Food Systems Leadership Events

Position Open Till Filled

This Division supports the mission of ARC through management of economic development projects. Thisposition is responsible for providing strategic direction, operational management and personnelleadership of the Division. This position works collaboratively to plan, develop, execute and evaluateregional economic development strategies aligned with ARC’s priorities and strategic plan. The divisionis responsible for program grants management activities including coordination with State ARC Offices,other federal agencies, the Office of the Federal Co-Chair, and grantees. This position reports to theExecutive Director and manages a team of administrative and professional positions.

The Food System Fridays series for the near future focuses on policies, practices and people who can show us and help us learn about models of sustainable food systems and communities.

The Design Challenge offers $20,000 to an innovative solution to the social and health effects of COVID-19. We are looking for Made in Southwestern Ontario initiatives that are designed to support those most affected by COVID-19.  

Webinar talks about the impact of the meat industry.

Food supply chains have been upended around the country and the world. Value chain coordination is key to identifying and rearranging new surpluses and deficits to ensure people can access healthy food and businesses can continue to operate. How are food systems leaders employing the skills of value chain coordination to respond to the challenges and opportunities of this moment? Wallace Center will be joined by Hallie Casey from the Sustainable Food Center in Austin, TX, Molly Riordan from the City of Philadelphia’s Public Health Department, and A-dae Briones from the First Nations Development Institute who will share how they are adapting and responding to supply chain disruptions in their communities. We’ll also give you a chance to share how you’re working to realign supply and demand in your communities.  

Michigan Good Food Fund Peer-to-Peer for RestaurantsFocused on restaurants, the Michigan Good Food Fund team is hosting this webinar to help restauranteurs hear from their peers on topics including challenges, opportunities, and how others are pivoting to make it through Novel Coronavirus.

Share how COVID-19 has impacted your community and highlight how food and nutrition education organizations are responding.

A number of research efforts exist around the world to allow near-real-time monitoring of these and other risk factors that drive food crises. This work includes monitoring production-related information, climate and conflict data, price information, and other factors in order to identify the likelihood of acute food insecurity and help policy makers enact timely policy responses.

This webinar will highlight priority research and policy questions, identify gaps in existing monitoring efforts, and pinpoint opportunities for collaboration to inform policy.

• What have been the most critical advances on the remote measurement of productivity and other food crisis risk factors, and what advances do you see moving forward?
• What constraints exist and are likely to continue in the provision of near-real-time monitoring of food crises?
• What opportunities exist for collaboration among institutions and research groups?

Join this session geared toward small farm businesses.

At the University of Johannesburg, the Institute for the Future of Knowledge (IFK) is coming together with the Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study (JIAS) and the Library and Information Centre (LIC) to host a series of conversations about the world after COVID-19. The conversation series has been envisaged by the Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Prof Tshilidzi Marwala, and premised on the idea that much more of the future can be known than we commonly suppose, if only we take the time to think about it. This requires interaction between different areas of expertise, since the future is no more the domain of a single expertise than the present.

While COVID-19 has disrupted and exposed the vulnerability of large industrial meat processors, it has also highlighted new and longstanding challenges faced by small and mid-sized processors. Within this context, solutions are emerging that address the challenges in the short term and offer a path forward towards lasting change. Join Jessica Roosa from This Old Farm, Rebecca Thistlethwaite from Niche Meat Processor Assistance Network, and Kelly Nuckolls from National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition for a conversation to explore the impact that COVID-19 is having on small and medium sized meat processors, how they're adapting to these challenges, and the changes underway to alleviate pressure and long term to ensure lasting change.

Children in lockdown have been cut off not only from schools but also other community places and people that support their health, development, protection and well-being. As such, it’s important that they reopen as soon as the public health imperative allows. 

To facilitate the decision-making process around how schools and other child and youth serving spaces might safely reopen, Lisa Bender, UNICEF global expert on Education in Emergencies, will share the new Framework for Reopening Schools, jointly developed by UNESCO, UNICEF, WHO, the World Food Programme and the World Bank. This Framework is designed to be a flexible tool that can be adapted to community and jurisdictional contexts. We trust it will serve as a guiding tool in your planning or advocacy with governments in opening safe spaces for children, based on a robust assessment of the benefits and risks, and guided always by the best interest of the child. Participants are invited to share questions and their own ideas or strategies to reopen better, healthier, safer child and youth serving spaces, enabling children to learn and recover from the crisis.

COVID-19 has raised a lot of questions about our food system and its vulnerability.

Tonight, we'll try and answer some of those concerns with food experts.

While conventional markets for livestock have cooled as large processors slow down production or temporarily close, NY farms are faced with a unique opportunity to market meat directly to the consumer. This workshop is designed to equip the producer with clear and simple steps towards making bulk meat sales, such as quarters, halves, and mixed-cut bundles.

Shifting priorites, COVID-19 and the new face of sustainability

Social Finance: Ethical, Environmental, Everyone!  

Graham Saunders, in partnership with Roots to Harvest, the Sustainable Food Systems Lab and Lakehead University, are hosting an upcoming webinar to share gardening tips and tricks, Gardening in Our Short Growing Season, on Thursday, May 14, at 3 p.m.  

Are you shifting your farm business to a CSA model during the time of COVID-19? As you take advantage of surging customer demand for CSA, don't forget to pay attention to the legal issues. We'll cover the top things you need to do to make sure the law is on your side. Issues like insurance and liability, zoning, and customer sales can be handled easily, when you know how. Don't worry- it won't be boring and you'll walk away knowing exactly how to take action. Pick up resources and tips to make sure your CSA is resilient for the long haul. This webinar is taught by an experienced CSA farmer who has been there and knows how to help!

Poultry can be a low-cost enterprise for farms, which provides fresh eggs and meat for families and communities. Join this workshop for an introduction to egg safety, handling, packaging, and regulations. This is part of a poultry management webinar series.

Providing home delivery services is the ticket to increased sales for many farms as families restrict their shopping and restaurants remain slow. But, home delivery can introduce legal complications. As you invest in your success, attend this webinar to make sure you're building something that will last. This webinar will cover the additional legal concerns that arise, whether you are delivering your own farm products or whether you are working with your farmer and food-producing peers to create a whole-diet delivery service. From insurance to liability, licensing, employment law complications and zoning, we'll cover the top issues. And, we cover them in a way that makes sense and helps you take action right away.

In preparation of the webinar, we kindly ask you to fill out the following short survey: https://bit.ly/2VNxGFi
How are cities maintaining access to safe and nutritious food for vulnerable populations in times of Covid-19? The webinar, co-organised by FAO, UNEP, ICLEI, RUAF and Rikolto, will share insights from a worldwide survey by FAO and dive into the experience of 3 cities: New York City (USA), Kampala (Uganda) and Quito (Ecuador).

This webinar will provide an overview of the harmful impacts of our current labor system on food chain workers and then discuss possible policy opportunities to address those needs.  

Join this workshop for an overview of poultry processing options, considerations, and regulations. This is part of a poultry management webinar series.

Appuyer nos agriculteurs locaux en s'approvisionnant localement est plus que jamais d'actualité. Les mesures sanitaires à respecter en temps de pandémie posent toutefois de grands défis pour la mise en marché de proximité. Quelles sont les approches gagnantes à mettre en place pour assurer une mise en marché sécuritaire?

We pay for food in many ways, not just at the checkout. The true cost varies according to how the food is produced and how well or poorly it contributes to a healthy diet and equitable societies. The current pandemic is showing us how brittle our food supply chains can be. But there is scope to respond to the crisis through building more sustainable, equitable food systems with policies that support localized supply chains, creating circular economies that benefit people and the planet. True Cost Accounting in food and agriculture is a currently evolving way of seeking to make visible the true costs and benefits of different food production systems with implications for everyone.

This week, Children First Canada is hosting a webinar to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on children. The Hon. Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, and our founder and CEO, Sara Austin, will be available to answer your questions.

Food Policy Councils: Breakout Meeting for Food & COVID-19

*Once you register, you should receive an email titled "Food Policy Councils: Breakout Meeting for Food & COVID-19 Confirmation" with details for how to join online or by phone.

During this webinar we will explore how municipalities can use planning and policy tools to address major shocks to local food systems during emergencies such as pandemics and natural disasters. We will discuss how comprehensive plans and other local planning tools can prepare communities for these food access disruptions. We will also examine the policy actions that municipal policymakers can take to ensure their communities have adequate access to healthy food during emergencies and introduce the Healthy Food Policy Project’s Municipal COVID-19 Food Access Policy Index. Finally, we will invite attendees to share how they are using or are considering using planning and policy tools to address community food system issues in these pandemic times.