Episode 5: ‘Food as Commons’: bridging the rural-urban divide through collective ownership and action Artwork

Fair Food Futures

The Fair Food Futures podcast explores the stories and visions for change put forth by community food networks in Australia as they seek to progress transformations towards sustainable food futures, and identifies the strategies, challenges and opportunities for making civil society’s visions for fair food futures come to life. Our main questions were: what does it mean to do ‘food justice’ in Australia? What does your fair food future look like, and how do we get there? With these questions in mind, we listened to stories from leaders of grassroots food organisations, community workers, farmers, First Nations communities, activists, consumers, academics and global policy makers. By bringing these voices together, the Fair Food Futures podcast aims to create a space for dialogue and alliance building between members of civic food networks in Australia, and contribute to ongoing conversations about the opportunities and challenges for policy change. Fair Food Futures is based on research conducted at The University of Queensland and funded by the Australian Research Council, in collaboration with civic food networks in Australia. The Fair Food Futures Podcast is produced and facilitated by Dr Kiah Smith, Dr Daniel Cruz, and Joanna Horton, from the School of Social Science at The University of Queensland. It was made possible thanks to the support of the Future Earth's Pathways Communication Grants Program. Recorded at VMP Studio by Liam Polmear & Ian Chapman. Illustrations by Brenna Quinlan. Audio sting by Charlie Mgee. Visit our website for more information: https://fairfoodfutures.com/

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Fair Food Futures

Episode 5: ‘Food as Commons’: bridging the rural-urban divide through collective ownership and action

November 20, 2022 • Dr Hope Foley, Andrew Ward, Joanna Horton, Dr Kiah Smith & Dr Daniel Cruz • Season 1 • Episode 5

This time, our food justice conversations welcome Dr Hope Foley from Growing Forward, and Andrew Ward from Regen Farmers Mutual, who share their ideas about understanding food and land as “commons”.

Hope explains Growing Forward’s approach to land sovereignty and common ownership, which reclaims unused public land to grow food to feed local communities, including refugees, all with the support of First Nations Elders. From the perspective of Regen Farmers Mutual, Andrew talks about their strategy to establish a mutual that enables farmers to assess the environmental assets of their farms, and their digital approach to assist farmers to directly participate in environmental markets. Our guests highlight the importance of ensuring that farmer’s data remain in their hands, and that land remains in the hands of First Nations communities.

As organisations well versed in the creation of mutual and cooperative associations, our guest speakers reflect on how to better bridge the rural-urban divide in the Australian food system. This requires fostering better connections between producers and consumers in both the city and the country, supported by food systems education initiatives and the establishment of alliances with various stakeholders across the food system.

This episode provides examples of the diversity of civic food initiatives in Australia, across a continuum between reformist, progressive and radical approaches, which complement one another to build fairer food systems in pursuit of the common good.

Important links:

More information about the Fair Food Futures Project and the scenarios for food justice HERE.

Growing Forward Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/GrowingForwardGardens/

ABC’s Gardening Australia “Guerilla Gardens” episode showcasing the work of Growing Forward

Regen Farmers Mutual

Landcare Australia

Holt-Giménez E, Shattuck A. (2011). Food crises, food regimes and food movements: rumblings of reform or tides of transformation? Journal of Peasant Studies 38(1): 109-144.

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The Fair Food Futures project is led by Dr Kiah Smith from The University of Queensland and funded by The Australian Research Council (DE190101126). This podcast is produced by Dr Kiah Smith, Dr Daniel Cruz, Joanna Horton and VMP Studio, and funded by the Future Earth's Pathways Initiative.

Visit our website at: https://fairfoodfutures.com/