County Supervisor Nikiya Harris, Will Allen and retired alderman Don Richards hold up Allen’s new book entitled, ‘The Good Food Revolution: Growing Healthy Food, People, and Communities’. (Photo by Robert A. Bell)
Growing Power, its board, staff, volunteers and Founder/ CEO Will Allen were on hand at a press conference last week to announce the details including tracks and keynote speakers to be featured during the 2nd National-International Urban & Small Farm Conference, hosted by Growing Power. About 3,000 people are expected to attend the event, which will be held Sept. 7-9, 2012, at the Wisconsin State Fair Grounds.
Growing Power’s inaugural National-International Urban & Small Farm Conference in 2010 witnessed the coming together of various food system stakeholders from government, education, business, and health/medical, and agriculture, financial and community- based fields. Altogether, nearly 1,500 people shared ideas and information on how to improve our local, regional, and global food system. A special chef’s event brought together top chefs from around the region, including James Beard Award winning chef Adam Siegel.
This year’s conference will feature a diverse lineup of presentations, panel discussions, an expanded chef’s event, and speakers, including: Dr. Judith Palfrey, executive director of the Let’s Move! Childhood obesity initiative and Director of the Children’s International Pediatric Center; Dr. Gail Christopher, vice president for program strategy at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation; and Will Allen, founder and CEO of Growing Power, a MacArthur Fellow, and author of “The Good Food Revolution: Growing Healthy Food, People, and Communities.” Other key Foundation executives are expected to attend, along with researchers, government officials, educators, small business owners, chefs, nutritionists, child obesity experts, and others who are concerned with ensuring safe, affordable access to nutritious food for all communities.
Allen also signed copies of his recently published book entitled, ‘The Good Food Revolution: Growing Healthy Food, People and Communities’.