My aching back!

And it's not just backs. All joints and muscles are susceptible to injury and strain when you are farming and gardening. Often it is the repetitive movements required that give us grief at the end of the day and that build up over time to create long-term problems. But what we don't often think about is the development of physically correct ways of doing things as preventative measures for injury and strain.

Ergonomics. The science of fitting the workplace and related equipment to the worker. A long-standing interest of mine. I became a volunteer ergonomic assessor when I worked for the Government of British Columbia back in the day, and although always on my mind, my proactivity lessened once I left government and my volunteer position. And my focus had been on office ergonomics. But my passion for designing sensible and healthy workplaces has flared up again since I started farming.

Farming and gardening can be brutal on the body, and with the former, at least, I have found that taking the time to assess a task and do it in a physically sensible way can be seen as a waste of time, overthinking, and let's face it, downright wimpy by hardcore farmers. It seemed to me that while lip service was paid to "listening to your body", what was truly valued were speed and strength. But how long does pure brute strength last, if you ever have it at all? Age, sex, body build, and physical health are all factors that affect strength. Does that mean that only the strong should farm and garden? Not at all. Strength means nothing if you bust your back moving the wrong way while carrying too much. And taking longer to carry out a task in order to save your body means you can save yourself pain and suffering and continue rewarding physical work later in life.

I am a proponent of inclusiveness and accessibility when it comes to participating in food systems work. And with very few exceptions, I believe that everyone can and should be involved in food systems work regardless of whether you live in the city or country, regardless of age, sex and physical limitations.

Stay tuned. Once bee season starts again in Ontario, I plan on making ergonomic forays into Canada's rigid beekeeping practices...

The Buzzzzzzzzz

And the months go by...

I have remained in this lovely area of Ontario (Lindsay/Bowmanville, etc) in order to further explore agricultural learning. Through my work with Lunar Rhythm Gardens, I met the knowledgeable master beekeeper, Ian Critchell (http://www.beeman.ca), and I have moved on to work with him in what will hopefully develop into an informal apprenticeship. I have much to learn, but I am fascinated already not only by the important and complex nature of bees' work, but also by their under-acknowledged and under-appreciated role in keeping us humans fed.

Getting a dialogue going with people about bees is also complex. Most people like, if not love, honey and related products, but they don't like bees. Most people also don't understand the delicate balance between bees, plant life and the poisons we put into our environment unthinkingly. Bees keep us alive, and we need to respect them. Preaching never works unless you have the charisma of a cult leader. Providing good role models for potential beekeepers and customers and letting people see your passion for the work can open a crack in the communication doorway.

Talk to your local beekeeper today to hear the buzz.

Viva zucchini!

Today, I had the pleasure of co-representing Lunar Rhythm Gardens at the Millbrook, Ontario's annual Zucchini Festival. We had the opportunity to not only enter in a few monster size zukes into The Great Big Zucchini Weight-In (we won second and third prize), but also to sell a bit of produce and network within the Millbrook area community. I, of course, had a blast. Markets and festivals can be incredibly fun and very important community events. Not only can you enjoy yourself, but the opportunity to make connections and learn new things is great. One of the things I like the most about these kinds of events, at least from a researcher's point of view, is to observe the relationship between vendors and customers. There is often more than an exchange of money. It is incredible the amount of knowledge that is passed - well the potential is there. Truly, it is up to the farmer/vendor to establish this kind of relationship, and honestly, I feel it is crucial not only to the sustainability of the vendor's business, but it is crucial to the sustainability of our future healthy societies. It is through these simple interactions that people learn about food, the nutritional and historical values of these foods, how to cook them, and what the difference is between a local, organic item and what appear to be similar items in grocery stores. On the flip side, farmers and vendors can learn from their customers and I've seen this time and time again. New recipes are passed on from clients, as well as likes and dislikes, personal growing experience, nevermind new ideas for marketing and connection-making. Such an important relationship and one that is just important to grow and nurture as our fruits and veggies.

Howling at the moon with the folks at Lunar Rhythm Gardens

If 2008 was about getting up close and personal with farmers' markets, 2009 was defined by finding my way into a close encounter of the agricultural kind through a farming internship. I think to truly understand food access and nutrition issues, you really have to get to the root (literally) of it all - you have to get your hands truly dirty and sow and grow. I spent some of the year looking for a place to lend a hand.

For one reason or another, none of the farms I contacted in BC worked out, but I have had some luck in Ontario. A few farms had been looking for folks to finish out the year's harvest with them in exchange for room and board, and I managed to get on with an inspiring new partnership called Lunar Rhythm Gardens (http://lunarrhythmgardens.wordpress.com/). The primary focus of this outfit is to establish a mutually profitable relationship between themselves (the farmers) and the community in the form of Community Shared Agriculture (CSA). In short, CSA promotes local food production and consumption when farmers sell "shares" of their yield to community members. Each week, members pick up their portion of what has been harvested by the farmers either at the farm itself or a specified location. In addition, the farm can organize events such as an afternoon weed and feed (a little work and then a potluck) - members get to know their farmers and other community members.

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I've been here a few days now and am in deep. I'm working and learning. I've been to market to sell - very interesting being on the other side of the table after my work last year helping to set up, promote and run farmers' markets. I've also been weeding, cleaning, picking, loading, unloading, preparing food for the animals on the farm, clipping turkey wings... and of course, my vocabulary is expanding. I'm tired, but I'm having a great time.

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In addition to the million or so questions I've already bombarded these truly amazing farmers with, I have one for everyone out there. Why doesn't each child in our country get a chance to experience life on a farm as part of his or her education? It is so incredibly important to understand and appreciate where our food - our REAL food - comes from...

Blackberry season rant...

It is blackberry season in Nanaimo, British Columbia (and other places, of course). On yet another walk today, I noticed more of these fruit-laden bushes - even more of a jackpot than I had found previously. It seems that wild blackberries are everywhere - easily accessible to those on foot, and the best part - FREE. So I have been taking advantage - combining exercise with my foraging for food. I bring a container with me and fill it to the brim. Breakfast for the next two days. And really, to not take advantage of a nutrient-dense, antioxidant-laden food such as this for FREE, is insane.

But the thing is, people aren't taking advantage. And as food access is a major interest for me, I have to ask 'why not?' Blackberries have been ready for picking for several weeks now, and will be available for a handful more, and the bushes are barely touched. Countless apparently starving people (over 10% of accounted-for British Columbians live below the poverty line*) are not picking, and sadly, the fruit will end up rotting. Not picking, even on weekends under clear skies on safe walking trails close to the centre of town endlessly lined with blackberry bushes.

I can't answer the 'why not' question, but I would love to know. I'm sure I could gather a long list of reasons ranging from a socialist 'the poor are not empowered and thus don't trust resources available to them' to a conservative 'the poor are lazy and prefer handouts to taking reponsibility for their own well-being and that of their families'. And it is probably some complex combination of this entire range of views. The bottom line to me is that it is sad that people with little money and children to feed aren't out there teaching their kids about ages-old resource-gathering as well as actually providing good food to them at the same time.

At least for now, that means more blackberries for me...

* source: http://intraspec.ca/CCSD/BC_Social_Development_Report_FINAL.pdf

**photo taken on the Trans Canada Trail in Nanaimo

In the beginning...

... there was reflection. Reflection on events leading to the start of this blog. As a tech-oriented person also qualified as a librarian, I've felt the pull, the duty to utilize Web 2.0 technologies. But as a practical person who only speaks when there is something worth saying, I've resisted blogging simply because I haven't had anything to say. So it is primarily reflection and its subsequent influence on what I hope will happen in the future that has fueled my need to create this blog.

I've been working in health policy and research for what seems like forever, and more recently in community-based research. On a personal interest level, I've been drawn to nutrition, exercise and food issues for a long, long time. I had a unique opportunity to combine all of these professional and personal interests about a year and a half ago. While attending a small educational conference in the virtual world, Second Life, I met a farmer. I was in Montreal, he was in Northern California. He'd started a nonprofit organization aimed at setting up farmers' markets in disadvantaged neighbourhoods with the purpose of not only providing access to local produce, but also to provide access to social services and nutrition and exercise information. In my opinion and using my professional language, I felt he was brilliantly setting up temporary, but recurring, "learning commons". I'll post on "learning commons" another time. He was also interested in catching the attention of academics interested in conducting research in these environments.

He had my attention.

Long story short, and I'm sure I'll post on this in more detail another time, I found my way down to California and devoted 8 months of volunteer time to the development of the nonprofit, the markets and their relationships and projects. Always a farmers' market afficionado, I'm hooked in a completely different way now. While I've had to return to Canada, my hopes for the future are, non-professionally, to blog on this phenomenon and synthesize existing and ongoing research, and professionally, to pursue my own research on markets. Good luck to me!