The group I was in collaborated to address the issue of food accessibility. Food accessibility is a huge issue to tackle in just a few weeks, initially I had a hard time applying a global framework as I couldn’t ignore the impacts of food inaccessibility felt locally in the University district and greater Seattle area. I came across a tri-campus survey through my workplace which went on to publish particularly eye-opening results highlighting the severity of food and housing insecurity among University of Washington students. Once we dove deeply into systems thinking, I realized that food insecurity in the University district is symptomatic of a global food crisis. Elizabeth Wheat and Anne Goodchild approach this issue from a more personal perspective. This stuck with me as academia tends to make issues very impersonal. I learned so much about the role of farms in the global food system, yet I never examined the power structure imposed on farmers and the agriculture industry. Learning about Elizabeth Wheat’s foundation in theoretical work during her early career stages served to ground the information she was sharing, in the theoretical work we explored in class.
My understanding of food justice has been altered, Goodchild and Wheat emphasized that food accessibility is a symptom of a systemic issue, economic wealth distribution is at the center of food inaccessibility and global economic inequity. If farmers and workers aren’t paid enough, the most vulnerable in the system are the ones to suffer the consequences, not the real policy makers.
Economic transformation theory isn’t very useful alone, Wheat highlighted the importance of sharing the resources our privileges grant us and community outreach. As a West-Asian student at a neoliberal academic institution I’ve had to rely heavily on theory and scholarly jargon to validate my opinions. This is an easy vacuum to get pulled into as it gets scholars very far up the institutional ladder, while I need to survive and make a living, its important to me that disadvantaged communities aren’t left behind. There is no easy solution to addressing global food accessibility, we must interrogate our systems of government and hold them accountable reckless policy making. As active members of the global food system our daily actions comprise a daily plebiscite to uphold or destroy the current institutions we allow to govern us.
