Slow Food Columbus hosted a lecture series in winter 2021 on equity, inclusion and justice called “Adaptation and Resilience: Food, Food Security, and Food Systems in and outside of central Ohio.”

Slow Food Minnesota produced a documentary focused on sharing the stories of people in the Twin Cities region who have historically been prevented from accessing arable land, been removed from or exploited in foodways and had intergenerational agricultural knowledge ignored or erased. The film focuses on these stories to reintroduce them into the mainstream cultural narrative about who grows our food.

Slow Food Portland hosted an International Women’s Day panel discussion that featured Native American farmers and seed savers.

Slow Food Prescott wrote an opening acknowledgement statement, connected with local Indigenous tribes and the Museum of Indigenous People, and partnered with an LGBTQ+ community organization.

The Ark of Taste national committee conducted a major review and update of entries, and collaboration with the Cooks’ Alliance began for a producers matrix.

Slow Fish North America convened Slow Fish 2021, a virtual gathering of fishers and friends of our waters and foodways that featured 50 speakers across six days for 201 attendees. 

Slow Food Charleston nourished a project to grow out the Lemon Cling Peach Project, an Ark of Taste heirloom peach, in partnership with the MUSC Urban Farm.

Slow Food Denver hosted a seed saving event with Spirit of the Sun and Ekar farm, teaching the community about seed saving practices from Indigenous communities, and the importance of seed saving in our society to ensure biological diversity.

Slow Food DC connected with mutual aid groups, farmers’ markets, and community gardens around the city as part of the Share a Seed program. The efforts helped collect extra seeds and garden supplies and redistribute them to others. 

Slow Food Wallowas’ producer grant program has continuously grown over the past five years. They provided one grant in 2021 for $3,000 and then fundraised to create a $5,000 grant application released in November 2021.

Slow Food East Bay continued a relationship with Asian Business Institute & Resource Center to introduce specialty produce from Hmong farmers to a broader range of people in the California Bay Area. 

Slow Food Seattle arranged for planting, growing and purchase of seeds of the Makah Ozette Potato, an Ark of Taste product. The potato seeds were sold (without profit) to community growers and donated to Indigenous organizations and farmers.

Slow Food NYC harvested nearly 1,000 pounds of farm-fresh vegetables through their Urban Harvest Farm at Ujima and distributed it themselves and with partner organizations like Coretta Scott-King Senior Housing Facility and a mutual-aid fridge at Universe City.

Slow Food North Shore (New Jersey) restored a garden at Volunteers in Medicine (VIM), a volunteer-based free clinic. Now, vegetables are given to clients and the garden is incorporated into their counseling on nutrition.

Slow Food Lake Tahoe’s Food Bank Garden produced nearly 400 pounds of fresh, organic produce in 2021. Those vegetables are then distributed through local partner Sierra Community House.

Slow Food Springfield (IL) partnered with local nonprofit Compass for Kids on a program called Meals That Matter, which worked with local restaurants to prepare meals for under-served families.

Slow Food Upstate (Greenville, SC) provided Ark of Taste foods, recipes and stories to SNAP-Ed and Clemson Free Clinic clients.

Slow Books curated a network-wide read along of Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding Sweetgrass in the fall. The volunteer team hosted a facilitator training to help people lead their own reading groups, provided a discussion guide, and put together a virtual toolkit.

Slow Food Greater Olympia partnered with The Evergreen State College to highlight the stories of past and present regional farmers who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. This event culminated in a virtual gathering where students trained by one of our members in the art of oral history read aloud the stories they wrote about these farmers.

Lil’ Sprouts is Slow Food Denver’s K-5 enrichment program that teaches children the entire seed-to-plate process. They use a learner driven approach that inspires students to develop healthy, lifelong eating habits by making the connection between where food comes from and how it is prepared.

Slow Food O’ahu sponsored and promoted foraging tours on the island. As an outside activity, this was one of the few events they felt comfortable hosting during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Slow Food St. Louis started a virtual fundraising campaign called Slow Food U, a monthly virtual speaker series showcasing the work of local farmers, makers and chefs. 

The Food and Farm Policy Working Group hosted four panel discussions via Slow Food Live that highlighted key legislation designed to make a big impact on food systems, including the Child Nutrition Reauthorization and the 2023 Farm Bill.

Slow Food Memphis continues efforts to double the value of EBT dollars spent at the local farmers’ market. This lowers the barrier to fresh, local produce and goods for community members going through economic hardship.

Through Slow Food Phoenix’s advocacy platform, they focus on healthy food in schools and continue their work with Blue Watermelon Project, Pinnacle Prevention and the AZ Food Action Plan.

Slow Food Vegas advocated for Nevada Assembly Bill 138. This bill removed barriers to SNAP benefits for those convicted of drug offenses.