July 8, 2020
Announcing the 2020 NYS Farm to School Institute Participants
FINYS announces the selection of twelve schools to the 2020-2021 New York State Farm to School Institute, an intensive year-long program for New York schools to develop and grow their farm to school programs. Read more about the participating schools and what the Institute will look like this year here.
FINYS Statement of Solidarity & Resource List
In a previous email, we shared our Statement of Solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement and some resources to explore that articulate how racial injustice is present in our food system and the ways that we can begin to work to dismantle it. If you missed that email, you can read the full statement and resource list on our website here.
NSFN on White-Led Organizations: Actions Speak Louder than Words
In the aftermath of the modern-day lynching of George Floyd, many White-led organizations are talking about racial equity and the need to speak up and be an ally in the fight for racial justice. This is not enough; it is just the first step. Words do not achieve justice nor address the issue of systemic racism.
Sticking with words alone could be because organizations are merely speaking words – paying lip service to stand in solidarity with communities of color. Or it could be because White-led organizations don’t understand how to start actually dismantling the system. Every organization has to realize that the same way they build strategies to build their organization and achieve their vision, they have to build action plans with well-developed strategies to address systematic racism. Read more from Krystal Oriadha and Helen Dombalis of National Farm to School Network here.
Spring 2020 Edition of Rural Futures
The Legislative Commission on Rural Resources has released the Spring 2020 edition of their Rural Futures newsletter. This edition features our Growing Opportunity report and articles on how rural schools and the agriculture industry have adapted to COVID-19. Read it here.
Ashlea is the New York Program Assistant at American Farmland Trust. Ashlea provides direct support to Farm to Institution New York State, and AFT’s efforts to bring a new generation of farmers onto New York farmland with a focus on events, trainings, outreach, and communications. Before joining AFT, completed internships with the Wildlife Conservation Society Adirondack Program, iServe Mohawk Valley, the Colgate University Office of Sustainability and CCE Madison County. Ashlea holds a Bachelor of Arts from Colgate University in environmental studies and biology.