Beginnings often come with feelings of both apprehension and adventure, don’t they? Some of us love the excitement of a new year, new job, new move and can stay focused on that exciting thrill of a new start! Others may be slower to leap forward, more hesitant to begin. I have been working for Wisconsin Farmers Union in my role with the Farm Climate Smart WI grant project for 12 months and as I reflect on the past year, I vividly continue to feel it all.
The last 12 months have given me so many new experiences, hundreds of great conversations, dozens of events, and countless meetings to guide my work. I feel more confident in my WFU boots and as an advocate of family agriculture in Northeast Wisconsin. However, there is still so much unknown. The work of transformative systems change is big. How can we acknowledge the proud agricultural past of this region while also aspiring to build new awareness, opportunities, and structures that focus on the future of agriculture and food systems?
When I look back on our year of work I sometimes feel frustrated because it can be hard to see the fruits of our labor. We are still building our program and we still get tripped up on words, systems, stereotypes, and overwhelm. There is so much to do and progress can seem slow. It’s easy to get lost in day-to-day work, but when I step back and appreciate the bigger picture of how far we’ve come, it’s hard not to be proud. The relationships that we’ve developed through this program are rich and when I look at the many photos from our year or remember the conversations I’ve had, I regain my passion and energy. In 2024 we gathered together, we ate, we learned, and we talked about agriculture, food systems, conservation efforts, and a future vision of this proud state.
The Garden, a Neenah urban farm, hosted the September conservation planning workshop. Chef and farmer, Toby Gable, provided an all-local lunch.
I’m pretty sure I will always feel that I have more work to do than hours in the day and that I am running at full speed, while also fearful I am not making enough of an impact. When working for sustainable systems change, it’s just par for the course. I think the key to lasting energy is to reflect far more often on all the good that we’ve accomplished. I will count that as a resolution for 2025 and I can’t wait to see what this year brings!
In this grant, we are focused on honest, deep conversations and relationships. This happens in a one-on-one format and also involves gathering of people together at events. There is magic in both. Despite a time of divisiveness and pervasive isolation, these spaces showed me that our communities remain filled with beautiful connection, genuine curiosity, a persistent hope, and good ol’ midwestern perseverance. And you know that the best way to gather, chat, and discover each other is to come together over food, right? The importance of food systems simply cannot be overstated.
In 2024 we hosted four events as part of the Farm Climate Smart WI project. In March we discussed the concept of climate smart agriculture in Oshkosh at a new retail food co-op. In June we brought women of all ages together in Green Bay to discuss our “why” for working in agriculture and to share our stories of resilience. Almost 50 farmers dug into the soil with us in September to learn more about soil health principles and observe the myriad of ways our family farms are innovating at the farm level to achieve conservation goals. November brought inclement weather to the Fox Valley and we had over 20 hardy individuals show up in Neenah to discuss conservation planning at the urban and small-scale. The room, the company, and the future was bright!
Whitefeather Organics in Custer hosted a soil carbon amendments field day in September. Attendees enjoyed wood-fired pizzas just steps away from where the produce was grown.
It was hard to plan these events. It was scary to decide our early topics. However, after this year of many personal and communal conversations, we are overflowing with ideas for the coming year! I think we will always worry that no one will come, a featured speaker will be sick, or the weather will be an obstacle. However, we are building confidence and trust in these communities while bringing forward topics from deep listening.
We have proven that the most important thing we need to do to create lasting systems change is to step into a community with two or forty-two people who are all brought together by love and stewardship of the land, our food system, and our region. I can’t wait to see you and break bread with you in 2025!
Erin is developing connections in Northeast Wisconsin through conversations, deep listening, and by engaging with farmers at events.
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