Food for Thought: Alumnae and Food!

As an almost-alum, I am often worrying (no thanks to CDO emails and phone calls with my mother) about post-grad plans. While there are a plethora of opportunities to explore and tons of places to go, loans, a limited budget, and lack of experience in the world of work are definitely limiting factors when it comes to finding a job. While many of my fellow Smith grads are off to take jobs in the city, living out their Fulbright dreams, traveling abroad, or interning at the company of their dreams, I find myself less sure of what I want my future to look like.

Growing up on Cape Cod, I usually spent my summers sailing, swimming, and, along with most of my peers, working in a restaurant. Because the majority of my hometown’s economy depends on the revenue generated by tourism (the population triples—from 33,000 to about 100,000—in the summertime), there is no shortage of seasonal restaurants, ice cream shops, and cafes. Working in the food industry, for me, has always been almost second nature. Yet, as overfishing continues and many restaurants (usually for financial reasons) continue to buy produce from big food service companies who aren’t necessarily concerned with the sustainability and origins of their products, the prospect of spending my summer shucking clams and doling out lobster rolls becomes less appealing every day. So, to help quell my own uneasiness about life after graduation, I chatted with a few alums who have found fulfilling and rewarding work in the food industry.

Maggie Kraus, Class of 2012

Maggie is perhaps better known to Smithies (and her ever-widening fan base) as half of the folk duo Hannah & Maggie, which performs regularly in and around New York City, and has spent much of the last two summers touring the country. She graduated last May with a Comparative Literature major, a Spanish minor, and an Archives Concentration, and promptly hopped in the car and drove across the U.S. to promote her newly released CD. She returned home to New Jersey in September with no job and no plans. Her first priority was, she says, “to find some sort of income”.

What she ended up doing turned out to be very different than her life on stage. Maggie usually wakes up around 6 or 7 and walks a few minutes into town to The Able Baker, where she works the register, serves coffee, cleans, washes dishes, and occasionally bakes.

“I was walking my dog the first time I spotted a small bakery nestled in the corner of town. I knew it couldn’t have been there long (it certainly wasn’t there the last time I lived at home) but it was bustling with people: happy people! Even the customers, standing in a considerable line for coffee, were smiling.” Not wanting to miss an opportunity, she called them when she got home to ask if they were hiring—which they were. She’s been a full-time employee now for eight months, and, she’ll tell you without hesitation, it’s the best job she’s ever had.

“It’s so refreshing to wake up (early!) and help other people start their day on a good note. Working at the bakery has definitely transformed the way I look at “sweets”. If they’re made right (with real, simple, and fresh ingredients) there’s a lot less to feel guilty about. The best part about my job is that I actually believe in the food we’re making. I love telling people that the milk and eggs are delivered from local farms, and that our insanely delicious banana bread is gluten-free, nut-free, and dairy-free.” The owners and staff have also been a big part of her positive experience at the bakery. “They’ve treated me like family since the first time I put on an apron. I could never have predicted finding this job but I’m so, so happy I did!”

While Maggie is not quite sure of where her life (and music) will take her, she’s enjoying her time at the Able Baker. For the immediate future, she plans to take a trip to Ireland with her mother before heading off across the country to tour with Hannah in July. If it’s in the cards, she’ll most likely return to the Able Baker in September, continuing her foray in the food service industry. Yet if she doesn’t, it is clear that Maggie sees her time at the bakery as more of an opportunity than a financial obligation, which is perhaps a sign that sometimes not making plans can lead you to find something you didn’t even know you were looking for.

 Pies being made from scratch at the Able Baker.

Yoanna Torres, Class of 2010

During her time at Smith, Yoanna’s studies  focused on Sociology and the Study of Women and Gender. When she graduated, Yoanna worked briefly for the census in Easthampton—a job she would not highly recommend. “People were so mean. They would just slam the door in my face. One man crumpled it up and threw it at me. It was terrible.” When the census was over, she started working at Goberry for a bit before heading off to spend some time in Peru. She then returned to Northampton, and to Goberry, where she continues to work now.

Like everyone else who works there, Yoanna started by working hourly. From there (if you seem responsible), employees are given the opportunity to become a shift supervisor. Usually, this is as far “up” as one can go, but now Yoanna is also the General Manager for both the Northampton and Amherst stores.  “I developed a personal relationship with Molly and Alex, the two owners. We work really well together and they needed someone to run the store so that they didn’t have to worry about the day-to-day stuff, and that’s where I came in.”

Yoanna, for now, plans to stay at Goberry until at least next summer. The pay is good and she really enjoys the people she works with, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t making any future plans. “I think I want to go back to school. I’ve also been thinking that maybe I want to start my own business—but that requires an idea, which I don’t really have yet.” As for working in the food industry, Yoanna describes it as “a mixed bag”.

“I love food, and I love interacting with people. Sometimes food service brings out the worst in people, and people can be so demanding to the extent that they’re rude. I like the part of my job that makes other people happy—food makes people happy for the most part. I hate the parts that make people unhappy, especially because often times they have nothing to do with me or my product or my job.”

However, the “downsides” don’t seem to ruining her hopes of starting her own business sometime down the line, and Yoanna feels confident that she will probably continue to work with and around food. Her experience in the industry has led her to see that a possible career path would definitely be “do-able”, as well as something she would enjoy. However, embarking down this path doesn’t mean she’ll be compromising her personal beliefs in the process. “I feel strongly about making connections with local farmers and having it be a community establishment, as opposed to just a business. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that sort of thing, but I just don’t think that would fulfill me.”

Thanks a lot to Maggie and Yoanna for taking the time to chat with me, and good luck to you both in the future, wherever it may lead you!

-Eva McNamara, ’13

Food for Thought: Food and the Smith Culture

Food is a huge part of Smith College culture—lectures, club meetings, concerts, and celebrations are advertised with treats, offering ice cream, pizza, cookies and more. Dining services takes student’s dietary needs and requests seriously (you can read more about that here!), and tea & snacks are served weekly in Smith houses. Looking at the college today, it is hard to imagine that at one time it was against the rules for students to have food outside the dining rooms. Food history at Smith, and other women’s colleges, is complicated—diet trends, health concerns, and external pressure have all played a role in deciding what the women at these institutions were consuming, especially in the late 1800s, when women were finally being given greater access to higher education.

Despite the opening of many women’s colleges during this time (Mount Holyoke was given its collegiate charter in 1888, Wellesley opened in 1870, and Smith in 1875) many did not believe that college was a place for women. In 1867, Dr. Edward H. Clarke of Harvard insisted that the colligate environment was not fit for females, saying that the “educational methods of our schools and colleges for girls are, to a large extent, the cause of ‘the thousand ills’ that beset American woman”. He claimed that these institutions caused “irrational cooking”, “indigestible diet”, and “unassailable abominations”. In order to “protect a woman’s future”, he asserted that you must control her food, as this was the basis for “safeguarding her crucial contributions to both family and society”(Brewer).

Although institutions of higher education for women persisted, at least early on, the health of the students remained a top concern of college officials. In 1877, for example, officials at Wellesley College decided that, because of “the prevailing delicacy of health in American girls”, dietary restrictions would be put in place. Students were not allowed to buy or receive any food other than that which was served by the college, and ultimately, eating was not allowed between meals. Women who broke these rules faced suspension, and, in some cases, expulsion. Similar restrictions were not uncommon at other women’s colleges—although the strictness of the rules around food varied from place to place.

As one might expect, the students at Wellesley had mixed responses to the new rules. Some followed them strictly so as to avoid the possible consequences. Student Louise Edwards wrote home to say that “so much has been said on the subject of eating between meals that most of the girls would as soon almost take poison”. Students hid packages from home, some so afraid of being caught that they kept them wrapped and hidden until the end of the year. But there were also those who bent the rules and those who disregarded them altogether. Clara Capron, a first year at Wellesley, complained to the college physician, claiming headaches and requesting to be allowed to eat fruit between meals. Francis Robinson, a sophomore, had a bit more disdain for the regulations. She told her mother, “Mr. Durant said that if a girl ate any fruit in her room they would expel her. I have some grapes, peaches and pears in my room and what is more I’m going to eat them.” Other stories echo this sentiment—girls having fudge sent to them from home wrapped carefully under clothes, or hiding cakes in the attic to avoid being caught red (velvet)-handed.

 “A Memorial of exams, essays, metrical travilations [sic] and the like.”
Tea party with Bertha Allen and Helen Lambert, 12 March 1892.
Smith College Archives

By the 1880’s, especially at places like Vassar where consequences were less harsh, “Chafing dish clubs” appeared—late night meetings at which students would gather “with blinds shut and curtains drawn, and a gossamer water-proof draped carefully over the transom”. These “spreads” became almost gluttonous for some—oysters on silver platters and fudge parties drew crowds of friends. Dorthy Firman wrote home in 1906 from Wellesley to say that “a girl might as well not come to college if she hasn’t a good digestion. She can’t have any fun.” 

As spreads became more popular, students began to disregard the rules with abandon, publicizing their consumption-based gatherings. Spreads were used to celebrate—sometimes specific events like engagements and birthdays—and also used simply as a way to gather together with one’s friends. As the secret gatherings spread, faculty became more lenient about enforcing the rules, often purposely ignoring the “telltale aroma of fudge or hot chocolate” which could betray a party. Eventually, students felt so comfortable with their spreads that they were reported to have begun stealing ingredients (like milk) from the school kitchens. Judging from my Smith experience, late night kitchen raids are still common—hence locks being placed on the fridges in the dining halls during my first year.

By the turn of the century, colleges had begun to sanction the spreads, although many still questioned their “dangers”, especially as they became more extravagant. In 1901, Wellesley president Caroline Hazard voiced her concerns about spreads distracting students from their studies, and noted that perhaps the time spent entertaining (and cleaning up) was causing the women to “hurry to [their] necessary duties”. And she was not alone. Mount Holyoke student Amy Roberts wrote home in 1898 to tell her mother of the time constraints she and her roommate faced. “Carrie and I are beginning to think that our social duties are quite oppressive…We could get along quite nicely if it wasn’t for our studies.”

Today, women’s colleges are far different from what they were in the past, yet students still engage in joyous, celebratory eating, especially at Smith. Northampton is home to many wonderful cafés in which Smithies often do their work and socialize. Alumna Julia Child is remembered with a feast of sorts in the fall, and the college never falls short on providing cheese and desserts for weekly tea. It seems safe to say that if it were not for the determination of the alumnae who refused to follow the dietary guidelines forced upon them, Smith, and the other seven sisters, would not have become the schools they are today.

 Zoe Sperber ’13, making snacks for the Smith College Vibes

You can read more about chafing dish clubs in Pricilla Brewer’s essay, The Chafing Dish and the College Girl that is included in Eating in Eden: Food and American Utopias, edited by Madden and Finch. Looking Good, by Margaret A. Lowe, also offers an in-depth look at diet culture in the early 20^th century. Interestingly, Ms. Lowe used a lot of material from the Smith College Archives in doing her research. But, if you would rather see actual pictures, read letters, and delve into alumna’s thoughts and lives, check out the Smith College Archives (located in the Alumnae Gym) yourself!

-Eva McNamara, ’13

Food for Thought: Concentrator Nichole Calero!

Nichole Calero, an Ada Comstock Scholar in her last semester at Smith, hails from Great Barrington, MA. Always ahead of the curve, Nichole was planning to study food at Smith through the structure of an American Studies degree very early on. When Smith added the Sustainable Food Concentration, she applied immediately.

“I took Landscape Studies my first semester here, and that really inspired me, because it gave me a whole new toolset to look at things with.” Nichole has enriched her course selection at Smith (other favorites included Writing About Food, Economic Botany, and ENX 300, the concentration capstone) with practical experiences, the first of which was her time spent interning at Berkshire Grown, an organization in Berkshire County that promotes local food and farms. “Essentially they called me the outreach intern. My job was to understand what Berkshire Grown was about, and visit members who may not have had much contact with the organization, but were producers in the area.”  This means that Nichole visited farmers, and gave them the opportunity to ask any questions, bring up any concerns, give feedback, and offer suggestions. This one on one time with farmers eventually led to Nichole creating individual bios for each farm that were put on the website. For her second required practical experience Nichole worked on a CSA farm (which she had previously been a member of) for a season—a different, yet equally important, learning experience in the world of food.

When Nichole discusses her future plans, she looks broadly at the past, and, more specifically, at food trends. While she finds diet trends fascinating from a personal standpoint, she also finds them troubling, particularly in terms of the inherently classist nature of food tendencies, especially the new sustainable food movement. “When you look at social patterns and how they work, you see over and over again that the upper class finds something “trendy” that the lower class is doing for survival and then they promote it.  So [in the case of sustainable food] now you have people growing their own food and it’s “the thing to do.” Just like supporting small farms is “the thing to do”, instead of just a thing to do. But that inevitably excludes a lot of people, and some people can’t afford a CSA share (although I’m noticing that more and more farmers markets and CSA farms are accepting food stamps, and that’s great). When I first started my education I really wanted to understand marketing, so that I could help promote the local food movement. Now I think that’s the wrong angle, so I’m more interested in working with an organization that seeks to bring food access to the people who aren’t currently able to have it.”

As for the Sustainable Food Concentration, Nichole is excited that it’s finally here, despite it taking years for these ideas to become mainstream enough to merit collegiate acknowledgement.  “These ideas are really important for the survival of the environment, and for the survival of the human species—all species actually. I think that it’s great that Smith has taken a step to create the MacLeish field station, but it’s very removed from campus. I realize that iconically it’s important for the Smith campus to be beautiful and designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, but I think that it would be beneficial for Smith to take another initiative and go ahead and let us have more than a single community garden that’s tucked away behind buildings. The Smith Community Garden is great, but it would be beneficial for the college to make something that’s inclusive for more than just the students who are interested in this line of thinking.”

Anything else?

“I’m really proud to be one of the first graduates from the Sustainable Food Concentration, because I think it’s a sign that Smith is really acknowledging that this is a really important aspect of our future.”

Thank you to Nichole for chatting with me—I can’t wait to see where your passions take you!

-Eva McNamara, ’13

Weed Walk: What’s in a name?

This past Friday, I found myself waxing poetic as I watched a group assemble for Blanche Cybele Derby’s ‘weed walk’.   In Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare’s Juliet wonders about the power of names to shrug aside the stigma of a Capulet and a Montague falling in love. “That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” I hoped the ‘weed walk’ would give me a new appreciation for plants I can spot right here at Smith, regardless of their names or titles.

Blanche was energetic, lively, and came prepared with a two-sided handout with a list of hints for the novice wild edible harvester and an impressive number of YouTube videos. I myself am not a botanist. I do not own any field guides and, while I have been in the company of those who collect wild edibles, I have never been the one with the knowledge or initiative to do so. I was curious to see what I could learn in a one hour ramble around Smith.

Joining me were several students, some staff, and a number of  other members of the local community. Hearing their questions right out of the gate, I was sure I was the least experienced in the plant foraging arena. Blanche’s relaxed manner helped me feel welcome. As soon as we stepped out of the doors at the back of CEEDS she spotted several plants she wanted to tell us about. In fact, during the entire walk, we hardly made it 5 paces before she saw something else to point out.

Blanche talked about making a drink from sumac flowers that tasted sweet and lemony when we pressed our fingers to the flowers to get a sample. She pointed out many plants that can be used in salads, and she recommended, whenever possible, “eat a salad every day.” Violets were one of the plants she recommended adding to a salad – a nice splash of color- , and she also suggested freezing violets in ice cubes for a fancy addition to a drink. Here is her video on Johnny Jump Ups.

We looked at Ostrich Ferns, located in a garden bed in the shade next to Sabin-Reed. The Ostrich ferns’ fiddle heads are supposed to be very tasty when cooked. Blanche told us some ways to recognize the fern: it has a groove in the stem, like celery, and it isn’t covered in fuzzy matter but rather an outer skin like an onion.  Here is one of her YouTube videos about the Ostrich Fern.

She also gave us tips on how to be a responsible forager: do not pick an area clean of the plant you are foraging since the plants need to be able to reproduce, and birds and animals also depend on them. As she talked, some people took notes, pulled up a plant to smell or taste it, took samples for help identifying them later, and asked her lots of questions. We tried members of the mustard family, talked about battering and frying dandelion flowers, what trees to keep an eye on for berries in early summer, and how tulips can be used as an edible container for appetizers (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHv-rnhjB5A).

                         

Before we knew it, and despite having only made it a short way from our starting point, our hour was up. People milled about, asking questions, thanking Blanche, and trying to find out when they could go on another such walk. If you missed it this time around, Blanche has a website where she posts her walk schedule, www.tagyerit.com/freefood.htm. She also has links to more videos, recipes, and information on the films she has made. It was a great afternoon, filled with sunshine, new information, and inspiration to look to the unexpected, like weeds, for something exciting.

-Sara Kirk, Administrative Assistant, CEEDS

Food for Thought: Sustainable Food Concentrator Gayelan Ulrich, ‘13

Gayelan Tietje-Ulrich, a senior who hails from Bennington, Vermont, is a familiar face around campus. Gayelan has appeared in many productions put on by the Smith College theater department, has a vocal range like Beyoncé (you can see her perform with the Smith College Vibes!), and an unforgettable, charismatic smile. She is a theater major with a Landscape Studies minor—in addition, this May Gayelan will also be one of the first graduates to complete the Environmental Concentration in Sustainable Food. I sat down with Gayelan to chat about her studies, interests, future plans, and what it means to study food.

Gayelan has been gardening since her senior year of high school, when she became interested in local, organic growing practices because her aunt worked at a nearby farm. Once she arrived at Smith she knew that she wanted to pursue Landscape Studies, but, unlike the many courses available at UMASS, there were no specifically agricultural classes available  to take here.  Lucky enough for her, the Sustainable Food Concentration was introduced her junior year—and, since she had decided that she wasn’t as interested in horticulture, it was exciting to be able to study food, something that she is passionate about.

Requirements for the concentration include taking either ENV 100 or LSS 100 as a gateway course, four food-related courses (which can be anything from Writing About Food to Plant Soil Sciences), a capstone course, and completing two practical experiences. Gayelan’s first practicum took place last summer in Ireland where she participated in the Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms program (WWOOF). “I worked on a goat farm for two months, and we were selling cheese, milk, and ice cream products to visitors and tourists to the islands.”

Gayelan befriends some young goats and their mothers last fall at Glynwood Farm in New York.

Gayelan’s other practicum has been less physical and more involved in the non-profit sector of the local food movement. She is currently interning at Grow Food Northampton (GFN), just up the road in Florence, MA. GFN already has close ties with Smith’s Sustainable Food Concentration. During the capstone course this fall, students in the class worked closely with the organization to research and write up a report to help them determine the feasibility of starting an Incubator Farm Program, a program in which new and/or inexperienced farmers could strengthen and develop agricultural and business skills in a low-risk environment. Currently, Gayelan helps out at GFN with, well, anything and everything! “I’ve been working specifically with the Florence Organic Garden, whether it was doing volunteer work, putting together seed donations, putting together projects for musical parodies about water conservation, working on publicity, working on education—basically anything they need.” Gayelan has also been working to map the Florence Community Garden which, now in its second year, has grown to host over 250 community gardeners. (If you’d like to intern, volunteer, or learn more about Grow Food Northampton, you can contact them here).

So what would Gayelan like to see for the future of food studies at Smith?

“Just in terms of the classes here at Smith, for those who want to be involved in food production and farming, I would love to see Smith offer some sort of business course, and for so many different areas—not just food!” Gayelan would also love to see more hands on courses, like those offered at Hampshire and UMASS.

And her future plans?

“I’ll be working up at a goat dairy in Maine for a year after graduation and essentially a goal of mine is to own a cooperative farm with a few other people. It would be integrated livestock and veggies, and maybe some bees. I would love to own something, but really be a part of a team though, that owns it together. I think it is a very romantic idea to own a farm and be a part of this “local trend”, but I’ve seen so many other farmers who are totally stressed out by age 45—whether it’s [that] physically their back is out, or their mental state is just completely exhausted. I think it would be so much better with multiple owners, you know, people working together.”

Thank you so much to Gayelan for taking time to chat—and good luck to both you and the goats!

-Eva McNamara ’13

Food for Thought: Local Food!

Living in the Pioneer Valley it is almost impossible to ignore the numerous groups and non-profits that are looking to promote the sourcing of local food. Bumper stickers urge one to “Buy Local!” and that “Farms = Food”. But why does it matter where our food is coming from? And is it possible to source all of our favorite foods locally? And, what does “local” actually mean?

As it turns out, there is not a universally accepted definition for a “Local (or Regional) Food System”.  According to a USDA Economic Report from 2010 (you can read the whole report here), definitions vary from food sourced up to 400 miles from where it is produced, to food produced in one’s state (I’ve also heard people claim anywhere from 100 to 500 miles is “local”). These varying definitions obviously leave a lot of room for interpretation, especially because states differ drastically in size, but, at the very least, they serve as a jumping off point for the less geographical characteristics that make up a Local Food System. According to this same report, people also associate local food with small farms and with the values those farms embody in their farming practices (organic, solar power, sustainability, etc).  For many, local food also means investing in the local economy—and the USDA does note that job creation seems to be increasing in areas that support community agriculture, since more agricultural production can mean more available jobs in processing, transporting, packaging, and retailing. When consumers have relationships with local farmers, it encourages them to demand more locally produced food in places that are often controlled by bigger companies, and as the movement grows, more and more of these local products are making their way into supermarkets, restaurants, schools, and convenience stores.

Challenges (both financially and logistically) concerning local production have emerged as consumer demand for local food has increased. Seasonal produce, limited resources, inaccessible prices (depending on the product/farmer/location) and slaughterhouse zoning are just a few variables that those who are determined to create sustainable regional food systems have to juggle.

However, those who are resolute have had no shortage of creative solutions. A few examples include: year-long crop production in greenhouses, more and more farmers markets being able to accept SNAP benefits (formerly called Food Stamps), and innovative solutions like mobile slaughterhouses, which can really alleviate transportation hassles and costs that livestock farmers face in areas in which zoning prevents slaughterhouses construction. CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture) are also spreading—last fall my roommates, neighbors, and I shared a weekly CSA from Hampshire College, which was affordable and plentiful (we also got to pick our own flowers, and were given carving pumpkins in October). However, if this option doesn’t fit your needs, there are plenty of other CSAs in the Pioneer Valley, and these include vegetable shares, meat shares, egg shares, etc! A shout out is also due to Professor Paul Wetzel, who for the last few years has run a neighborhood CSA, which neighbor Eleanor Cook (’13) described as “a wonderful way to build community on Petticoat Hill Road”. Another place to find local products is at River Valley Market—they have a wide variety of foods as well as weekly tastings, events, and rewards for bringing your own bags and/or biking to the store.

But why should you care about eating local? Humans used to eat locally, but that was mostly out of necessity, and we have now developed an international food system that is extensive, incredibly varied, and, in a lot of places, terribly exploited. For me, my forays into food studies began when I took a semester off from school and had the opportunity to live in Burkina Faso, West Africa. Most people I met while I was in Burkina ate millet (or sorghum) ground up and cooked into a pasty substance called tô (the consistency reminded me a bit of tapioca pudding). Meat and fish are expensive and thus rarely consumed, and sauces made of cabbage, tomatoes, or onions usually complimented the tô. When we ate at restaurants we usually ate rice or couscous—but the rice served there was all imported from China or India. Burkinabe farmers are growing rice (incredibly, as much of the country’s natural resources have been exploited and much of the soil has been completely depleted of nutrients), but they are having trouble selling it, as they are unable to compete with how cheap the price of the imported rice is.

Uncle Sam’s face was everywhere—although most of the rice bags I saw were no longer holding their products, but instead being used as schoolbags. 

The U.S. is in a very different situation than Burkina, (especially in terms of food and water access) but our food choices—because of our far reaching economy, monetary resources, and taste for variety—have an impact on the lives of others around the world.  If we can’t eat locally here in the Connecticut River Valley, an area full of incredible farmland, then we will only continue to become more dependent on imported crops—many of which are cultivated with environmentally harmful methods and cheap, unregulated labor. We have to change the system, for our own sake and for the sake of people in places with less opportunity, money, and resources. By eating locally we ensure that our neighbors are supported—and the stronger, and more sustainable, our community becomes, the more we will be able to help others who have not been so fortunate.

And it’s not as difficult as you’d think! If you (like me), frequent any of the restaurants and cafés in downtown Northampton, it’s hard to miss the “Local Hero” signs and stickers that many businesses display. They’re in Serio’s Market and State Street, as well as at GoBerry, Sylvester’s, and Woodstar (these are just a few of my favorites—to see a full list of businesses that buy locally, click here!). But where do these labels come from, and what exactly do they mean? Well, the organization behind these yellow stickers is Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA), a non-profit that operates out of South Deerfield. To learn more about CISA and the Local Hero program, I talked with Margaret Christie, who was serving as CISA’s executive director from 1997-1999 when the Local Hero program first started. She is now the Director of Special Projects.

Eva: Why (and when) was CISA founded? What are CISA’s main goals?

Margaret: CISA was founded in 1993 by a group of people who wanted to involve the larger community in addressing some of the challenges facing agriculture in the Pioneer Valley. Our focus continues to be on sustaining agriculture in our region by connecting farmers and the community. We care a lot about farm viability and about making local food a larger part of the diet of all of the residents of the Pioneer Valley, regardless of where they live and eat.

Eva: Who does CISA work with? How big is its reach?

Margaret: As a link between farmers and the larger community, we work with lots of farm businesses and with their customers—individual consumers, retailers, restaurants, dining services, specialty foods producers. We also work with partner organizations that are concerned with health and wellness, local economic development, and related activities like youth leadership, farm to school, or farm business incubation. We work primarily in the 3 counties of the Connecticut River Valley in Massachusetts, but also work statewide in some cases—for example with the other Buy Local organizations in Massachusetts and the statewide Food Policy Council and Food Policy Alliance.

Eva: Why was the Local Hero program started? How does one become a Local Hero? What are the requirements? The benefits?

Margaret: When we started the Local Hero program we realized that many farmers in Massachusetts had taken significant steps to benefit consumers—we had a strong Integrated Pest Management program at UMass, an organic certification program, a model farmland preservation program—but farmers often did not see the benefits of these actions in the marketplace. We wanted to raise the profile of local agriculture and help consumers understand that they could play a role in sustaining local agriculture and the benefits that come with it—a strong local economy, connection to how food is grown, reduced transportation impacts, and beautiful rural vistas.

There is a lot of specific information about Local Hero membership and benefits on our website (and see business-type-specific information at each tab on the right).  Members pay to join the program, and those payments partly cover the costs of running the program. Specific membership requirements vary based on membership type—restaurants, for example, need to provide receipts from several different local-food-vendors or farmers. Specialty foods producers have two tiers of membership depending on how much they use local ingredients. For the most part, however, growing local or using local ingredients is the primary requirement—there is not, for example, a requirement related to growing practices.

Eva: What are some of CISA’s long-term goals?

Margaret: We would like to see local (and regional) food and farm products become a larger portion of the diets and household use of Pioneer Valley residents. We’ve just announced a goal of reaching a quarter of our food purchases in the next 20 years.

Eva: Are there opportunities for students to become involved (volunteer, intern, etc.) with CISA?

Margaret: Yes, we have lots of interns, and we regularly have them from Smith. Kamillah Weeks is working with us now.

Eva: What other programs does CISA run or is CISA involved with?

Margaret: Senior FarmShare—pays farmers to supply a share of the harvest to low-income seniors

Technical Assistance—we provide a lot of consulting, mentoring, and workshops to farm and food businesses.  Our current calendar is here.

Food system development and education—currently we are researching options for meat cutting and processing.  We also provide information and referral services for many start-up farm and food businesses, and provide information about how to scale up the local food system for a lay audience.

 Emergency Farm Fund—a zero-interest revolving loan fund for farms that have experienced a weather-related disaster.

 PVGrows*—CISA provides staffing for this collaborative network focused on the food system in the Pioneer Valley.  CISA staff are also actively engaged on the PVGrows Steering Committee and the PVGrows Loan Fund.

Eva: What (in your opinion) has been the most exciting accomplishment thus far for CISA?

Margaret: The Pioneer Valley has a culture of commitment to local food and farms, and I think CISA has played a critical role in creating that culture. Farmers choose to farm here because of this enthusiasm and active support, and people who live here count it as a huge benefit. Local foods businesses can count on that support, and that allows them to do new, hard, and creative things that bring a lot of benefits to residents here.

 If you want to learn more about CISA, you can visit their website. Thanks to Margaret for taking time out to answer my questions, and be sure to keep on the lookout for those Local Hero stickers!

*Smith students are invited (and encouraged!) to attend the bi-annual PVGrows forums. Last fall I (and a few other students & professors) travelled to Springfield and met with numerous business owners, educators, and community members to discuss a wide variety of food related issues and topics. I had the opportunity to sit next to Gary Schaefer, one of the owners of Bart’s Homemade Ice-Cream, and tell him about the four pints of his ice cream that were the main attraction of my apartment’s caramel pecan brownie sundae party, as well as hear about some of the challenges he faces as a small business owner. If you haven’t tried Bart’s, do yourself a favor and pick up a pint of the Mud Pie flavor—Bart’s is now available in the Campus Center!

(Zoe Travis, ’13 and the home-made brownies –anticipating the delicious locally made Bart’s ice cream that is softening on the counter)

And if you’d like to be informed about any food related events and opportunities (like the PVGrows forum), email Joanne Benkley—she’ll put you on the CEEDS email list.

Thanks for reading!

P.S. Seniors (and those that are 21+)! Looking for a light, refreshing, bubbly drink to welcome in the warm weather? Try some Ginger Libation (and Local Libation), made by Green River Ambrosia. They boast a “Local Hero” sticker and, due to tremendous demand and stellar reviews, are available at State Street, River Valley Market, Provisions, Doyle’s, and Liquors 44. It’s perfect for graduation celebrations, and made right up the road in Greenfield! It’s important to remember that “local” isn’t just limited to food production—you can also get products like flowers, alcohol, and pet food from a nearby producer!

P.P.S. Love Ted talks? Check out this one by Ron Finely—a guerilla gardener in South Central LA. His work is similar to Gardening the Community—an extraordinary project happening right up the road in Springfield, MA.

-Eva McNamara, ’13

Getting a Jump on Life Beyond Smith

Like many seniors at Smith College, I am in the process of figuring out life after commencement. Finding the right job, internship, company, or organization to work for takes time, and applying to countless opportunities can be a very arduous task.  Some of the tactics that have helped me and some of my fellow Smithies successfully land interviews, gain contacts, and even secure jobs and internships over the past few years include are listed below:

1) Connections, Connections, Connections!

• Reach out to former professors, bosses, supervisors, and co-workers, in addition to family and friend connections in the desired industry. Even if they are not in the exact line of work you wish to pursue, they might have connections—either personal or professional—in the field that will help you get to the next step.
• Reach out to former Smithies—the alumnae directory can allow you to identify alums working your dream job who could help you discover possible positions or connections.  Even recent graduates working in your field of interest may be able to provide you with information about vacant positions or internship opportunities within their office.

2) Identify companies, businesses, or organizations that you would like to work for, regardless of their vacant positions. Even if no current openings for your particular skill-set exist, try to find an individual who you can contact directly—they might be aware of an opportunity that is not yet posted or could be impressed by your drive to work in the field and offer to create a position.

3) Companies and organizations are often members of forums, organizations, networks, and initiatives.  Identifying these connections could help you discover similar companies or organizations with job opportunities.

4) Last, but definitely not least, keep track of all these job applications! I record the company/organization name, job title, job posting link, date applied, and contact name in an excel document.

Never leave any stone unturned! Explore all your options!

We all have preferred methods of identifying and landing internships and jobs—please use the comment box to share a tip that you think could help other Smithies!

-Emily Dwyer, ’13

Photo credit: http://www.silverlakelibrary.org/job-search-assistance-the-library/

Bright Ideas: Spotlight on Monique Gagne

As a CEEDS intern, one of my favorite topics to blog about is students focused on the environment. It is always interesting to see how they have woven their passion for the environment into their liberal arts education. Lucky for me, this campus is filled with confident, conscious women who are well on their way to changing the world. I met Monique Gagne, ’13 on my recent trip to Washington, D.C. and was impressed by her activism and dedication to environmental challenges like stopping the expansion of the Keystone XL Pipeline. She is not shy about standing up for the environment. On the trip to D.C. she was also one of a small faction of traditional-age students, or “trads” as we Adas call them, that went out of her way to make me feel comfortable, as I didn’t really know any of the students on the excursion. I liked her immediately.

As we talked about what fuels her passion for the environment, I learned that Monique is a former intern for the Office of Environmental Sustainability, also located here in CEEDS. Having that in common, her interview became more of a conversation. It was wonderful to chat about her experiences and how she plans on continuing to link her past, present and future to address the looming environmental concerns that face this planet.

Monique is an engineering major with a minor in landscape studies. As she began taking classes at Smith, she realized that the environmental engineering track was the one that appealed to her the most. She focused on the petroleum industry early in her studies, but was intrigued by advanced topics in water quality.  She began to delve deeper into the issue of water quality and the concerns that are certain to arise when water becomes scarce. Monique followed her new-found interest into a PRAXIS funded internship this past summer, which allowed her to work with sustainable water systems.

Ms. Gagne has already secured employment at Lutron Electronics after she graduates this year. This innovative company has been on the forefront of sustainability by using smart technology to save energy. The dimmers that Lutron creates use daylight to determine just how much light is necessary in a space. This simple element lowers energy consumption, which is a central step to creating energy efficient spaces. As we were talking, Monique pointed out Lutron technology in the lighting system above us in the Campus Center. Their energy-saving products are also in some of the other high performance buildings on campus, like Ford Hall. Monique will be able to use the know-how and environmental awareness she learned here to carry into her life after Smith.

How has her liberal arts education prepared her for her future? Monique noted that because of her Smith education she can no longer see the world through just an engineering or a landscape lens. Instead, she sees the nature of the world as multidisciplinary, which allows her to be creative as she seeks to effectively engage environmental issues– and life.  It is comforting to know that there are students like Monique here at Smith who care about the fate of the environment and who are thinking about what happens to the next generation as well.

- Liz Wright, ‘AC

Reflecting on the Lisa Brooks Lecture

Lisa Brooks, Associate Professor of English and American Studies at Amherst College, visited Smith last month to give a lecture titled “Traditional Ecological Knowledge, Indigenous Protest and Revitalization in the Northeast” for the Environmental Knowledge, Indigenous Knowledge, Local Knowledge Lecture Series sponsored by the Environmental Science and Policy Program.

Although I am somewhat familiar with the geographic area Brooks discussed in her lecture—namely northern New England and the Connecticut River—I knew little about the Native Wabanaki roots tied to this region; a place I now know is also known as the Wabanaki coast.  And though I was raised and educated in Massachusetts, I was, perhaps not surprisingly, taught to observe our local history through the European (conquerer) lens rather than understanding historical events from multiple perspectives.  Brooks made me reflect upon the fact that few individuals—including me—actually understand the Wabanaki’s relationship with the land and how it was affected by the arrival of the settlers. And perhaps as importantly, how this relationship with the land informed their relationship with the settlers.

During her lecture, Brooks discussed examples of Native protest and revitalization from the rivers of the Wabanaki coast to the Connecticut River in order to illustrate that environmental protest, something many think of as being a modern experience, actually have historic roots in New England.  The idea of ‘traditional ecological knowledge’ was emphasized throughout the lecture—that is, understanding the relationship of living beings with one another, as well as their relationship with the environment. In particular, she focused on building an understanding of the importance of fish to the cities of Portsmouth and Falmouth, New Hampshire—predominant fishing and logging communities–and the native villages which relied on fish as a food source, and how the relationships each group had with the fish and the world around them eventually led Wabanaki leaders to express great concern about the misuse of this precious natural resource.

The Wabanaki people felt that a respect for the land was lost during this time of colonial industrialism.  The combination of fish and logging in the area kept settlers so busy that shipping food to the cities was necessary to feed the community—signifying that people were distancing themselves from the land. Furthermore, ecological damage arose from the (over)use of the two natural resources (fish and lumber) and the establishment of dams, which prevented the natural movement of the river and its organisms- fish in particular.

Brooks pointed out the uniqueness of this situation as a whole, in that the colonial governor at the time supported the Wabanaki people in their request to uphold laws to protect the land and rivers and creatures.  However, there was no enforcement, and the Wabanaki, and later the settlers, suffered the consequences. Many years later, the established dams were released, and land that was intended for development became protected and preserved.  Brooks concluded the lecture with a brief explanation of how she came to learn about this history from the Wabanaki elders on an area of preserved land on the Wabanaki Coast.  However,  I found myself wanting to know more about her personal ties to the Wabanaki coast, and more about how she was able to piece together this history and understanding of the ecological knowledge she spoke of—something she only touched on, but which I think is an important aspect of the lecture as a whole.

-Emily Dwyer, ’13

We ended up at a sugar house…

To be more precise, we ended up at the North Hadley Sugar Shack, and it was amazing. I was joined by seven other students and two staff members for this snowy, weekend day trip organized by CEEDS. It was my first time ever at a sugar house and even though it wasn’t the rural hilltown sugar house experience, it was great.

This is Joe in front of the evaporator explaining what it takes to boil sap into maple syrup.

While we waited for a table in the restaurant we checked out the syrup making process. I realize that sounds boring but Johnny and Joe, brothers and co-owners of the farm, were there to explain how they are able to boil so much sap at the same time.  They don’t use little pans, like in the olden days, they use an industrial size boiling system that is carefully monitored for changes in temperature and humidity. It’s a good thing they can boil a lot of sap at a time since it takes about 40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup. For demonstration purposes they still have one of the smaller, more traditional evaporators; Joe, Jr. was in charge of stirring this one and explaining how it worked. It was pretty much the same as the newer boiling systems, but he had to do everything by hand. Joe, Jr. was about 10 years old.

This is the system that Joe Jr. was in charge of. He used a large ladle to test the viscosity of the syrup.

After tasting some of the fresh syrup and warming up in the steam and heat from the evaporators, we decided to go watch cider donuts being made from scratch by Martha and John, mother and father of Johnny and Joe. Tessa, their granddaughter, was there to help. We arrived to the demonstration a little early, so Martha offered us some of the goodies left over from the earlier demonstration. We each sampled some maple candy, maple cream, and maple butter; I didn’t even know you could make so many different things with maple, but now I know that each is even more delicious than the last. Then Martha started mixing the cider doughnut ingredients, which were then put into a large container that measured and dispensed the correct amount of mix for each doughnut into a machine. The doughnut landed on a conveyor belt, which dropped it into hot oil, flipped it, pulled it out to drain, and then dropped it again in a sugary mix. I got to try one of those freshly made donuts, almost too hot to eat, and they were amazing.

Martha and Tessa handing out cider doughnut samples

Just as we finished our last samples we were called to our tables for brunch. I ordered pancakes with eggs and bacon. As soon as our order got to the table, we all started taking pictures; it just looked so good we couldn’t help ourselves. But we soon dug in and it tasted even better than it looked. There was a full bottle of maple syrup at the table when we sat down, but by the time we left more than half was gone. We really did go all out. I really appreciate the chance to go through this process, from tapping trees to seeing syrup made, to sampling candy and eating fresh maple syrup on pancakes. It was a great experience that I’m not sure I could get anywhere else, let alone at a different college. Although I didn’t try the sugar on ice, like Laura, I still had friends and food.

Breakfast- before and after…

-Stefanie Cervantes, ’13