Raj Patel, a noted expert in the world food system, delivered the keynote talk for an SCU event on decolonizing the food system to address intertwined problems of hunger, climate change, and racism. He diagnosed the ills of the current food system—citing COVID, climate change, conflict, colonialism, capitalism, and “craven stupidity”— and traced the consequences of the Russian wildfires in 2010, illustrating how agroecological science, indigenous communities, and social movements advancing food sovereignty are building powerful responses. Emily Schwing (Veggielution), Fernando Fernandez Leiva (La Mesa Verde), Paola Felix (Environmental Studies ‘22), and moderator Chris Bacon offered examples of community-based food justice responses to COVID and other challenges and responses from their perspectives as activists and researchers for local food justice. This event online and in-person drew over 110 participants, interested in taking the next steps in developing food justice. The Initiative co-sponsored this event with SCU’s Center for Arts and Humanities, and the Ignatian Center for Jesuit Education’s Bannan Forum.
You can read more about this event on the Center for Arts and Humanities website.