food rescuer

Cook - with raw, seasonal ingredients that grow in your region, its fun and nourishing