California Food & Justice Coalition

:: October 2010 Newsletter ::

IN THIS ISSUE:

:: CFJC News

:: Grants & Funding Opportunities

:: Events and Announcements
:: In the News
:: Action Alerts
:: Resources
:: Jobs, Internships & Opportunities

____________________________________________________________
CFJC News

Executive Director Message

:: It is November, and a day before the mid term elections. This

“special” edition of the CFJC October newsletter is going out a
day before the election to remind you that participation in the
electoral process is a critical piece of the reconstruction process
of a broken food system.

• Vote “NO” on California Proposition 23

• Vote “NO” on California Proposition 26

but most importantly, get out and vote to make your voice heard.
In the world in which we now live the work of re-creating a just,
sustainable, and equitable food system requires the participation
of each and every one of us every day. Yes, it’s come to that.

Left unanswered, and particularly if they prevail in this and

forthcoming elections, business interests with enormous budgets
whose sole purpose is to squeeze financial profit from our food
system at any cost, are attempting to institutionalize a system that
marginalizes health, squanders natural resources, sequesters
wealth into the hands of a class that represents less than 5% of our
population, and leaves the rest of us squabbling for leftover
crumbs.

The cold sober fact is that these business interests are taking this
approach for a very logical reason—because the approach has
served them well so far.

Besides encouraging California residents to vote in their own self

interests, the approach CFJC is taking in response is to partner
with health, labor, business, agricultural, environmental,
community and other organizations to define, promote and
support a food system that works for people. To be clear:

It is our members and member groups who determine what works

best for their community(s). It is CFJC’s job to support those efforts
and “connect the dots” to similar efforts in other parts of the state
as a means of building community support, and to connect local
efforts to federal public policy across the country.

It is for that reason that CFJC has joined a national coalition to

work on the Farm Bill 2012 reauthorization process, the make sure
that national policy is responsive to the needs and concerns of
California communities.

The work of fixing a broken food system will take years to effect.
The Farm Bill 2012 reauthorization process provides a means to
engage a wide variety of sectors, stakeholders and individuals in
the effort.
In addition to any immediate victories, an important aspect of the
November election and policy discussions is the opportunity to
see how they relate to members’ day to day needs. At CFJC we
believe the most effective tool we can bring to the effort is
transparency.

We are therefore actively pursuing funding to hold our traditional

“meetups” in communities around the state to learn more about
what communities are doing, want to do, and need in the way of
resources to survive in a difficult economic environment and
beyond.

We also ask that you send/share with CFJC your video links,
pictures, blog and other postings, so that we can post them on
our website and include them on our social network platforms
over the course of the coming month.

In particular, we want to hear, see and share what you think

about:

• Food Justice

• Food Sovereignty

• Local Best Practices—what’s working for your community

Thank you for your commitment to a food system that works for us
all.

Armando

CFJC Member’s Public Policy Call

:: This month’s CFJC public policy webinar/call hosted by the

Public Health Institute’s Dialogue4Health Web Platform will focus
on what the outcome of the November elections means for work
on Farm Bill 2012. Scheduled for Tuesday, November 16th at 9:00
am PT, details and reminders for webinar registration will be
emailed over the next two of weeks.
(For copies of previous meetings’ notes please send your request
to yanieto@cafoodjustice.org.)

________________________________________________________________
___________________
Grants & Funding Opportunities

Upcoming deadlines in November include:

:: Community Food Projects (CFP)—Competitive Grants Program

guidelines are available with a filing deadline of November 17,
2010. The RFA for this USDA funding opportunity for NGOs clearly
articulates eligibility online.

:: Peoples Garden School Pilot Project guidelines available for

2010. One organization will be selected for a cooperative effort
funded by a $1 million grant award from the USDA Food and
Nutrition Service. Completed applications are due by November
8, 2010.

:: Healthy Food Financing Initiative due November 19th. $25

million available for the Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI)
within the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI)
Program for the FY 2011 funding round. Learn more about how to
apply for these funds here.

New Funding Opportunities include:

Request for Proposals for the 2010 Sustainable Agriculture and

Food Systems Competitive Grants Program has $200,000 available
for California programs. Proposals due December 13, 2010.

Beginning Farmer Funding opportunities due December 22, 2010.

The recipient must be a collaborative, State, tribal, local, or
regionally-based network or partnership of public or private
entities. Please refer to Part III of the current BFRDP Request for
Applications for complete eligibility requirements.

Recipes for Healthy Kids Challenge due December 30th. The USDA
is offering cash prizes for winning student teams who submit
original recipes that meet the whole grain foods, dark green
and/or orange vegetables, and dry beans and peas (legumes)
nutrition requirements for school meals.

________________________________________________________________
___________________
Events and Announcements

:: The Ecology Center is holding the Berkeley Green Gathering on

November 6th. This inspiring event features a variety of local
projects pushing toward a future of environmental sustainability
and economic vitality. Come network, cross-pollinate, meet
people who are making great ideas happen and hear keynote
speaker, writer and environmentalist Bill McKibben. To learn more
visit www.ecologycenter.org/gg

:: CFJC has partnered with the Ecology Center to distribute free

San Francisco Green Festival (November 6th & 7th) passes to CFJC
members. Stop by the Ecology Center Store at 2530 San Pablo
Avenue in Berkeley, Tuesday-Friday, from 11:00 am-6:00 pm and
ask for your Green Festival pass at the Store counter.

:: Food Justice Panel with CFJC at the San Francisco Green

Festival November 6th at 4:30 pm, featuring Navina Khanna from
Live Real, Mark Schlosberg from Food & Water Watch, Damar
Luce from Just Harvest USA, and Y. Armando Nieto, CFJC.

:: Farm Bill Webinar November 2, 2010. Part of the Healthy Foods,

Healthy Farm series, this webinar will examine the parallels
between health reform and the Farm Bill 2012 reauthorization.

:: Aura Omelet: A Feast of Universal Vibrations speaker at Pitzer

College, Claremont, November 5th, 4:00 pm, Founder’s Room
McConnell, Pitzer College, 1050 N. Mills Ave Claremont, CA 91711.

:: World Town Planning Conference November 6-8, 2010. All

sessions are virtual (via the internet) and no travel is required to
attend. “There is more than enough food on the planet to feed all
its inhabitants, yet the distribution of food and availability of
healthy food is uneven.”
:: New Leaders in the Food Movement , NESAWG conference in
Albany, NY, November 12-13, 2010, 12:30 – 4:30 pm. Leaders:
Diego Angarita-Horowitz, Nuestras Raices; Amanda Beal, Eat
Local Foods Coalition of Maine; Emily Sandusky, Karp Resources;
David Schwartz, RealFood Challenge.

:: Black Farmers & Urban Gardners Conference November 19-21,

2010 is soliciting workshop presenters for the Brooklyn, NY event.

:: Bay Area Rainwater Workshops November 6th and November

14th . Learn how to harvest rainwater, and install a system in your
backyard or community garden.

:: Young Farmer’s Conference in Tarrytown, New York, December

2-3. Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture presents its third
annual Young Farmers Conference (YFC): Reviving the Culture of
Agriculture, a program especially for young and new farmers.

:: 25th Anniversary Sustainable Ag Conference, CFSA, in Winston-

Salem, NC, December 3-5, 2010. The conference features over 60
workshops, tours and panels on local/organic food, farming,
gardening and scaling up, plus locally-sourced meals.

________________________________________________________________________
_______
In the News

October sampling of what is in the news:

:: Inspiring piece on effort launched October 6th by traveling

youth brigade. Generation Organic sets off on a two and a half
week trek promoting the theme, “Who’s Your Farmer? Own Your
Food, Drive Your Future!”

:: Just Food and an alliance of local horticultural and food justice

organizations are pleased to announce the official launch of
Farm School NYC: The New York City School of Urban Agriculture

:: Refugee Gardens grow in east Oakland.

:: Testing “taste” in school classrooms as a means of leading
children to better eating habits.

:: Native Americans settle lawsuit. The Obama administration

announced a $760 million settlement to resolve charges by
thousands of Native American farmers and ranchers who say that
for decades the Agriculture Department discriminated against
them in loan programs.

:: 5th graders from Elysian Charter School created this video

highlighting how they turn in their Halloween candy for fruit to
create a smoothie that they make with the 'Purple Pedal Power
Berry Bicycle Blender.'

________________________________________________________________
________________
Action Alerts

:: It’s all about voting—make democracy work for us all, and

exercise your right to vote November 2nd.

:: Vote “NO” on California Proposition 23, and keep provisions of

California’s landmark 2006 Global Warming Solutions Act in effect
as a critical piece of fixing our food system.

:: Vote “NO” on California Proposition 26, so that corporations

and their war chests don’t decide how we provide essential
services for our communities.

________________________________________________________________
________________
Resources

:: Check out this interactive piece from the New York Times on
some things to consider in a redesign of school lunch lines.

:: Thoughtful piece cites West Oakland and Walmart-ization of the

food system.
:: Chapter on Food Policy Councils sheds light on why they are
gaining in popularity in communities across the continent,
courtesy of Wayne Roberts.

:: Fun video of CFSC attendees parading through the streets of

New Orleans during a break in workshops and plenary speeches.

________________________________________________________________________
_________

Jobs, Internships & Opportunities

California

:: San Francisco Southeast Food Systems Coordinator position

open with Department of Health. Submit resume and cover letter
to Christina Goette and Susana Hennessey Lavery, San Francisco
Department of Public Health, Community Health Promotion &
Prev. Branch, 30 Van Ness, #2300, San Francisco, California 94102

:: Food System Change Agent position available. Collective

Roots, a food justice non-profit in East Palo Alto, CA (in the SF bay
area) is seeking to hire a full-time Americorps member. If
interested, please send a resume and cover letter to
nicole@collectiveroots.org.

:: Recruiting Two (2) full-time Regional Coordinators; one to be

based in the main office in Sebastopol, Sonoma County and the
second in the Modesto/Merced area. For more information or to
submit a cover letter & resume, please contact Bruce Shimizu,
California FarmLink at bruce@californiafarmlink.org

:: Occidental College Assistant Professor position open in Urban &

Environmental Policy program. Send a cover letter, current
curriculum vitae, samples of scholarly or creative work and three
letters of recommendation to Professor Peter
Dreier before November 17, 2010.

:: Olive Mill Assistant and driver position open in Davis. The first
mobile olive mill in North America is looking for a temporary
employee. Send cover letter and resume to
olive2bottle@gmail.com.

:: Urban Sprouts Garden Educator position available in San

Francisco. To Apply send a resume and cover letter via email to
Audrey Roderick at hiring@urbansprouts .org. For more
information, visit www.urbansprouts.org.

Job Opportunities Outside California

:: Tenure-track, associate/tenured full professor position at the

University of Vermont (UVM) within the Department of Community
Development and Applied Economics (CDAE) with expertise in
Community Development and Food Systems open until filled.
Applications will be reviewed beginning December 1, 2010. The
successful candidate is expected to start in the fall of 2011.

:: Agricultural Program Coordinator to manage community

garden, beginning farmer and innovative local food initiatives
with new Americans in Worcester, MA. Competitive salary and full
benefits for this full time, year-round position based in the Lutheran
Social Services Worcester office. Send cover letter and resume to
Shemariah Blum-Evitts, Program Coordinator, at sblum@lssne.org
or 593 Main Street, West Springfield, MA 01089. For more on LSS
visit www.lssne.org.

:: General Manager position with the French Broad Food Coop

now available in Asheville, NC. For more information and to apply
visit the FBFC website.

******************************
******************

Did you get this message forwarded to you?

email cfjc-subscribe@lists.riseup.net to join our list and receive
our alerts and monthly e-newsletter directly

Want to be removed? email: cfjc-unsubscribe@lists.riseup.net

The California Food and Justice Coalition is a statewide
membership coalition working to ensure
the basic human right to healthy food while advancing social,
agricultural and environmental justice.
We collaborate with community-based efforts in California
working to create a socially just, ecologically
and economically sustainable food supply. We envision a
California food system in which all activities,
from farm to table, are equitable, healthful, regenerative, and
community-driven.

California Food and Justice Coalition

2530 San Pablo Avenue, Suite F, Berkeley, CA 94702
Phone: 510-704-0245
FAX: 510-548-8896
http://www.CAFoodJustice.org <http://www.cafoodjustice.org/>
<http://www.cafoodjustice.org/>
email: info@CAFoodJustice.org

CFJC is a fiscally-sponsored project of the Ecology Center.