Exciting things are happening!

Hey everyone, summer is coming to a close, but I hope everyone had a great time. For all students, I hope your fall semesters are starting off well. There is a lot going on in the First Coast and I hope everyone is ready to get some things done.

First off let me update everyone on Food Day, which is on October 24, 2011. Fair Food Jacksonville is planning on organizing two events. One is going to be a documentary screening. Currently we are looking for a venue to show the movie, so if anyone has connections or ideas, please let us know. So far it looks like we will be showing it at the library. The second event is going to be handing out free food. Food Day isn’t only about food, but access to food and everyday people go without food and even more so without REAL food! So we want to make sure those people are not forgotten on Food Day. However, it is illegal for anyone to just pass out food to people in public, except for churches. So if anyone knows any churches that would be interested in being involved with this, please let us know.

Here are some other coming events that everyone may be interested in:

Food Policy Introductory Meeting Announcement.

This subcommittee has been tasked with addressing the root causes of childhood obesity through integrated changes in policies, norms, practices, social supports and the physical environment. Specifically, the first outcome of the subcommittee is the formation of a Food Policy Council.

Date           Monday, September 12, 2011

Time           11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. *Lunch Provided*

Address      100 Festival Park Avenue, 32202

            RSVP           Click here to register (RSVP by September 7th)

2.     The UNF VEB Garden is kicking off the year right and has a whole semester worth of classes lined up. Jona who works at the garden has an amazing wealth of information and is a great resource for anyone interested in gardening. All classes begin at 10 am at UNF VERB Garden.

·      Introduction to organic gardening September 5 and 6

·      Fall plant propagation September 19 and 20

·      Composting 101 October 17 and 18

·      Introduction to permaculture November 7 and 8

·      Fertilization and pest control November 14 and 15

Greetings Fair Foodies!

Another school year is upon us and exciting things are happening in the Fair Food movement!

• Food Day is coming up on October 24th and Fair Food Jacksonville wants to make a presence! We are thinking about holding two events: The first would be our favorite past time, holding a demonstration to put pressure on Publix, Quizno's and others who refuse to work with the CIW and farmworkers. For the second we would like to hold a a meeting and show a documentary. Right now we are looking for a venue to hold the event, so if you have ideas/connections please get in touch with james at tayj0016@gmail.com. Also, please give us ideas for any documentary you think would  be fun to show and discuss.

• There is a push in the downtown area to pass Urban Agriculture ordinances by Sustainable Springfield. Urban Ag has been embraced by many cities across the US for economic, health, and environmental reasons.  The Planning Dept is very supportive and is working on this.  However, the next step they need is for the citizens to push the City Council to acting on this. We need everyone to start putting public pressure on your city council people. If anyone has media contacts or wants to know more please contact Amanda Searle (sustainablespringfield@yahoo.com)

• The Real Food Challenge is gearing up for another leadership summit on September 2-4 in Chapel Hill, NC. The summit is only $25 to attend and is an amazing opportunity to learn about the college food system and network with other student activists. To learn more visit www.realfoodchallenge.org. 

• On September 17 from 5pm - 7pm there will be Food Swap in Historic Springfield. Please visit the Facebook page here for more information.