The Local Food Forum invites people from the Rhode Island region together to discuss local, sustainable agriculture and its relationship to improved community food security. The Local Food Forum will highlight efforts taking place to support local agriculture.

The workshops are designed to appeal to a broad array of students, professors, community members, food activists, government officials, business owners and farmers. Workshop topics range from Fair Trade coffee to Urban Agriculture in Providence.

The Local Food Forum will be a place to brainstorm next steps for creating a vibrant local food economy. Community Harvest, a program of Brown Dining Services that builds direct purchasing relationships with local farmers, will be presented as a model of institutional food purchasing. A goal of The Local Food Forum is then to brainstorm ways to expand this "Buy Local" program to other food service providers in the region.

Brown Dining Services is hosting the Local Food Forum in conjunction with Farm Fresh Rhode Island (a program collaboration between Brown University, The Rhode Island Foundation and Divisions of Agriculture and Planning and Development at R.I. Department of Environmental Management). The Local Food Forum coincides with an International Trade Justice Week at Brown to emphasize the purchase of locally grown foods as a form of trade justice.

Anna Lappé, co-author of Hope's Edge and co-founder of the Small Planet Institute, will speak at Friday's morning events.

Getting here : All events will be on Brown University’s campus in Providence. The campus is accessible by car, RIPTA / Greyhound / Bonanza bus, and Amtrak / MBTA train: directions and campus map

Registration: All workshops and talks are free and open to the public, unless otherwise noted with an asterik (*). For more information or to propose a new panel, e-mail localbeets@brown.edu.
Wednesday, April 13, 2005: Meet Local Meat

• Chef to Chef: Increasing Locally Grown at Regional Restaurants 10-12p Faculty Club (map)
  Join fellow chefs from the Rhode Island regional to discuss the use of locally grown foods in restaurant kitchens. This roundtable will be used to inspire and enable more restaurants to buy more product from local producers. Hear from Casey Riley of Castle Hill Inn in Newport, R.I. why using locally grown foods is a smart move. Learn how to best publicize your restaurant's efforts with www.farmfreshri.org. All chefs are invited. Farmers welcome. To RSVP, e-mail: Lisa_Sargent@brown.edu.


• Seafood: What Swims in the Local Sea? 12-1p Chancellor's Dining Room, Sharpe Refectory (map)
  Brown-bag discussion of the regional fishing industry. Did you know Brown Dining buys from fishermen in Galilee? What are the environmental consequences of eating different types of fish? Which fish are best to eat? Should you be scared about mercury? Hear the latest scoop from fisherman and seafood activists alike.


• Barley, Hops and Local Brew 5-6:30p Blue Room, Faunce House (map)
  Join the Brewmaster from Trinity Brewhouse in downcity Providence for the 101 on brewing artisan beer. Learn why brewing in small batches produces so much flavor. Hear the ups and downs of being a small scale local producer. This talk will include samples so bring your tastebuds!


• The Buzz on Local Beef 7-9p Chancellor's Dining Room, Sharpe Refectory (map)
  Raising meat locally isn't easy or cheap. But it makes sense in terms of environmental wellbeing and animal welfare. More, raising grassfed beef is a tool for open space preservation. Increase your understanding of regional meat production and how it relates to large-scale factory farming. Includes a presentation by Don and Heather Minto from Watson Farm in Jamestown, R.I.

Thursday, April 14, 2005: Global Exchange, Local Impact

• Local Breakfast 7-10a Sharpe Refectory (map)
  Wake up to the bounty of Rhode Island. Find Rhody Fresh Milk and local eggs in the Refectory Dining Hall between 7 and 10. Enjoy the flavor of real Rhode Island Honey in your oatmeal or sun-ripened jams from Cory's Kitchen in Portsmouth, R.I. on your toast. Local Breakfast on Thursday is an on-going event. Cost: $6.50 for non-meal plan attendees.


• Coffee Trails: Photo Journey of a Nicaraguan Coffee Cooperative 12-1p Salomon 203 (map)
  Join Blue Room Manager Leanne Evangelist as she shares the story of a recent trip to a coffee cooperative in Nicargua. Hear how meeting the people who make America's morning brew changed her life. Learn ways you can encourage the presence of Fair Trade Products on campus or how you can volunteer with Equal Exchange, the non-profit which helped fund her trip.


• Healing with Wholesome Foods 2-4p Sarah Doyle Women's Center (map)
  Explore the connection between health and diet in a roundtable discussion lead by members of the Brown community. Learn what it means to choose organic, to be vegetarian, to deal with the daily stresses of life through healthy eating habits. Led by Bridget Visconti, Nutritionist for Brown Dining Services, Patti Caton and Betsy Barlow of Environmental Studies, Victoria Smith, Yoga Teacher and Senior Lecturer in Hispanic Studies as well as staff from Health Services.


• Growing Organic 4-5:30p Barus and Holley 161 (map)
  Join Matt Green from the Rhode Island Division of Agriculture and the URI-based Rhode Island Master Gardeners Association for a quick course on organic farming and gardening. Learn the organic certification process for Rhode Island farmers. Hear from a regional organic grower about the challenges and the paybacks of growing organically.


• Raising the Bar on Chocolate 6-8p Chancellor's Dining Room, Sharpe Refectory (map)
  Discover how a chocolate bar is produced from chocolate connoisseur and ethnobotanist Amy Lerner. Follow her on a photo journey to a cacao plantation in Venezuela. Taste your way through the history of one of the world's most famous flavors. A discussion of Fair Trade chocolate and its impact on global trade will follow, lead by members of the Hourglass Cafe.

Friday, April 15, 2005: Local Peas for Social Justice

• Meeting for Food Service Directors 10-12p Chancellor's Dining Room, Sharpe Refectory (map)
  Join Peter Rossi and Virginia Dunleavy from Brown Dining Services for a roundtable on what it means to set locally grown as a core value. Hear Anna Lappé, author of Hope's Edge, speak on the importance of connecting schools with regional farms. Learn from a Rhode Island school district that has set up a local apple program. We will discuss benefits, barriers, and strategies for buying locally grown. Lunch will be served at 12 p.m. for all attendants. Roundtable is invite only. To RSVP, e-mail: Lisa_Sargent@brown.edu.


• Expanding Access to Nutritious Foods 11-1p Brown Hillel (map)
  Farmers' Markets, WIC Programs, Senior Farmers' Market checks: How are low-income members of our community connecting with local and organic foods? Learn from students and community organizers (including program coordinators at Southside Community Land Trust in South Providence and Gaining Ground in Massachusetts) about efforts taking place to increase access to fresh, healthy and locally grown foods. Hear Anna Lappé, author of Hope's Edge, speak on food as a medium for social change.


• Rhody Fresh Dairy Cooperative 3-4:30p Smith-Buonanno 101 (map)
  Because local milk tastes better! Hear from the farmers who saved their livelihoods by walking to the edge. Jim Heinz and Louis Escobar will tell the story of how they have kept local dairying alive through creating the Rhody Fresh dairy label. Learn what you can do to support the cooperative. Learn how Brown Dining is lending a hand.


• A Taste of Place: The Influence of Environment in Local Wine Making 5-6:30p Chancellor's Dining Room, Sharpe Refectory (map)
  Join Newport Vineyards of Middletown, R.I. for an enchanting workshop on local winemaking. Learn how soil, sunshine and other environmental factors make Rhode Island wines delicious and unique. Join us as we sample the fermented sunshine of Rhode Island.

Saturday, April 16, 2005: Locally Grown Food: Growing the Growers

• Racking It In: How to Sell More at Farmers' Markets! 10-11a Urban Environmental Lab (map)
  Take home a list of concrete ideas on how to improve your sales at a farmers' market or roadside stand. Tips are gathered from the North American Farmers' Direct Marketing Association. Workshop will include information on ordering tents, stickers, labels, bins, lights, tablecloths and other useful assessories.


• Greens and the City: Urban Greens Cooperative Market 10-11a Dining Room 6, Sharpe Refectory (map)
  Want to learn how Providence residents are setting up a food buying cooperative? Join Brown alums for an overview of the Urban Greens Cooperative Market in Providence. Learn what UG's next steps are for developing a retail location and learn how you can get involved.


• Farmers' Forum 11-12:30p Annex, Sharpe Refectory (map)
  Roundtable will bring farmers from across the region (RI, CT, MA) together to discuss ideas about direct marketing. This workshop will include an introduction to farmfreshri.org, the web-based clearinghouse for locally grown foods in the Rhode Island region. Meeting will allow farmers and other stakeholders to exchange ideas on how to keep production in line with demand.


• Feed the Hungry 11-12:30p Ivy Room, Sharpe Refectory (map)
  Did you know 30,000 children in Rhode Island are food-insecure? In what ways does Brown Dining direct unused food to places where it is needed? Learn from student activists, members of the Rhode Island Food Bank, Chefs at Brown Dining and workers at St. Anthony's Fire, a local food pantry, what hunger is and what there is to do about it.


• Meet and Greet Your Local Farmer! 12:30-2p Annex, Sharpe Refectory (map)
  Meet the person who grew your salad! Learn how to prune an apple tree! Start a strawberry bed! Want to help out at a Farmers' Market over the summer? Become a farm apprentice! This Meet and Greet is for students, community members, Brown Dining employees, restaurateurs and anyone interested in finding out more about getting involved with local agriculture. All are invited, especially farmers. Refreshments will be served.


• Pollen to Propolis: Learn How Local Bees Sweeten Our Lives! 2-4p Urban Environmental Lab (map)
  Join Lloyd Marker, local beekeeper and firefighter, for a 2 hour class on beekeeping. Learn why we need bees, how bees make honey and what local honey production entails. Class will include a honey tasting! Life couldn't bee sweeter!