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Join NOFA/RI for our 10th Annual Winter Conference, an all-day virtual event featuring a deep dive into the promises and practices of regenerative agriculture.
Regenerative Agriculture claims to offer solutions to our agricultural and land care problems, including soil erosion and depletion, weed and pest abundance, and nutrient supply and availability. Regenerative Ag also proposes solutions to wider global crises such as climate change and ocean acidification through carbon sequestration into soils, less reliance on chemicals and mined minerals, and less fossil fuel consumption.
Can it deliver on these promises? We will explore these issues with several leaders in sustainable agriculture over the course of two panel discussions moderated by Rhode Island farmer John Kenny.
To request a scholarship, email us at nofari@live.com.
Schedule of Events
Annual Meeting | Year in review, and what’s in the works for 2022
11am-1pm: Panel 1 | Regenerative Agriculture, Big Promises
What is regenerative agriculture? Why is it so relevant to our future? A discussion of agriculture’s historic relationships to fuel, water, and soil, its displacement of Black farmers and Indigenous nations, and ways that regenerative agriculture proposes to transform these relationships. 20 minutes reserved for Q&A at the end.
Lunch Screening | Organic Roots: NOFA’s First 50 Years and a Vision for the Future
3pm-5pm: Panel 2 | Regenerative Agriculture in Practice
In the afternoon session, we dig in on the practice of regenerative ag. Our guest experts share their experience with soil-building, handling pests and diseases, nurturing biodiversity, and general best practices. 40 minutes reserved for Q&A at the end.
Guest Speakers
Ray Archuleta, the Soils Guy himself, has worked for over 25 years with NRCS as a Conservation Agronomist and has been a leading spokesperson for regenerative agriculture. (Panels 1 and 2)
Leah Penniman is a farmer, activist, author, co-founder and co-director of Soul Fire Farm in Petersburg NY. Leah brings the perspective of a Black woman who has helped many, many Black and Brown people reconnect with the land. (Panel 1)
Dr. Vern Grubinger is the Extension Professor and Vegetable and Berry Specialist at the University of Vermont. Vern has been helping farmers for over thirty years reach sustainable solutions to agricultural challenges. (Panels 1 and 2)
Dr. Jonathan Lundgren is the founder of Ecdysis Foundation and Blue Dasher Farm. Jonathan left a career at the USDA over the agency’s attempts to suppress his research around neonicotinoid pesticides and their ecological impacts. He has since dedicated himself to research around regenerative practices and is an advocate of their promises. (Panels 1 and 2)
Jody Bolluyt is one of the farmers at Roxbury Farm CSA in Kinderhook, NY. Roxbury Farm CSA grows 25 acres of organic vegetables and raises grass fed beef and pastured pork for their CSA members. An additional 25 to 30 acres is planted in cover crops each year. (Panel 2)
