Sustainable Food Systems in Waterloo Region Speaker Series
This series highlights experts in the food system as they discuss a number of topics and issues regarding the food system of Waterloo Region.
Tyzun James of Cafe Pyrus on Enacting a Sustainable Food System
Tyson James, owner of Cafe Pyrus discusses sustainable and ethical food sourcing and eating.
Food biodiversity, seed security, & Waterloo Region school food gardens–Bob Wildfong & Allison Eady
Bob Wildfong (ED of Seeds of Diversity) presents on Food biodiversity, seed security, participatory plant breeding, & Allison Eady (PhD Candidate and Seeds of Diversity staff) shares about Waterloo Region school food gardens and youth in food systems.
Managing Food Waste, with Kathleen Barsoum, Waste Management Coordinator, Region of Waterloo
Kathleen Barsoum discusses food issues within the supply chain and how to manage waste.
Local food systems planning by Region of Waterloo Public Health, 2000-2015, with Katherine Pigott
Katherine Pigott discusses issues within the food system, and her connection to action through Region of Waterloo Public Health.
Farming, sustainability, and community building with Angie Koch and Adam Kramer
Adam Kramer with the working center and Angie Koch from Fertile Ground talk about their connection to the local food system and local initiatives.
The story of Pfenning’s Organic Vegetable Farm
Wolfgang discusses his perspective of the food system as a an owner of an organic vegetable farm.
Food justice, place, and gentrification with Vanessa Ong
Vanessa Ong, an urban planning graduate at the University of Waterloo talks about her research and work concerning food security impacts and cultural preservation.
Relating to the Land, Collective Action, & Our Food Futures: Nikola Barsoum & Jodi Koberinski
Nikola Barsoum is founder of Half-moon Herbals and is a regenerative farmer. Jodi Koberinski is a U of Waterloo SSHRC doctoral fellow and a public intellectual.
Eco-social Transformation through Sustainable Food Systems, with Siobhan Bonisteel
Siobhan Bonisteel is an environmentalist and local food advocate, and is Chair of the Food System Roundtable of Waterloo Region.
Speaker Series Highlights
Shorter videos from the Sustainable Food Systems in Waterloo Region speakers series, showcasing main points and information from these talks.
Guest Speaker Highlights: Youth in Food Systems: Waterloo Region School Food Gardens – Allison Eady
Allison Eady (PhD Candidate and Seeds of Diversity staff) shares about Waterloo Region school food gardens and youth in food systems.
Guest Speaker Highlights: Local food systems planning with Region of Waterloo Public Health
Katherine Pigott discusses issues within the food system, and her connection to action through Region of Waterloo Public Health.
Guest Speaker Highlights: Relating to the Land, Collective Action, & Our Food Futures
Nikola Barsoum is founder of Half-moon Herbals and is a regenerative farmer. Jodi Koberinski is a U of Waterloo SSHRC doctoral fellow and a public intellectual.
Guest Speaker Highlights: Food justice, place, and gentrification with Vanessa Ong
Vanessa Ong, an urban planning graduate at the University of Waterloo talks about her research and work concerning food security impacts and cultural preservation.
Guest Speaker Highlights: Food biodiversity and seed security (Bob Wildfong)
Bob Wildfong (ED of Seeds of Diversity) presents on Food biodiversity, seed security, and participatory plant breeding.
Guest Speaker Highlights: Eco-social Transformation through Sustainable Food Systems
Siobhan Bonisteel is an environmentalist and local food advocate, and is Chair of the Food System Roundtable of Waterloo Region.
Guest Speaker Highlights: Enacting a Sustainable Food System (Tyzun James, Cafe Pyrus, Kitchener)
Tyson James, owner of Cafe Pyrus discusses sustainable and ethical food sourcing and eating.
Guest Speaker Highlights: Farming, sustainability & community building with Angie Koch & Adam Kramer
Adam Kramer with the working center and Angie Koch from Fertile Ground talk about their connection to the local food system and local initiatives.
Guest Speaker Highlights: Managing Food Waste in Waterloo Region, with Kathleen Barsoum
Kathleen Barsoum discusses food issues within the supply chain and how to manage waste.
Guest Speaker Highlights; The story of Pfenning’s Organic Vegetable Farm, with Wolfgang Pfenning
Wolfgang discusses his perspective of the food system as a an owner of an organic vegetable farm.
The New Canada Food Guide Panel Discussion
This series focuses on a panel of experts who discuss healthy and sustainable eating, as well as the effects of the Canadian food guide on everyday consumers’ choices.
Update on Canada’s Food Guide, with Public Health Nutritionist Ellen Gregg
Public Health Nutritionist Ellen Gregg presents at a panel discussion on “The New Canada Food Guide” hosted by the Waterloo Region Food System Roundtable.
Canada Food Guide panel discussion with Nick Benninger
Restauranteur Nick Benninger, of Fat Sparrow Group, speaks about the role of restaurants in promoting healthy and sustainable eating.
Poor nutrition is a logical response to our current food retail environment – with Dr Leia Minaker
U of Waterloo Planning professor Dr Leia Minaker speaks about the role of our food environments in promoting, or impeding, healthy and sustainable eating.
You and Earth are What you Eat. Canada’s New Food Guide panel discussion with Goretty Dias
University of Waterloo professor Dr Goretty Dias speaks about the challenges and opportunities for sustainable eating, or ecological nutrition, in relation to Canada’s new food guide.
Food Summit Speakers
This series includes clips from the 2009 and 2011 Food Summit held in Waterloo, Ontario.
Food Summit 2011
45 seconds of small group discussions taking place at the 2011 Waterloo Region Food Summit in Kitchener on April 30, 2011.
2009 Food Summit Overview
An edited, 5-minute video of the Waterloo Region Food Summit held in Kitchener in November 2009.
The Food Summit Story
The Waterloo Region Food Summit brought together over 170 people to discuss problems in our food system, especially the reality that ten percent of our local population does not have enough to eat.
Food Summit on Rogers TV’s Newsmakers
This half-hour episode of Rogers TV’s Newsmakers is devoted entirely to the Waterloo Region Food Summit and the news, which emerged the same day, that the food banks are serving more people than ever before.
Elbert Van Donkersgoed at the 2009 food summit
The Food Summit brought together over 170 people to discuss problems in our food system, especially the reality that ten percent of our local population does not have enough to eat.
Kathryn Scharf at the 2009 Food Summit
Kathryn Scharf, Program Director of The STOP Community Food Centre in Toronto (thestop.org), speaks to the Waterloo Region Food Summit on November 16, 2009 in Kitchener, Ontario.
Planning for Healthy and Sustainable Food Systems
Videos on understanding and building food systems grounded in sustainability, health and community
Healthy Communities by Design – Intro to the Healthy Communities Partnership by Katherine Pigott
This presentation is an overview of the Waterloo Region Healthy Communities Partnership by Region of Waterloo Public Health’s Katherine Pigott.
Translating Muncipal Food Policy into Local Food Action
Krista Long researched policies in the Official Plans of municipalities in Waterloo Region and found many policies supportive of local food. In this presentation she discusses ideas for encouraging residents and businesses to take advantage of the supportive policies to build a vibrant local food economy.
Local Food in Health Care
Presentation by Brendan Wylie-Toal of the Coalition for Green Health Care on November 29, 2011.
Healthy Communities by Design – Overview by Marc Xuereb
On April 17, 2013, the Waterloo Region Food System Roundtable co-hosted Healthy Communities by Design, an event calling attention to ways in which we could design cities to make healthier eating and activity choices easier for residents.
Supporting the Local Food Economy in Waterloo Region
Katherine Pigott, Manager of the Healthy Eating and Active Communities program at Region of Waterloo Public Health, describes some of the work her program has done to support the local food economy in Waterloo Region.
Understanding Networks in Waterloo Region’s Food Economy
Scott Ross was part of a research team which looked at how much attention is being paid to the local food sector by municipal economic development officials in Waterloo Region. In this presentation he shares the results of that research. Scott is a policy analyst for the Canadian Federation of Municipalities.
Shifting the Weight
Common perception blames obesity on individual lack of willpower. Ellen Curitti, Public Health Nutritionist with the Region of Waterloo, argues that the way humans are wired – biologically and psychologically – makes resisting unhealthy food environments very difficult. It’s time to shift the weight off the individual and start making healthy food options the default choice.
Indigenous Food Systems
Video resources pertaining to Indigenous food systems, speakers, and perspectives.
Food Sovereignty for First Nations, Métis, & Inuit Peoples on Turtle Island
Garrison McCleary teaches at Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning. Dave Skene serves as Co-executive Director of the White Owl Native Ancestry Association. Both serve as adjunct faculty at Martin Luther University College.
Sugarbush Live
View live outdoor footage of local wildlife, presented by the Waterloo Region District School Board.
Faith Food Forest Project Launch
This video captures the launch of Faith & the Common Good’s food forest project in partnership with Divest Waterloo and faith communities across Waterloo Region. It features Dr. Andrew Judge an Anishinaabe scholar and teacher sharing his knowledge of the Indigenous land-based sustainability practices that allowed the original peoples in this region to thrive and Nicola Thomas a Food Forest consultant and founder of Grand River Food Forestry sharing examples of her good work and describing how she will support project participants.
Other Videos
Video resources for those seeking additional information about food systems.
Government Action in Waterloo Region to Promote Food System Sustainability
Dr. Steffanie Scott discusses her five key recommendations for local government action to promote a just, and green future. Dr. Steffanie Scott is a professor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Management at the University of Waterloo.
Click on the pdf below to view a related graphic:
Can GM Foods Feed the World?
Taarini Chopra, University of Waterloo Master’s student, speaks about the promises of genetically modified food and their failure to live up to those promises, especially in the Global South. Using examples from India and Canada, Chopra examines whether GM foods produce higher yields, reduce pesticide use, or give farmers higher incomes.
Roundtable member Ron Laurie on Rogers Daytime
Ron Laurie, one of eighteen members of the Waterloo Region Food System Roundtable, speaks about some of the exciting new local food products emerging in response to demand in Waterloo Region.
Serving up Sustainability: Food Systems and Climate Change
In this panel, our speakers will present on five strategies that would put just & sustainable food systems at the heart of a green future. They will also look to how municipalities could support regenerative agriculture to mitigate climate change and encourage sustainable food consumption through shifts in food consumption habits.
Cultivating Racial Equity in Regenerative Agriculture
While social justice and equity are often overlooked in regenerative agriculture, we can’t talk about regeneration without looking at who owns farmland and why. What we see is a land disparity where Black, Indigenous, and farmers of colour are underrepresented. There are layered and systemic reasons for this including lack of access to farmland, environmental racism, racist policy barriers, and lack of funding. This conversation urges us to consider the systems of power at play and how to support BIPOC farmers to shape a more equitable, just, and democratic food and farming landscape.
Bechtel Lecture 2020 – Farmers Breakfast Panel
This breakfast round-table is a panel discussion of the way farming, food, family and faith come together in our various lives. The event is part two of a lecture series surrounding “Food & Faith: Mennonites Farming Locally and Globally.”
Keeping Seed in the Public Domain
Originally aired September 2015, this webinar is part of a series by The Bauta Family Initiative on Canadian Seed Security.