7. Videos, Reports, Curricula - Food Systems

Since forming in 2001 in partnership with a diverse steering committee , IRIS has led and contributed to many research, education, and community development projects aimed at fostering healthy landscapes and communities that can support a network of sustainable family farms. This collection includes some of the work IRIS has done to help strengthen food systems at state and regional scales including:

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2003 Washington Family Farm Summit

a two-day conference IRIS convened to examine the situation facing farms, farm families and rural communities. Attendees collectively envisioned a robust future for Washington family farms and identified strategies to realize that future. See speaker videos, summit proceedings, and white paper.

2007 Healthy Lands Initiative

a pilot project with the Washington Biodiversity Council that sought to develop a shared vision for how to integrate biodiversity conservation with economic and social needs to enhance the health and vitality of the region. See 16-minute Nature of North Central Washington video and Healthy Lands Initiative final report.

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2009 North Central Washington Regional Food System Assessment

a report designed to provide information about the direct market sector for use in building a common vision and informing near and longer-term actions in Chelan, Douglas, Grant and Okanogan counties. See the final report , appendices including literature review, agricultural census data , directory and the NCW Food Coalition brief.

2011 Foodways & Byways: The Story of Food in North Central Washington

a 40-minute video about wild and farmed food systems in our region also available in short segments for use in the classroom. See discussion guide and recommendations on how to structure food systems content for educational purposes.

2017 - present Washington Food Policy Forum

As a Forum member, IRIS is collaborating with the Washington State Conservation Commission, Washington Department of Agriculture, and many other organizations to recommend actions that will strengthen our food system ranging from food insecurity and farmland protection to removing market barriers, developing infrastructure, and addressing climate change.

See also

See Food Policy Forum checklist.

7.1. Using the Food Systems Collection

Food systems are broadly defined as the interconnected systems and processes that provide us with the nutrients we need to survive and thrive, i.e., plants, animals, fungi, bacteria, minerals, and clean water. For those who live close to the land and either gather or grow most of their food those systems – from wildlands to cultivated farms, orchards, and gardens – provide them with a direct link to what they need.

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But for most of us who buy the bulk of our food, the systems we depend upon include a complex web of interactions involving hundreds of people who work at harvesting, processing, packaging, distributing, marketing, and transporting food before we actually purchase, prepare and eat it.

We all eat – that is something we have in common no matter how we obtain our food. And we can all take steps to strengthen our food systems, both wild and farmed at family, community, regional and statewide levels. Some suggestions for how to create your own stewardship success by using the materials in this collection follow.

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7.1.1. Explore the natural diversity of your own foodshed

The success of our food systems depends upon the diversity of life that defines the region. For a brief introduction to this rich topic watch the Nature of North Central Washington video.

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Team up with a group of community members or students to gather information about your own town, watershed or county.

  • What is unique and special about the place where you live?

  • What plant communities or species characterize your home be it Grant County, Molson, or the Chumstick Valley?

  • What are some examples of how the people in your community are ensuring that those special plants and animals thrive into the future?

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See the Nature of North Central Washington Production Guide for a list of other questions you might ask the farmers, ranchers, scientists, and others you invite to share their knowledge. Use your discoveries to tell the story of your own community’s natural diversity through a slide show or video combined with music and art.

Another way to learn about the natural splendors of this place is to share an experience you had that made you stop, pay attention, and remember how you felt when you connected with a particular plant, animal or landscape. Times of deep connection that might only last a few seconds or minutes – connections that inspire wonder and respect for wildness.

As an example, read this essay by Neal Hedges about the capture of a spotted bat in Moses Coulee. Who do you know who has had an experience with wildlife, water, or other wonders of North Central Washington that you would like to help them share? Record an interview with that person or group, use it as the basis for an essay on the Thinking Like a Community blog, and share it so we can add it to the Gathering Our Voice collection.

Sharing Surprise with a Spotted Bat by Neal Hedges, Thinking Like a Community

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7.1.2. Learn more about our local food systems

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The video Foodways & Byways: The Story of Food in North Central Washington features people of Latino, Tribal, and European descent sharing stories of the past that can inform and inspire our future. It was created to “set the table” for discussions about the importance of local food and to provide historical context for taking action today. The video and discussion guide are designed for audiences from young adults to elders.

Watch the entire video or in a series of six segments produced for classroom use including:

  1. Introduction

  2. Growing, Harvesting and Processing

  3. Marketing and Distributing

  4. Preparing, Eating and Sharing

  5. Learning and Caring for the Land

  6. Hope for the Future

Share the video with your neighbors and friends who want to foster self-reliance around local food. Host a dinner party! Invite a farmer, forager, hunter, rancher, and other food craft people to come together for dinner and watch the video together.

See also

10 Reasons to Buy Your Food from Regional Family Farms

7.1.3. Create a lesson plan

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Create a classroom lesson plan for your own students or group to guide an exploration of the foodshed in your own town, valley or county. Search the category food systems in the Gathering Our Voice collection and then narrow the search to your particular place of interest.

View Foodways & Byways Foodshed Map

See also

See also the Foodways & Byways Rural Heritage Photo Collection for more images you can use to tell the story of historic foodways in North Central Washington. Primarily Washington is a program with the Washington State Library that provides examples of lesson plans and other resources.

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