A few weeks ago I had the privilege and pleasure of being a part of the Adirondack Food System Network’s (AFSN) annual Food Summit. This years theme was “Recipe for Resilient Food Systems: Connecting Actors to Action”. Right from the opening panel discussion, I was deeply moved by this collective of people across the Adirondacks and upstate New York. This group was coming together from a place of caring deeply about the wellbeing of our community. Throughout my career, I have always seen this in people’s hearts. Despite a business and profit oriented world with systems that continue to fail…
Tag: change
Examining Social Justice Part 2: Methods for Engagement
“Unless we engage in these and other conscious acts of reflection and re-education, we easily repeat the process with our children. We teach what we were taught. The unexamined prejudices of the parents are passed on to the children. It is not our fault, but it is our responsibility to interrupt this cycle” -Tatum Social Justice methods are a tool for reflection, to learn about how we are engaging each other, and to consider how our preconceived notions can lead to uninformed or accidental mistreatment of people. Contrary to this purpose, many have begun to see it as an infringement…
Wired for Connection: Building Relationships Increases Resilience
A few months ago, I had the privilege of attending an annual conference called “A View from All Sides” hosted by the Children’s Trust, a family support organization in Massachusetts. The keynote speaker, Dr. Bruce D. Perry, spoke about the effects of empathy on the developing brain. He made some very important and fascinating points about the role of connection and relationships on our well-being. Through his research, he has studied the make up of the human brain as well as our societies approach to relationships and the importance we place on interacting with each other. As he described our…