We are excited to announce that EMERGE is creating a Restorative Food Justice Program as a part of our support services! When people leave prison, they are disproportionately affected by food insecurity, due to poor economic opportunity and inequitable food access. This program will teach skills such as gardening, cooking, and food safety, while also ensuring that people learn about the structural barriers to purchasing healthy, sustainable, and culturally appropriate food.
Through Sustainable CT, we have been awarded a matching grant to fund the program, but need to raise $5,600 in order to receive the match dollars!
With your help, we aim to increase the consumption and availability of healthy and culturally appropriate food in New Haven for participants at EMERGE, while minimizing obstacles to community re-entry. We surveyed the needs and wants of participants, and through that information we are building a curriculum and setting up job opportunities with our community partners. Immersive workshops include:
- Growing backyard herbs and composting
- Cooking healthy alternatives to favorite meals
- Global food system inequities
- Centering voices of participants through personal food narratives and photo journaling
- Community involvement and wellness by practicing learned skills with family and peers
$11,200 will be used to pay to conduct workshops starting in late February. This will help us pay for:
Staff and Instruction: EMERGE staff to facilitate classes and our partners: local food-based community organizations that work on creating an equitable food system.
Supplies for Participants: Indigenous seeds, ServSafe training and certificate, copies of Farming While Black, and food.
https://www.patronicity.com/project/restorative_food_justice_program_at_emerge_ct?src=54599#!/
Please donate, share, and spread the word to help this amazing project take off!
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