AN: Goals in the world of farming and food and are always crazily lofty, so it’s with a grain of salt that I say we need to change our food system. Every person needs to be able to eat every day. Then there’s always the quest to treat the land better and feed as many people as you can. If I can, as a microcosm, do these things I believe in, then the goal is to do it in a way that’s replicable.
A larger goal would be to get people into this idea who are crazy enough to do it too.
As a small scale farmer, we need a more sensible health care plan and more support from the government. I want to educate people about how the physical agricultural work is connected to policy. Structurally, we need more support or we’ll have a lot of good hearted people who are facing burn out.
CE: What does change look like to you?
AN: What’s great about farming is its decades-long view, so over time, change can mean having an ecological impact that’s positive. Or better yet, not having an ecological impact. Change is living more gently. I’m going to die without knowing even half of what there is to know about farming. So working small for a larger picture, I try to think of this work as extremely long-term, beneficial ecosystem change.
CE: Regarding the practicalities of enacting change, what planning is involved? What kind of outreach?
AN: You have to start with being absolutely in love and committed to what you’re doing. What makes radical work stick is really being what you’re doing. That’s what gives it fire.
CE: What projects are affiliated with yours?
Broadway Stages is our host. Goode Green is the green roof company that installed the farm’s green roof.
Overall, what’s great about NYC right is there are quite a lot of urban agriculture projects. It’s a good network. Like the new organization for the People’s Garden in front of City Hall, or much older institutions like the Botanical Gardens, etc. There’s momentum that’s beyond a trend.
CE: What projects and people have you got your eye on or are you impressed by?
AN: So many people are doing such great work:
The Greenhorns
Just Food
The New York Botanical Gardens
…And I work with a wonderful homesteader and beekeeper of BrooklynHoney.com
CE: Where do you see the state of agriculture/food policy in the next 5-10 years? Is real policy change a real possibility?
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