Slow Food NYC is thrilled to present the third installment in a mini-series written by guest blogger Kelly McGlinchey about her time on the ground at Terra Madre Giovani in Milan. Share your reactions with Kelly (@KellyMcGlinchey) and Slow Food NYC (@SlowFoodNYC) on Twitter and check back later for more!
by Kelly McGlinchey
Here in New York City the days sometimes seem to fly by in a thunderous blur of yellow taxi horns, hurried pedestrians, and buzzing iPhones. We are plugged in, caffeinated up, and moving fast. Here we are in 2016 and already it has been three months since the world's young farmers and small-scale producers gathered for Slow Food International's We Feed the Planet summit in Milan.
For a New Yorker who spends her days scurrying between programs and coffee shop meetings, checking through an ever-growing to-do list, Terra Madre Giovani was a rare and coveted moment to slow down and savor.
During the four-day conference my task-oriented brain finally hit the pause button and focused its energy instead on sharing, connecting, and collaborating with some unstoppable powerhouses of a new food economy (read here for some young farmer highlights). The experience was unforgettable, and I am grateful for each moment and each inspiring young person I met while there.
As we head into a new year here in New York, I find myself returning to one question. In this fast-paced culture of numbers and lights, how do we slow down and savor?
If you haven't heard yet, there is a good food movement growing in this city and I have news for you: it's only going to grow stronger. Food is on society's collective brain. It's in our newspapers, filling up our twitter feed, looking up at us from restaurant menus, and slowly but surely popping up in our schools as local heroes (i.e. teachers) bring the conversation around food, health, and the environment to the classroom.
I want to slow down and savor this moment. There is so much to celebrate and, though we have strides to go, we are on course to change our shared food future for the better.
Here are some ways you can engage in the good food celebration across America:
• Participate in Slow Fish 2016 in New Orleans: Gateway to the Americas (Mar 10-13)
• Hop onto Slow Food USA's next Leader Call and engage in the national slow food dialogue
• Are you a student or young professional? Join the Slow Food Youth Network USA Facebook page!
• Attend a Slow Food NYC event and support SFNYC's Urban Harvest program
• Slow down and savor a good meal with family and friends
However you choose to celebrate take a moment to appreciate your part in cultivating a future that is good, clean, and fair. You're making food history!
Kelly McGlinchey is a SFNYC guest blogger and Director of Food Education at Butter Beans, a New York City-based company that aims to improve the health of our communities through seasonal, nourishing food service and educational programs. In October she attended Slow Food's Terra Madre Giovani as a representative with the U.S. delegation in Milan. Working at the intersection of food and the environment, Kelly is passionate about promoting a fair and equitable food future for our global communities. She loves to travel and has worked on gardens in South Africa, the Bahamas, Thailand, Australia, and a small but dearly cherished 8ft x 1ft plot in front of her Upper West Side abode. Kelly earned her BA in Environmental Studies from Dartmouth College.
Follow @KellyMcGlinchey for more (Slow) Food for Thought stories and pics