CEFS Symposium on Agriculture, Food Systems, and Climate Change

Climate Change Symposium - August 11 2022 in Raleigh, NC

What could, should, and will be our responses to the changing climate?

What innovative agricultural research and farming practices can lead to resilient agricultural systems under a changing climate in North Carolina? How can community-based food systems contribute to climate resiliency in our state? How can policies and practices be informed by a holistic and science-based understanding of climate change?

Held on August 11, 2022, the first CEFS Symposium on Agriculture, Food Systems, and Climate Change brought together interdisciplinary researchers, policymakers, farmers, and community leaders for interactive discussions to highlight novel ideas and priorities for our agriculture and food systems to address climate change. This symposium was open to all and concluded with a networking opportunity to cultivate new collaborations and communication among symposium participants. CEFS is excited to exchange ideas, share solutions, and engage with others committed to addressing climate change.

Proceeds from the CEFS Symposium on Agriculture, Food Systems and Climate Change will support the CEFS Student Support Fund, with the goal to recruit diverse students and fund graduate student support, internships and other experiential learning activities focused on climate change, equity, diversity, social justice and other sustainable agriculture and food system CEFS priorities.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Robert Bonnie, USDA Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation

Robert Bonnie is the Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation at USDA. Prior to joining USDA, Bonnie was at Duke University first as a Rubenstein Fellow and later as an Executive in Residence at the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions working on conservation and environmental issues in rural America. In 2020, Bonnie also worked with the Bipartisan Policy Center on its Farm and Forest Carbon Solutions Initiative. Bonnie was Under Secretary for Natural Resources and Environment at USDA from 2013 to 2017, and a senior advisor to Secretary Tom Vilsack from 2009 to 2013. Prior to joining USDA, Robert was vice president for land conservation at Environmental Defense Fund where he focused on developing incentives to reward stewardship on private lands. Robert has master’s degrees from Duke in forestry and environmental management.

Dr. Rattan Lal, Distinguished Professor of Soil Science, Ohio State University (VIRTUAL)

Dr. Rattan Lal, Ph.D., is a Distinguished University Professor of Soil Science and Director of the CFAES Rattan Lal Center for Carbon Management and Sequestration at The Ohio State University (OSU); Adjunct Professor of the University of Iceland and the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), India; and a Visiting Professor at Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso (PUCV), Chile. Dr. Lal has researched on soil-centric agricultural management to improve food security and develop climate-resilient agriculture through soil carbon sequestration, sustainable intensification, use efficiency of agroecosystems, sustainable management of soils, and soil health. His career in soil science and international agricultural research spans over 5 decades and four continents.

Karen Washington, Co-Owner and Farmer, Rise and Root Farm

Karen Washington has lived in New York City all her life, and has spent decades promoting urban farming as a way for all New Yorkers to access fresh, locally grown food. Karen has been a resident of the Bronx for over 26 years, although in 2015 she began living part-time in Orange County, NY near the farm. Since 1985 Karen has been a community activist, striving to make New York City a better place to live. As a community gardener and board member of the New York Botanical Gardens, Karen worked with Bronx neighborhoods to turn empty lots into community gardens. As an advocate, she stood up and spoke out for garden protection and preservation. As a member of the La Familia Verde Community Garden Coalition, she helped launched a City Farms Market, bringing garden fresh vegetables to her neighbors. She also co-founded Black Urban Growers (BUGS), an organization of volunteers committed to building networks and community support for growers in both urban and rural settings. In 2012 Ebony magazine voted her one of their 100 most influential African Americans in the country, and in 2014 she was awarded with the James Beard Leadership Award.

AGENDA

TimeSpeakers and Panelists
1:00 PMWelcome Dr. Michelle Schroeder-Moreno
1:15 PMFireside Chat (VIRTUAL): Confronting the climate change impacts in agriculture and food systems Dr. Rattan Lal, Distinguished Professor of Soil Science, Ohio State University
Moderator: Danielle Nierenberg
1:40 PMFireside chat: USDA policies and programs to support agriculture and food systems in the face of climate changeRobert Bonnie, USDA Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation
Moderator: Danielle Nierenberg
2:05 PMQ&A
2:15 PMAgricultural Research Panel: Sustaining Agriculture in the Face of Climate Change - What Research Can Lead to Resilient Practices? Dr. Alex Woodley
Dr. Alan Franzluebbers
Dr. Chris Reberg-Horton
Dr. Hao Feng
Moderator: Dr. Michelle Schroeder-Moreno
2:50 PMFarmer Panel: Farmers leading agricultural practices to mitigate and adapt to climate change in NC Davon Goodwin
Martha Mobley
Zeb Winslow
Moderator: Tom Philpott
3:20 PMQ&A and BREAK
3:45 PMFireside Chat: Importance of diverse food system leaders in developing climate change resilience Karen Washington, Co-owner and Farmer, Rise and Root Farm
Moderator: Dr. Cynthia Greenlee
4:10 PMFood Systems Panel: Community leaders transforming food system change across North Carolina  Juanita Wilson
Greg Jacobs
Savi Horne
Joseph Owle
Moderator: Danielle Nierenberg
4:45 PMQ&A and Closing Remarks
5:00 PMReception

Health and Safety: We have chosen a large space to allow social distancing and airflow. We ask any participants that are not feeling well the day of to please join us another time.

AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH PANEL

Sustaining Agriculture in the Face of Climate Change- What Research Can Lead to Resilient Practices?

Dr. Alex Woodley

Assistant Professor in Sustainable and Organic Soil Fertility, NC State University

Dr. Alan Franzluebbers

Research Ecologist,USDA-Agricultural Research Service and Co-Director, Southeast Regional Climate Hub

Dr. Chris Reberg-Horton

Precision Sustainable Agriculture Network, NC State University

Dr. Hao Feng

Blue Cross and Blue Shield Endowed Professor, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University

FARMER PANEL

Farmers leading agricultural practices to mitigate and adapt to climate change in North Carolina

Davon Goodwin

Off the Land (OTL) Farms, Manager at Sandhills AG Innovation Center

Martha Mobley

Meadow Lane Farm and Franklin County Extension Agent

Zeb Winslow

Z3 Agriculture LLC

FOOD SYSTEM PANEL

Community leaders transforming food system change across North Carolina

Savi Horne

Director, NC Association of Black Lawyers Land Loss Prevention Project

Greg Jacobs

Tribal Administrator for Coharie Intra-Tribal Council, Inc.

Joseph Owle

Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians

Juanita Wilson

Co-Chair, Nikwasi Initiative, Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians

MODERATORS

Danielle Nierenberg

President of Food Tank

Dr. Michelle Schroeder-Moreno

CEFS Interim Co-Director and Assistant Director of Educational Programs

Tom Philpott

Food and Ag correspondent, Mother Jones

Dr. Cynthia Greenlee

Historian and Journalist