Farm Aid was honored to participate in a celebration of The Value of Food at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York City on Thursday, March 31. Panelists and musicians offered “An Evening of Witness” to mark the closure of the art installation and programing in the Cathedral that explored the complexity of food and farming, and ran from October until April. The exhibition was divided into seven sections: Soil, Seed, Water, Farm, Market, Meal and Waste, and invited everyone to think about the importance of food from a personal, social, ecological, and political viewpoint.
David Amram performs at The Value of Food conference. Photo: Ebet Roberts
Farm Aid artist, David Amram, performed Woodie Guthrie’s “Pastures of Plenty” and joined with West African musicians. Carolyn Mugar and Glenda Yoder, Farm Aid’s Executive Director and Associate Director, respectively, talked about the centrality of farmers in our food system and the urgency to keep them on the land. They also spoke about how artists, farmers and eaters co-create a lively culture of agriculture. Tom Strumolo, Farm Aid HOMEGROWN Youthmarket coordinator, helped support the organizers—the staff of the Cathedral as well as the moderator, Anna Lappé of the Small Planet Institute. Farm Aid (and renowned rock and roll) photographer, Ebet Roberts, documented the event with these photos.
(L-R) Glenda Yoder, Carolyn Mugar, Elizabeth Ryan, Raj Patel, Wenonah Hauter, Demetris Giovanni Edwards, Anna Lappé, Bill Ayres (Co-Founder and Ambassador of WhyHunger), Lucas Benitez and Greg Asbed (Coalition of Immokalee Workers) speaking on a panel at the conference. Photo: Ebet Roberts
Want to learn more about how communities of faith are getting involved in the farm and food system? Check out Farm Aid partner Rural Advancement Foundation International-USA’s program, Come to the Table, which works with people of faith to relieve hunger and sustain local agriculture. The project’s leaders include farmers, farm workers, food pantry directors, community gardeners, ministers, public employees and lay leaders. Also, our grantee, the Interfaith Sustainable Food Collaborative, connects faith and farming communities to facilitate political activism and to support family farming and sustainable agriculture.
Learn more about the The Value of Food: Sustaining a Green Planet art exhibition and conference. Watch longtime Farm Aid artist, David Amram, perform alongside Old Crow Medicine Show at Farm Aid 30.
