Benjamin Center to host panel talk on sustainable agriculture
NEW PALTZ – The Benjamin Center at SUNY New Paltz is sponsoring a free talk and panel discussion on the sustainable agriculture movement and its regional significance. The event will be led by Brian Obach, professor of sociology and director of the Environmental Studies Program, who will draw upon his new book “Organic Struggle: The Movement for Sustainable Agriculture in the United States.”
The event will take place from 4 – 6 p.m. onNov. 11 in the Honors Center, College Hall. It will include a book talk by Obach and a panel discussion featuring local sustainable agriculture advocates who were contributing sources to the book, including Liana Hoodes, the former executive director of the National Organic Coalition, and Dan Guenther, the founder of several community supported agriculture farms in the Hudson Valley. The group will talk about the opportunities for expanding sustainable agriculture in our region.
“Agriculture and food systems have been an area of focus in our research at the Center since our inception,” said KT Tobin, associate director of The Benjamin Center. “We continue to believe that the revitalization of agriculture in our region needs to be nurtured and supported through individual and organizational action and changes in public policy. Brian’s work is also emblematic of our core mission: to facilitate and promote faculty research with a regional focus that correlates with the College’s goal of being recognized as a cultural and intellectual hub for our region.”
“Organic Struggle” was published by MIT Press earlier this year. His research was featured in an October episode of The Academic Minute, a radio program featuring top faculty from national colleges and universities discussing their work.
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