Reform, Justice, and Sovereignty: A Food Systems Agenda for Environmental Communication

Abstract

Food ecologies and economies are vital to the survival of communities, nonhuman species, and our planet. While environmental communication scholars have legitimated food as a topic of inquiry, the entangled ecological, cultural, economic, racial, colonial, and alimentary relations that sustain food systems demand greater attention. In this essay, we review literature within and beyond environmental communication, charting the landscape of critical food work in our field. We then illustrate how environmental justice commitments can invigorate interdisciplinary food systems-focused communication scholarship articulating issues of, and critical responses to, injustice and inequity across the food chain. We stake an agenda for food systems communication by mapping three orientations-food system reform, justice, and sovereignty-that can assist in our critical engagements with and interventions into the food system. Ultimately, we entreat environmental communication scholars to attend to the bends, textures, and confluences of these orientations so that we may deepen our future food-related inquiries.

The SNAP Challenge: Communicating Food Security Capabilities through Anti-Hunger Advocacy

“…Mobilizing hunger to advocate for food system reform may potentially reify the social and political stigma endured by those living in poverty (Gordon & Hunt, 2018;Hunt, 2015). Food reform initiatives like the SCthat can communicate the economic, social, environmental, and physiological capabilities of SNAP recipients as well as campaign participants-may foster identification between these disparate social groups.…”

Food (in)security communication: a Journal of Applied Communication Research forum addressing current challenges and future possibilities

“…One way around this, for me, has been Cooperative Extension-through programming, community workshops, and peerreviewed/public publications, Extension embodies transdisciplinary praxis. Although food and agriculture-related Extension initiatives tend to be reform-oriented (that is, less radical than food justice or sovereignty approaches, see Gordon & Hunt, 2018), the institutional support, grant funding, and other resources Extension can leverage often make localized, sustainable food systems projects more palatable and accessible. Every state has a land grant university; for those committed to community-engaged scholarship, particularly related to food/agriculture systems, Extension can be a worthwhile outlet for interdisciplinary collaboration.…”

“…As Dutta argues above, 'the struggle against food insecurity is both material and communicative.' Recent rich examples of research include: (Dougherty, 2011;Dougherty et al, 2018;Dutta & Thaker, 2019;Gordon & Hunt, 2018;LeGreco & Douglas, 2017). To this, Dutta emphasizes how the 'ownership of communicative resources is a site of struggle,' and (with Dutta & Thaker, 2019) develops the concept of communicative sovereignty in their study of dalit women farmers.…”

Virtual barriers: unpacking the sustainability implications of online food spaces and the Yellowknife Farmers Market’s response to COVID-19

“…Farmers markets are defined by their capacity to build direct connections and ‘short circuit’ the conventional food system by bringing farmers and community members together in the sale of locally-produced food [ 3 , 12 , 15 ]. These markets are no longer, however, considered a panacea to solve all the environmental and social problems of conventional agriculture and food systems [ 5 , 16 , 17 ]. They are community food spaces with the potential to connect communities and producers, provide infrastructure to support small sustainable farms, and support resilient integrated systems that are essential in times of crisis [ 11 , 12 , 16 – 18 ].…”

“…These markets are no longer, however, considered a panacea to solve all the environmental and social problems of conventional agriculture and food systems [ 5 , 16 , 17 ]. They are community food spaces with the potential to connect communities and producers, provide infrastructure to support small sustainable farms, and support resilient integrated systems that are essential in times of crisis [ 11 , 12 , 16 – 18 ].…”