"Food for Thought, Time for Action" connects experts in sustainable
food Oct. 2-4

Food may be the essence of life, but so much of it has
been taken out of our control that many find themselves longing for a
more simplified food system: for local, sustainable methods of raising
and distributing our basic nourishment. And yet there are numerous
complications to regaining control of our sustenance. To address some of
these issues, College of the Atlantic is hosting the conference: "Food
for Thought, Time for Action: Sustainable food, farming and fisheries
for the 21st century." From Oct. 2 through 4, some of the best
thinkers on sustainable food systems will unite with many of Maine's
most avid practitioners in a forum open to the public.

Among the keynote speakers will be Raj Patel, author of "Stuffed and
Starved: The Hidden Battle for the World Food System," and Marion
Nestle, author of the James Beard Award-winning "What to Eat," and
the seminal 2002 work, "Food Politics: How the Food Industry
Influences Nutrition and Health." On Friday, Oct. 2 at 6 p.m., Patal
will speak on "The Real Price of Food." Nestle will speak on "What
to Eat: Personal Responsibility or Social Responsibility?" at 7:30
p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 3.

"Sustainable food and farming systems are a vital part of the
solution to many pressing global and local issues: climate change,
hunger, obesity and the viability of small businesses and rural
communities," says Heather Albert-Knopp, conference organizer, COA
alumna, and administrator of the college's Sustainable Food Systems
Program. "COA students and alumni will be among those on the frontline
of this movement."

Participants will discuss such topics as: What policies will encourage
good nutrition and help farms, fisheries and sustainable food systems
thrive? How can alternative marketing benefit small-scale farmers and
fishermen? What can we learn from our partners abroad that will help
Maine and the United States prepare for the future? Additional sessions
will cover such current Maine issues as dairy and seafood certification,
community food security, raising sustainable grains, and more. Together,
participants and presenters will envision steps to a sustainable future.
With fishermen on most panels, the conference offers an unusual
opportunity to share information between the farming and fishing
communities.

Keynote speaker Patel is a visiting scholar at the Center for African
Studies at the University of California at Berkeley and a fellow at the
Food First Institute of Food and Development Policy in Oakland, CA. He
has just returned from two years at the Centre for Civil Society at the
University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, where he is a research
associate. He holds a PhD from Cornell University's Department of
Development Sociology, an MA from the London School of Economics, and a
BA in philosophy, politics and economics from Balliol College, Oxford.

Nestle is the Paulette Goddard Professor in the Department of
Nutrition, Food Studies and Public Health at New York University, where
she also teaches sociology, as well as a visiting professor of
Nutritional Sciences at Cornell. She holds a PhD in molecular biology
and a MPH in public health nutrition, both from UC Berkeley. Her
research examines scientific, economic and social influences on food
choice. Other books include the 2003 "Safe Food: Bacteria,
Biotechnology, and Bioterrorism," and the 2008 "Pet Food Politics:
The Chihuahua in the Coal Mine." Nestle writes the Food Matters column
for the San Francisco Chronicle.

Among the conference speakers are John Piotti of Maine Farmland Trust,
Angelika Ploeger of the University of Kassel, Germany, Lawrence Woodward
of the United Kingdom's Organic Research Centre, Russell Libby of the
Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, Roger Doiron of Kitchen
Gardeners International, Eliot Coleman of Four Season Farm, Marada Cook
of Crown of Maine Organic Cooperative and Carly DelSignore of Tide Mill
Farm.

COA has recently launched a Trans-Atlantic Partnership in Sustainable
Food Systems with Kassel's Faculty of Organic Agricultural Sciences
and the UK's Organic Research Centre. The European institutions are
co-hosting the conference with COA. Support is provided by the Partridge
Foundation.

To celebrate the conference, the Ethel H. Blum Gallery is mounting
"Food for Thought, Time for Action," an art exhibit curated by
Maine Farmland Trust. Among the artists will be Bridget Besaw, Doiron,
Kathleen Florance, COA alumna Kate Gatski, Holly Meade and Robert
Shetterly. The opening reception is Friday, Oct. 2 from 4 to 6 p.m.

Registration for the full conference is $100; $70 for non-COA students
and COA alumni. Meals are extra. For a schedule and registration
information, visit www.coa.edu/foodforthought, or call organizer Heather
Albert-Knopp at 207-288-2944, ext. 354.