In response to ‘Sustaining Myself’ by @aliyahw : 

In my last blog post, I noted how insignificant and overwhelmed I feel when studying the complexities of the global food system and the many injustices that support it. How are we ever to tackle the weak links in our food systems that are soon to collapse? When reading through my classmates’ blog posts, I realized we share a similar feeling of smallness and are seeking answers to often the same questions. I was particularly struck by Aliyah’s post, “Sustaining Myself’ in which she contemplated the living systems within and outside of her body. She expressed how it is easy to feel disconnected from our bodies, and lose attention to what we nourish them with. The contemplative practices gave Aliyah the opportunity to grasp the many complex systems that we as consumers are so reliant on.

Deploying this type of holistic systems thinking that Aliyah described can help us tackle the fragile pillars that uphold our food systems and realize our purpose within them. I propose to Aliyah, as well as my other classmates, what leverage points will you choose to make change towards a sustainable food system, and what sector is important to you?

Reflecting on Aliyah’s question, “who am I?” I think of how being a farmer, I feel a deep connection to my body and food, and also a responsibility to practice what I speak. I am determined to run my own farm one day, but am daunted by the environmental degradation that has ensued as a result of unsustainable agricultural practices. Dwindling topsoil, diminished soil microbe diversity, domination of agribusinesses, and decreasing seed stocks are just a few of the challenges that small-scale farmers are facing (Little, 2009). One solution to our collapsing food system is nourishing and rebuilding soil composition. The complex system of microbes that make up soil is the foundation of food production, and holds many solutions to sequestering carbon, reducing pesticide use, and attaining food sovereignty. It is small solutions like soil that we need to focus on to solve the larger issues of the global food system. Realizing our personal connections to the food systems we are the beneficiaries of can make the daunting problems our generation will face seem more approachable. So, who are you in our interconnected world of complex systems?  

Soil at Plum Forest Farm, Vashon. Photo by me.

Squash seedlings breaking through the soil. The beginning of the food system! Photo by me.

-Reily S. 

Sources:

Edelman, Marc. “Critical Perspectives on Food Sovereignty.” Journal of Peasant Studies, Feb. 2017, doi:10.4324/9781315689562.

Johnson, Nathanael. “The Secret to Richer, Carbon-Capturing Soil? Treat Your Microbes Well.” Grist, Grist, 1 July 2014, grist.org/food/the-secret-to-richer-carbon-capturing-soil-treat-your-microbes-well/.

Johnson, Sandhya. “Thinking in Systems (Donella Meadows) Chapters 1 to 3.” LinkedIn SlideShare, 30 Dec. 2012, www.slideshare.net/sandhyajohnson/thinking-in-systems-donella-meadows-chapters-1-to-3.

Little, Amanda. “Cooking Oil.” Power Trip, Harper Academic, 2009.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/03066150.2014.963568?needAccess=true