Agrarian made easy

South Osborne

The Harvest Moon Society is based in the former elementary school in Clearwater, Man., 2.5 hours southwest of Winnipeg, and its mission and vision statements embrace the notion of learning, teaching and encouraging people to build a sustainable food system for future generations.

While it is based in rural Manitoba, it has plenty of connections to the city, and hundreds of people regularly make the trek to the annual Harvest Moon Festival every September.

Next week, the Harvest Moon Society will bring its annual Agrarian After Dark program to the Park Theatre — an event which brings together rural producers and city folk to connect and engage in valuable conversation about sustainability, cultivation, and good, local food.

The program is a collaborative effort of Harvest Moon, The Dogs Run Farm, The Young Agrarians, Fireweed Food Co-op (which operates the South Osborne Farmers’ Market), and Manitoba Organics (the newest addition to the organizing committee). The word ‘agrarian’ relates to ownership and use of land, and the part of a society or economy that is concerned with agriculture. But, no matter where you’re from, Agrarian After Dark is an oasis of information.

“One of the core ideas behind this event is building community, and the way we do that is bringing like-minded people to the table to try and make sure we’re covering all of our bases,” said Dustin Mymko, co-ordinator at the Harvest Moon Society.

The evening will be split into three parts: a dinner, followed by speaker and a question-and-answer session.

This year’s slate includes Jennifer deGroot of Big Oak Farm near Morden, Man.; David Scott, an Ojibwa knowledge keeper and environmental expert, and Finn Rachul, a land-based educator, of Swan Lake First Nation; Katie McInnes of The Dogs Run Farm; Connor English, a fifth-generation cattle farmer from Bradwardine, Man.; Marika Dewar-Norosky, executive director at Manitoba Organics; and Kenton Lobe, assistant professor of international development studies and environmental studies at Canadian Mennonite University, who will also serve as moderator.

Mymko said torganizers have attempted to create a healthy cross-section of perspectives, and he believes people will be excited to hear from Lobe, as he has a healthy helping of knowledge to share on several of the topics — which include advice on eating local year-round, food insecurity from an Ojibwa perspective, grazing management, and more.

“What we’re really working towards here at Harvest Moon is bridging the urban-rural divide,” Mymko said. “Trying to connect folks from the city with the folks in the ground, and the land that grows their food, (is) sort of at the core of almost everything we do.

“Oftentimes we do that out here in Clearwater, but getting people from the city to Clearwater isn’t always the easiest, and so we dreamed this up as a way of bringing that idea into the city… to connect consumers with producers in a conversational setting, as a way to sort of strengthen and grow that community.”

The aim is to create a space for everyone affected by food access.

“We’ve also tried to include fibre farmers as well, as that is a big part of the equation, we think,” he said.

Mymko admitted that organizers were scared to unleash the event at first, but have been overwhelmed by the positive response. He said past Q&A sessions have been especially lively.

“There were some really engaging questions from the audience,” he recalled. “And there’s some really great conversations that came out of it… we knew we were on the right track.”

“It’s quite inspiring and motivating, but it’s also heartening,” he said. “I’m a city boy. I grew up in Winnipeg and moved out (to Cartwright) 12 or so years ago. So I see sort of both sides of the coin… So for me, it’s been very educational and helps me to understand that urban-rural divide… creating that community and creating those connections.”

Tickets to Agrarian After Dark are $15 for general admission. For more information, visit harvestmoonsociety.org