Vermont agriculture is big business, with production, processing and distribution annually generating $4 billion and 13 percent of all jobs. Farming requires a proper balance of such staples as sunshine and rain, fertile land and worker sweat.
“You’re immediately talking about climate, water, environmental sustainability and economic justice,” Alisa Gravitz, president and CEO of the nonprofit advocacy group Green America, said as the summit’s opening speaker. “If we can create a healthy food system for all, everything else will follow.”
Gravitz is one of nearly 250 people gathered at Brattleboro’s Latchis Theatre and nearby Marlboro College Graduate Center through Friday for the fifth annual summit that’s seeking, according to one presenter, “Sustainable, Local, Organic and Wise” solutions to worldwide problems.
Current headlines warn of a lack of water in California. Many know that 80 percent of that state’s supply is used for agriculture, but fewer understand that one-third of its energy goes into moving all those gallons.
“If you want system change, you have to go beyond the food you eat,” Gravitz said. “Energy, food and water — the problems are highly interconnected. The good news is the solutions are, too.”
A roster of local, state and national speakers went on to discuss ways to instigate improvements from the grassroots to the global level.
Dr. Michael Finkelstein, author of the book “Slow Medicine: Hope and Healing for Chronic Illness,” recalled working as a physician in New York when he diagnosed what’s ailing society.
“For a while I was happy writing prescriptions, then I saw people running around from place to place to everywhere but here,” he said. “We live in a world where so much is thrown at us.”
Finkelstein, who has studied with integrative medicine pioneer Andrew Weil, now helps people deal with not only their physical bodies but also their mental and emotional relationships with others, the natural world, community, work and the divine.
“We need to eat, but food by itself is not enough,” the doctor said. “There’s emotional and spiritual hunger. Mindful awareness and conscious living will fulfill all three aspects of hunger.”
Fellow presenters ranging from Rob Michalak, global director of social mission for Ben & Jerry’s, to Vicki Robin, co-author of the best-selling book “Your Money or Your Life,” are making clear that “slow” doesn’t mean sluggish but simply mindful.
In her opening, Gravitz shared studies that found more than half of surveyed shoppers feel “very” or “extremely” concerned about pesticides, hormones and antibiotics in food. As a result, companies ranging from Hershey’s chocolate to Hellmann’s mayonnaise are now using ingredients without genetically modified organisms.
“It’s not a fad, it’s not a trend, it’s a tsunami,” Gravitz said.
Even so, the world still faces challenges ranging from climate change to economic inequality.
“Our vision is a healthy, sustainable food system for all,” Gravitz said, “but we have a lot of work to do.”
That, Finkelstein concluded, can start at home.
“The antidote for a long, healthy life isn’t purity, it’s tapping into your mind, body and spirit’s ability to deal with toxins,” the doctor said. “The process of healing is as simple as slowing down. We’re connected to that tree, that sun, that rain. We have to remind ourselves why we’re working so hard. When you go home, don’t forget about living. That’s the medicine.”
Kevin O’Connor, a former staffer of the Rutland Herald and Barre-Montpelier Times Argus, is a Brattleboro-based writer. Email: kevinoconnorvt@gmail.com
