I'm honored to have been chosen to participate in the TEDx Manhattan conference "Changing the Way We Eat" this weekend, January 21, 2012. (It's a bit crazy that a "real food" conference would be so popular they have to select who can attend!) I'll just be in the audience, but my goals are to learn, to connect, and to represent the perspective of regular families who are trying to do the best they can.
I firmly believe that the dinner table can be at the center of change, both for your own family and for the world. (I know, grand thinking.) I've written about this before, but today I want to hear from you: What questions or thoughts would you raise with the audience or presenters of the TEDxManhattan conference if you had the chance? What would you say about the role of parents or educators in improving access to good food or changing viewpoints? How would you "connect the dots" between family dinner and the food system?
I'm taking inspiration from the title of the conference itself: Changing the Way We Eat. Change begins with the way we eat: how and when we eat, preferably around a table at home. This stands alongside the broader issues of changing the food system: what we eat and how it got to our kitchen, our table, our plate, or our take-out bag.
What do you think? Please share in the comments below or join my Facebook page.
You can watch the conference Live-streamed at home or, even better, there are TEDx viewing parties all over the country where you can connect to people in your area and discuss these issues.
This is a great article, and a great topic to explore. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteGreat that you will be there to represent the family viewpoint! Since simply getting families to cook more often is part of the change, then what about asking for ideas on how to promote positive discussion about food? It seems that if we look forward to sharing stories about what we ate for dinner with our friends, co-workers, school-mates, we might be motivated to cook more. Looking forward to hearing the conference highlights!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment Kati! That's a great idea. I do think we can change norms and attitudes by sharing our more positive stories about family dinner.
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