Michael Ableman of ‘Beyond Organic’ fame comes to Everett

  • Sarah Jackson
  • Monday, October 13, 2008 3:42pm
  • Life

If you care where your food comes from and who grows it, here’s an event you won’t want to miss.

Farmer, author and renowned photographer Michael Ableman — dubbed a “gracious rebel” by the Sierra Club — will speak from 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 24 at Everett Station.

Ableman, an expert in small scale and urban agriculture who is currently farming on Salt Spring Island in British Columbia, was featured in the award-winning film, “Beyond Organic,” which aired nationally on PBS in 2001 with narration by Meryl Streep.

National Geographic, Utne Reader, Gourmet Magazine, the L.A. Times and NPR have all documented Ableman’s good works, according to his Web site.

Ableman’s third book “Fields of Plenty: A Farmer’s Journey in Search of Real Food and the People Who Grow It” was released in 2005.

In Everett, Ableman will lecture on “Feeding the Future: Stories, Images and Ideas from the Frontier of Food and Agriculture.”

Mary Embleton with the Cascade Harvest Coalition, which is hosting the event, said Ableman’s talk will engage and inspire.

“He’s very eloquent. He’s excellent and has just a wonderful way for relating farm and food and people and the earth. And he’s a wonderful photographer and a farmer. I just want to pack the room.”

Admission is $10 for members of the Cascade Harvest Coalition, $15 for non-members. Seating is limited. Reserve your seat by contacting Mary at 206-632-0606 or mary@cascadeharvest.org by Oct. 20. Light refreshments will be provided.

While you’re at it, I recommend you join the nonprofit Cascade Harvest Coalition, which recently learned that 75 percent of its operating budget (about $230,000) will be slashed thanks to the weak economy and a bunch of largely local government grants that won’t be funded because of operating shortfalls.

This awesome organization has about 300 members, including many farmers. It’s also the group behind the Eat Local for Thanksgiving program and, perhaps, the best eat-local Web site ever for Western Washington — Puget Sound Fresh, a huge community resource.

Membership for an individual is $35. What a great way to show your support for a special group trying to connect us consumers with local farmers!

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