Moving Toward the End Goal
Thursday, July 29, 2010
The sun is hot this day, but the slight breeze provides some form of
relief. The mosquitoes are out in full force, but we are well protected
with bug spray. Conversations and questions flow easily as we engage
with the professors and the farmers who have come to share the day with
us. We are out at the University of Manitoba’s Carman Research Station
for the day, learning about sustainable agriculture research.
I
am part of a group of 18 students taking the course, Our Contested Food
System: Cultivating a Just Peace, offered by Canadian Mennonite
University’s School of Peacebuilding program. The course is designed to
examine “the current realities of our food system, mainstream
prescriptions, and emerging discourses around local food systems,
sustainable agriculture and food sovereignty/democracy, with the aim of
understanding the worldviews that underpin them”.*
We begin the
week-long course with a structured deliberative dialogue around three
different approaches to the food crisis. One approach suggests using
technology, such as genetic engineering, to increase food production.
Another approach calls for restructuring agricultural practices by using
alternative agricultural practices. The third approach focuses on local
food systems and emphasizes strong connections between food consumers
and food producers.
We keep this dialogue in the back of our
minds as we journey into the rest of the week. The week is filled with
conversations that stretch us and challenge us to look for the
commonalities among our varied perceptions and ideas.
The day
after we are at the Carman Research Station, we move our classroom to a
boardroom at the Canadian International Grain Institute. There we learn
about the economic aspects of the food systems. We hear from a
representative of Richardson International who explains the grain
handling business and some of the complexities that are involved.
To
explore the faith element of food processes, we spend time each day
reflecting on a passage of Scripture and looking for the connections
between the passage and the other things we are learning. Part of our
second last day is spent at St. Matthew’s Anglican Church, in the heart
of Winnipeg’s downtown. Speakers share about local projects they are
involved in – from running food pantries, to facilitating container
gardening for new immigrants, to educating that quality of food is as
important as quantity of food.
At the end of the week, after
experiencing so much, a number of us wonder about how to synthesize all
we have learned. The “Now what?” question comes up in our coffee and
lunch break conversations. On the last day of class, we spend time
reflecting and dialoguing on how we can move forward with our new
insights. Many of us comment that answers to the food crisis are not
easy; there are no quick fixes.
Although we don’t have a 12-step
program to address food insecurity, I think we have taken some valuable
steps. We have begun, or for some in the class, continued, the learning
process. There are now another 18 people who are thinking about and
wrestling with these issues.
I have faith that as we continue to
grapple with food issues, we will invite others to join in our journey.
If we can continue to dialogue respectfully and openly, I think we will
be able to continue moving toward the goal of ensuring that no one goes
hungry.
*From the Our Contested Food System: Cultivating a Just
Peace syllabus.
Ellen Paulley works as the Resource Assistant
at Canadian Foodgrains Bank. She was one of several Foodgrains Bank
staff to attend this course, offered June 14-18, 2010. Ellen is
currently studying International Development Studies at the University
of Winnipeg.
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