Research

Funding Sources for Sustainable and Organic Agriculture — by Dan Anderson — last modified June 10, 2009 09:15 AM

Prepared June 12, 2009 for the Illinois Horticulture Soc Field Day

Draft Report from the Illinois Local and Organic Food and Farm Task Force — by Elise Benveniste — last modified December 08, 2008 11:58 AM

Dear Local Farm and Food Colleague - As promised a few weeks ago, attached is the Draft Report from the Illinois Local and Organic Food and Farm Task Force. This is only the body of the report (no appendices) and is 33 pages long. We hope that you will have time to review it, to respond to the questions (attached), and to return your comments to us no later than Friday, December 12, 2008. We apologize for the short review period, but the process is taking longer than thought and our work must be completed shortly to meet the Illinois Department of Agriculture's and next year's legislative deadlines. Send your comments to: Debbie Hillman and Jim Braun DLHillman@sbcglobal.net jbraun2525@yahoo.com This has been a two-year process begun October 2006 when State Rep. Julie Hamos agreed to write a piece of legislation to reflect the broad interests of Illinois' local farm and food movement. HB1300, the Illinois Food, Farms, and Jobs Act, was entered into the General Assembly in February 2007 and was passed unanimously that June. We have attached the complete bill (2 pages only) so you can frame your comments within that context if that is helpful. The Task Force was appointed by the Governor in December 2007 and has been meeting since January 30, 2008. Our goal is to present the General Assembly policy and funding recommendations that will actually jump-start a fully-functioning Illinois farm and food system. The Report provides the background for the Recommendations. Once the report is complete, Rep. Hamos will draft legislation for next year's General Assembly to, hopefully, implement the Task Force recommendations in Section VII of the Report. If you wish to review any aspects of the Task Force process over the last 8 months, you can see the membership, meeting minutes, committee reports, etc., on the Illinois Department of Agriculture website. http://www.agr.state.il.us/marketing/Mkt_ILOFFTaskForce.html This request for input is going out to over 50 people nationwide representing a diversity of cultures. We will obviously not be able to include all suggestions but solicit your input because we respect your expertise and experience. This is hopefully just the beginning of a much greater on-going process. Thank you for your help. If you have questions, please feel free to contact us. Debbie and Jim Debbie Hillman and Jim Braun, Coordinators Illinois Local & Organic Food & Farm Task Force DLHILLMAN@sbcglobal.net 847/328-7175 JBraun2525@yahoo.com 515/229-2679

Our Chicago Community Gardens Research — by Laura Witzling — last modified May 25, 2009 05:57 PM

USQI is part of two ongoing studies. One is a study of soil quality in 10 different community gardens in Chicago. The other study is about how people learn about gardening, and what type of resources best serve them. These projects are my (Laura Witzling) masters research and are being carried out at the U of I. Michelle Wander is my advisor in the Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences Department. We are also working with Illinois Cooperative Extension agent Ellen Phillips. You can read the abstracts of our projects below or check out our newsletter (linked below) which explains some of our research and results.

Consumer Interest in Food Systems Topics: Implications for Educators — by Jan Perez and Phil Howard — last modified June 20, 2008 02:10 PM

Abstract: To assist consumers in understanding food system issues and to help them make informed choices, educators first need to engage their interests. To identify widely held consumer interests, focus groups informed a random sample survey conducted in the Central Coast region of California. Survey respondents reported the most interest in the safety and nutrition of their food, as well as in the external impacts of how their food was produced. Correlational analysis was used to explore characteristics and behaviors associated with these interests. The results offer strategies for public issues educators to target or structure food system related education initiatives.

"Warrior, Builder, and Weaver Work," — by Elise Benveniste — last modified June 20, 2008 02:36 PM

G. W. Stevenson et al. have developed an analytical framework for interpreting food systems change as a social movement. This framework focuses on the strategic orientation of change activities, and their organization into three types: warrior, builder, and weaver. These three types reflect differences in framing processes, mobilizing structures, and perceived policital opportunities. Warrior work is the conscious resistance to the modern agrifood system. It is political because it seeks to change the attitudes and beliefs of society through legislative reform, public protest, research and analysis, and via boycotts. Builder work reflects the "reconstruction orientation to change. " It is the work of local food system entrepreneurship; supporting alternative agriculture, parallel markets, and distribution demands. Weaver work is movement building through outreach and organizing, creating linkages between builder, warrior work, and civil society. The authors argue that each of these change orientations require compelling narrative frames, and that weaver work especially must engage in coalition building, with each other, but also with other change communities in order to increase the potential for creating significant change. G. W. Stevenson et al., "Warrior Builder, and Weaver Work," in Remaking the North American Food Syste, ed. C. Clare Hinrichs and Thomas A. Lyson (Lincoln, NE: UNiversity of Nebraska Press, 2008).

Building Local Food Systems in Central Illinois — by Sagra — last modified June 20, 2008 02:33 PM

Research and outreach for stronger local food systems