2023 SCHEDULE
Tuesday, November 28, 2023, 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Harding House Brewing Company, 904 51st Ave N, Nashville, TN 37209
*Pre-Conference Activity
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Kick off summit week at Harding House Brewing Company for networking, discounted beer made with local ingredients, and a panel discussion about the Farm to Tap initiative. Hear from local brewers, malters, yeast wranglers, and farmers about the ways they are working together to produce Tennessee beers.
Thursday, november 30, 2023, 3:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Comfort Suites 904 Murfreesboro Road, Lebanon, TN 37090
*This day is hosted by the Cumberland Seed Commons, and will exclusively focus on the ongoing work of building a regional seed commons. Everyone is welcome to join.
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Guided discussion will include review of mission, working group reports, assessment of structure, legal entity, committees, membership categories.
Moderated by Jim Embry of Sustainable Communities Network and Eleanor Lopez of Native American Indian Association of TN
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Discussion on further organizational development of Cumberland Seed Commons with a focus on committee assignments and future visioning. Evening will conclude with a screening of the short film “Seed Mother: Coming Home,” which honors the importance of seeds and the communities from which they originated.
Moderated by Jim Embry of Sustainable Communities Network and Eleanor Lopez of Native American Indian Association of TN
Friday, december 1, 2023, 8:00 am - 8:30 pm
Cumberland University Alumni Hall, 408 S Maple St, Lebanon, TN 37087
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Developing a Farm Business Plan
Rachel Painter, UT Extension Center for Profitable Agriculture
The Ohio Valley Grain Exchange
Lauren Brzozowski of University of Kentucky, Sarah Halcomb of Walnut Grove Farm, Kelsey Keener of Sequatchie Cove Farm
Seeds for Community Resilience
Chris Smith of Utopian Seed Project, Megan Allen of Care of the Earth Community Farm, Susana Lein of Salamander Springs Farm; Moderated by Eleanor Lopez of Native American Indian Association of TN and Jim Embry of Sustainable Communities Network
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What is my pasture telling me? Eco-literacy and Soil Health Outcomes
Asher Wright, Caney Fork Farms
Funding Opportunities for Farmers
Trevor Hunt, Natural Resources Conservation Services, Will Freeman, USDA Rural Development
Seeds for Community Resilience Continued
Chris Smith of Utopian Seed Project, Amyrose Foll (joining virtually) Megan Allen of Care of the Earth Community Farm, Susana Lein of Salamander Springs Farm; Moderated by Eleanor Lopez of Native American Indian Association of TN and Jim Embry of Sustainable Communities Network
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Lunch prepared by the culinary team at Cumberland University using ingredients from Middle Tennessee farms.
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Presentation by Feather Smith, Ethnobiology Manager, Cherokee Nation
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Eryn Bell, UT Center of Farm Management
Lyndsey Paul, TN Department of Education, Samantha Goyret and Caroline Ideus, NW TN Local Food Network
Seed Saving, Storing and Cleaning
Feather Smith of Cherokee Nation, Chris Smith of Utopian Seed Project, Megan Allen of Care of the Earth Community Farm, Susana Lein of Salamander Springs Farm; Moderated by Eleanor Lopez of Native American Indian Association of TN and Jim Embry of Sustainable Communities Network
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How Policy Affects Food Access
Tammy Deiter, Second Harvest Food Bank, Kate Goodin and Crys Riles, TN Justice Center
Cultivating Community Engagement for Farm to School
Joel Tippens, City Farms Grower Coalition, Alex Scott, Vinebranch Fellowship, T.Marie King, Jones Valley Teaching Farm, Cari Chestnut, Farm2School Farmer-Educator, Moderated by Samantha Gotye, NW TN Local Food Network
The Future of the Cumberland Seed Commons
Feather Smith of Cherokee Nation, Chris Smith of Utopian Seed Project, Megan Allen of Care of the Earth Community Farm, Susana Lein of Salamander Springs Farm; Moderated by Eleanor Lopez of Native American Indian Association of TN and Jim Embry of Sustainable Communities Network
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Farm to table dinner prepared by the culinary team at Cumberland University using local ingredients from Middle Tennessee farms.
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Join us for dessert, The Phila Awards ceremony, and a keynote panel.
Keynote: Building A Seed Commons from an Indigenous People's Lens
As we move closer to developing a food sovereignty, and we become the caretakers of the seeds that provide us with food to nourish our physical bodies, let us "go back and fetch" the seed saving wisdom of the original inhabitants of Turtle Island. The "seed commons" of today can build on the millennia of passed down knowledge and wisdom of caring for and adapting seeds to our bioregion.
Panelists: Chris Smith, Utopian Seed Project, Megan Allen, Care of the Earth Community Farm, Susana Lein, Salamander Springs Farm
Moderators: Jim Embry, Sustainable Communities Network and Eleanor Lopez, Native American Indian Association of TN
Saturday, December 2, 2023 – 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Cumberland University Alumni Hall, 408 S Maple St, Lebanon, TN 37087
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Breakfast prepared by the culinary team at Cumberland University using ingredients from Middle Tennessee farms.
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Water Management for Row Crops and Market Gardens
Tea Jay, Vuck Farms
T. Marie King, Jones Valley Teaching Farm
Rooted East Knoxville & The Art of Ujima: Collective Work & Responsibility
Femeika Elliott, Laila Malik, Thomas Ruggles, Kalil White of Rooted East
Kev Cans: A County Cannery & Apple Pie Filling
Kevin Treadway, UT Extension
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Food Justice, Coalition Building, & Community Gardens in Nashville
Adria Osborne, Arianna Nimocks, The Nashville Food Project, Cecelie Elise of Society of Saint Andrew
The Impact of Food Education: Lessons from the Farm
Dr. Petra Leonard, Jones Valley Teaching Farm
Being a Grower, Made Me An Artist
R’Yana Michele, Water Bear Cooperative Land Project
Cooking demo by Loraine Lippolis, Allora Home Cooking
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Lunch prepared by the culinary team at Cumberland University using ingredients from Middle Tennessee farms.
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A moderated panel discussion about the history and foundational values of cooperatives and collective organizing. Panelists will draw from both their professional and personal experiences working in grassroots organizing and the formation of cooperatives in the Southeast and beyond.
Panelists: Terence Courtney of Federation of Southern Cooperatives, Vanessa Paz of Nashville Foodscapes, and Olivia Cleveland, Southeast Farmer Organizer; Moderated by Rosemarie Rieger of Southeast Center for Cooperative Development
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Accept and Double SNAP at Farmers Markets
Heather Hoch and Yolanda Manning, Nashville Farmers Market, Lisa Roach, Market Link, Ericka Raml, Fair Food Network, Nikkole Turner, TSU Cooperative Extension
We are Better Together: A Look at Communal Agrarian Organizing and Popular Education
Olivia Cleveland, Southeast Farmer Organizer and Nathaniel Bankhead, Wild Violet Permaculture
EJIDOS: A Mexican Case Study for Communal Land Reform
Vanessa Paz, Nashville Foodscapes
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Lessons Learned: Building a Residential Food Scraps Pickup Program
Jenn Harrman, Allie Omens, Simone Chhut of Metro Nashville Waste Services
Mapping a 2024 Policy Plan with TN Food & Farming Alliance
Rebecca Boynton, TN Food & Farming Alliance
Roundtable: Perspectives on Starting a Cooperative Business in TN
Jameson Parker, Moonlight Collective, R’yana Michele, Water Bear Cooperative Land Project, William Crenshaw, Nashville Food Coop, Lexy Close, Appalachian Producers Coop; moderated by Jackson Rolette, The Collaborative Farming Podcast. This session will be recorded as a live podcast episode!
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Bring your favorite heirloom seeds to share for our second annual seed swap. Everyone is welcome to participate regardless of if you bring seeds or not!
Hors d'oeuvres and beverages will be provided.
Sunday, December 3, 2023 – 9:15 am - 11:30 am
Caney Fork Farms, Carthage, TN
*Meet to carpool: Cumberland University Alumni Hall, 408 S Maple St, Lebanon, TN 37087
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Meet to CARPOOL at Cumberland University Alumni Hall, 408 S Maple St, Lebanon, TN 37087. We will be driving to Carthage, TN, about 30 minutes east of Lebanon, TN.
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Tour Caney Fork Farms with Vegetable & Agroforestry Manager, Alec Higgins.
This is a walking tour of up to 1/2 mile. Tour is rain or shine and distance of walk will be weather dependant.
**Biosecurity Alert** For those that are animal farmers please do not wear work or chore boots from your farm. Thank you for adhering to this biosecurity policy!
ABOUT THE FARM:
Caney Fork Farms uses carbon farming practices to provide healthy, affordable food that prioritizes people and planet. Their mission is to inspire others with living proof that carbon farming benefits farmers, the community, and the environment. Our Fruit and Vegetables are organically grown. We have a year-round grass-fed meat CSA with drop sites in Nashville, Carthage, Granville and Lebanon, TN.
farmers, the community, and the environment.
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Presenters
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Session descriptions
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Kids Activities