Sustainable Food and Farming Conference, Joel Salatin, Labeling Genetically Modified Organisms

Today on the show we listened to coverage from the Sustainable Food and Farming Conference that happened this past weekend in Nevada county. Anna Ruth recorded talks by Michael Ableman and Joel Salatin. She also talked with David Edwards who is part of a grassroots coalition to require that foods containing GMO ingredients be labeled. To learn more about this campaign: http://www.labelgmos.org/

We also discussed GMOs and the recent decision by BASF, a German chemical company, to stop selling GM Amflora potatoes in Europe. The company cited widespread consumer opposition to their genetically modified products and has decided to focus their operations and sales in America and Asia. The only biotech crop now grown in Europe is a Monsanto corn variety.

Songs we played:

Dar Williams- As Cool As I Am

Woollen Kits- Out of Whack

P.F. Commando- Allt Ok

The Champs- Tequila

To listen to today's show click here!

Nyame Selassie: Ecobarrios USA, and Laurie Glover: author of "Off-the-road histories, California"

Today's show features Neda Yousefian's interview with Nyame Selassie about the Ecobarrios USA movement which is based out of the Bay Area and also working in Detroit, New Orleans, and Atlanta. For more information about the Ecobarrios movement and what has been happening in Mexico, click here to go to the Comun Tierra site. Like the Facebook page Ecobarrios USA by clicking here.

Then we spoke with Laurie Glover, a UC Davis lecturer, about her new book On the Road Histories, California. You will never see California the same way again! A great book about the history of this beautiful and diverse state.

Songs we played:

Jac et le Takeifa- Guissane

Fleet Foxes- Sun it Rises

Joni Mitchell- California

To listen to the show click here. (please excuse the minor tech difficulties we had at the beginning!)

Solar Panels in the Mojave & Cofed Retreat : Food, Politics, and Cooperative Business

For the first show of 2012, local Dirt co-host AnnaTruth covers the Cofed retreat in Berkeley, California. Tune in to hear from leaders, organizers and students who are doing work to change the world we live in, one coopreative at a time. AnnaTruth chats with Janaki Jagannath, a small farmer from Southern California and recent graduate of UC Davis, about what it takes to start a coop: organizing, business planning, fundraising and campaigning.

We then hear from Anna Isaacs, Cofed's Northwest regional organizer, and former worker-owner of the Flaming Eggplant, a cooperative cafe on the Evergreen State campus in Olympia, Washington. After traveling to Venezuela and working with farming, grocery, and food processing cooperatives, she became aware of the rich history of coops in the United States, which is what brings her to

Danny Spitzberg, lead trainer of cofed, formerly worked with Slow Food UW in Madison Wisconson

Vassar studetns Zach Zielman and Marshall Daily tell us about their draems of opening the Pumpkin Patch on the Vassar College campus

Anna Davidson: Art/Science Fusion and Natalia Kresich: Social Action and Occupy UCD

On the show today we had Anna Davidson in the studio to talk about the Entomology 1 Art Science Fusion class and their one-evening exhibition Cabinets of Curiosity that was held on Saturday, December 3rd. In this class students learned about insects and then made art with clay, painting or found objects. For more information about this and other art science fusion courses at UCD: http://artsciencefusion.ucdavis.edu/

The second half of the show was dedicated to

talking about recent Occupy UC Davis events including the re-naming of Dutton Hall to Paulo Friere Open University. We had Natalia Kresish, a UCD student activist, in the studio to share her thoughts and experiences on social action and

the Occupy movements here at UCD and in San Francisco.

The music we played today:

The Buena Vista Social Club songs: Chan Chan and Candela

Fela Kuti: Teacher Don't Teach Me No Nonsense

Click here to listen to the show!

Michael McQuarrie, UC Regents Meeting 11/28

We had Michael McQuarrie in the studio to talk about the history of student movements, social change and the current events surrounding the Occupy movement. Dr. McQuarrie is a professor in the Sociology department at UC Davis and has worked extensively with grassroots community organizing, especially with labor unions.

For the second part of the show we played a segment from the open comment part of the UC Regents meeting that was held on four UC campuses on 11/28. We also discussed the Occupy UC Davis teach-ins that are happening on campus this week.

For the full schedule of The Dissent Lectures click HERE.

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Occupy Oakland, Davis, and UC Davis: after the pepper spray

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Soul Food Farm, Swords into Plowshares, Farmer-Veteran Coalition

The first half of the show features Alexis Koefed of Soul Food Farms in Vacaville. Her operation features pastured poultry including eggs and meat. For more info about her farm and CSA go to www.soulfoodfarm.com

The second half will be dedicated to Veteran's Day, we will be speaking with Paul Cox, a Vietnam veteran who is an activist and advocate for veterans of current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. More info available at http://www.swords-to-plowshares.org/

Then we turn to Michael O'Gorman, a founder with the Farmer Veteran Coalition based here in Davis. The Farmer Veteran Coalition seeks to give opportunities to young veterans as they return to civilian life as production farmers, what O'Gorman calls "the second most challengin job in the U.S." after serving in the military. More info about how to get involved with the Farmer-Veteran Coalition is available at http://www.farmvetco.org/

Click here to listen to this week's show!