EcoFarm 2022: Pre-conference Field Day – Weaving Together Our Past, Present, and Future
By: Kathy Webster
Next year (January 2022) will be the 42nd annual EcoFarm Conference! Each year, the EcoFarm Conference gathers agriculturalists working to advance ecological and equitable farms and food systems. The conference hosts various skill-building workshops, visionary keynote speakers, networking opportunities, farm tours, field days, and more. For the past several years, TomKat Ranch has had the pleasure of serving on the EcoFarm Planning Committee that helps plan the conference as well as a subgroup of the planning committee that organizes a special pre-conference field day. We were thrilled to plan this year’s field day in collaboration with the Amah Mutsun Land Trust, Pie Ranch, and the wonderful Carla Rosin.
EcoFarm’s pre-conference field days are a great opportunity for attendees to get on the land and learn directly from various land stewards. Some of the past field days have been hosted at Paicines Ranch and Swanton Pacific Ranch, highlighting regenerative grazing and soil health with expert speakers (Gabe Brown, Ray Archuletta, Nicole Masters, Loren Poncia).
This year with the Amah Mutsun Land Trust, EcoFarm is offering a particularly exciting field day: Honoring Ancestral Foodways, Indigenous Land Rematriation, and Regenerative Food Production—Weaving Together Our Past, Present, and Future. The field day will take place at Pie Ranch, on the traditional territory of the Quiroste Tribe of the Awaswas Nation, in Pescadero, CA. During the day, participants will learn about the Indigenous Peoples who stewarded these lands for thousands of years, get an overview of the broader Indigenous food sovereignty movement, and explore how the local food movement can support a vision of food production that centers on Indigenous partnerships. The field day will also highlight the ongoing natural and cultural resource management programs offered by the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band and Land Trust, in collaboration with Pie Ranch and others along the central California coast.
For more information on the 42nd annual EcoFarm Conference: https://eco-farm.org/conference/2022/welcome-ecofarm-2022
Sponsored by: Amah Mutsun Land Trust, Paicines Ranch, Pie Ranch, TomKat Ranch
