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DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250213T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250213T133000
DTSTAMP:20250220T193217Z
CREATED:20250113T201332Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250220T193217Z
UID:10000611-1739448000-1739453400@www.nfu.ca
SUMMARY:Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF): The NFU’s recent report
DESCRIPTION:Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAFs) are lower-emission\, non-fossil-fuel energy sources for the world’s aircraft fleet—“drop-in” fuels that require no modifications to aircraft or engines. The proposal is to make SAFs largely from biological sources: corn\, soybeans\, and canola now and over the next decade or so\, and then increasingly from straw and other “agricultural residues” and from purpose-grown energy crops such as grasses or fast-growing trees (with a minor portion from forestry residues).Why should citizens and policymakers be concerned about SAFs?  Because the immense scale of the global SAF project creates significant potential to move us away from many of our food systems\, climate\, decarbonization\, sustainability\, and social justice goals. At the same time\, the huge\, global SAF project may fail in its stated intent: to slash greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and warming effects from a rapidly expanding aviation sector.Darrin Qualman\, NFU Director of Climate Crisis Policy and Action\, will explain SAFs and tell webinar participants why the global SAF megaproject may be among the largest factors shaping agriculture and food systems this century.
URL:https://www.nfu.ca/event/sustainable-aviation-fuel-saf-the-nfus-recent-report/
CATEGORIES:NFUniversity
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.nfu.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/NFUniversity-2023-2024-900-x-600-px.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250227T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250227T133000
DTSTAMP:20250131T204650Z
CREATED:20250127T210511Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250131T204650Z
UID:10000615-1740657600-1740663000@www.nfu.ca
SUMMARY:Achieving Security and Justice through Collective Action and Solidarity
DESCRIPTION:In her 2023 CBC Massey Lecture series\, Astra Taylor argued “Insecurity is really central to the functioning of our political and economic system.” Rising farm debts\, the transformation of land into a financial instrument\, and our reliance on the market to fulfill basic needs has created insecurity and hollowed out rural communities.We live in the most prosperous era in human history\, but it’s also an era of profound insecurity. Ultimately\, however\, we are reliant on each other for our collective existence\, and it is this interdependence that will help us to resist the manufactured insecurity that we face today. \n\n\n\nAstra will argue that the interdependence that is needed will manifest in the form of solidarity. Solidarity must be seen both as a principle and as practice that can address the polycrisis that we face in this age of manufactured insecurity.
URL:https://www.nfu.ca/event/achieving-security-and-justice-through-collective-action-and-solidarity/
CATEGORIES:NFUniversity
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LOCATION:
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250313T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250313T133000
DTSTAMP:20250324T203421Z
CREATED:20250127T211457Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250324T203421Z
UID:10000617-1741867200-1741872600@www.nfu.ca
SUMMARY:Green Grabbing & IPES-Food Land Squeeze Report
DESCRIPTION:Unprecedented pressures on global farmland from “green” initiatives like carbon offsets\, tree plantations\, and biofuel crops are accelerating and converging in a  land squeeze that is  driving a surge in land inequality\, rural poverty\, and food insecurity – and risking a tipping point for smallholder agriculture.The Land Squeeze Report published by the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food) details ongoing land dispossession as new forms of land grabs proliferate. Sofía Monsalve Suárez will highlight the problems and discuss the solutions that IPES-Food proposes.\, We will also hear how countries like Colombia are currently working towards such solutions.
URL:https://www.nfu.ca/event/green-grabbing-ipes-food-land-squeeze-report/
CATEGORIES:NFUniversity
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LOCATION:
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250327T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250327T133000
DTSTAMP:20250401T001954Z
CREATED:20250127T212117Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250401T001954Z
UID:10000618-1743076800-1743082200@www.nfu.ca
SUMMARY:Do we have the Right to Repair in Canada?
DESCRIPTION:What happens when our toaster breaks? What can we do with a broken cellphone? Why don’t we have access to repair information for farm machinery? Should equipment manufacturers really be allowed to charge the rates that they do to fix tractors? The right to repair goes beyond the ability for consumers to repair electronics\, appliances\, and machinery. The right to repair is about independence and freedom from major manufacturers in order to have access to timely and inexpensive repairs\, as well as operability between products that suit the needs of consumers and farm businesses. It is also about affordability and sustainability – repairability and durability of products ensure that Canadians do not have to re-buy products that were intentionally designed to be replaced with newer products – also known as planned obsolescence.Dr. Alissa Centivany will present on the current state of the right to repair in Canada\, including legislation on repairability\, interoperability\, and durability. We will hear about recent changes to the Copyright and Competition Acts that have made a substantial right to repair more achievable in Canada. Dr. Centivany will also talk about the values of the right to repair and argue that a right to repair reflects deeper values about how we take care of the tools we use\, ourselves\, and our relationships.
URL:https://www.nfu.ca/event/do-we-have-the-right-to-repair-in-canada/
CATEGORIES:NFUniversity
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.nfu.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/NFUniversity-2023-2024-900-x-600-px.jpg
LOCATION:
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250410T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250410T133000
DTSTAMP:20250415T032331Z
CREATED:20250127T212707Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250415T032331Z
UID:10000621-1744286400-1744291800@www.nfu.ca
SUMMARY:Too much IS too much! Confronting ecological overshoot
DESCRIPTION:The global community is fixated on climate change as the existential threat facing civilization. Bill Rees argues that this focus misses the point entirely.  Global heating is only one symptom of an over-riding meta-problem: ecological overshoot (where societal impacts now exceed the Earth’s capacity to recover) . Overshoot is the inevitable result of excessive material growth on a finite planet driven by industrial capitalism and its hand-maiden\, neoliberal economics. Politically acceptable solutions to global heating are not fixing the climate\, are causing considerable additional environmental damage and are worsening overshoot. Unattended\, overshoot is a terminal condition. What can communities do to increase self-reliance\, enhance food security and otherwise cushion themselves against the coming contraction?NFU climate committee member\, Rick Munroe\, will provide extra context to this conversation about overshoot and growth by presenting on his research on government awareness of this issue. Rick will present about the level of awareness among Government of Canada’s research on this topic and whether or not our federal government has ever analyzed the contradiction between two competing goals: constant economic growth versus ecological health & long-term resource requirements
URL:https://www.nfu.ca/event/too-much-is-too-much-confronting-ecological-overshoot/
CATEGORIES:NFUniversity
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.nfu.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/NFUniversity-2023-2024-900-x-600-px.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250424T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250424T133000
DTSTAMP:20250430T144756Z
CREATED:20250128T195756Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250430T144756Z
UID:10000623-1745496000-1745501400@www.nfu.ca
SUMMARY:A better world is possible! Utopia in Thought and Action
DESCRIPTION:Utopia is usually considered to be an ideal that exists only in thought but is unable to change our everyday lives. However\, William Paris  believes utopia in fact helps us develop our creative capacities and reshape ordinary life. Utopia is not an ideal created by philosophers– it is the real struggle in our everyday lives to organize the spaces of our lives around freedom\, flourishing\, and solidarity instead of accumulation\, alienation\, and domination. Imagining a better world for farmers\, farming and agriculture is an essential tool for change. Bringing together the space of thought and the space of life is the most important  task of utopia.
URL:https://www.nfu.ca/event/a-better-world-is-possible-utopia-in-thought-and-action/
CATEGORIES:NFUniversity
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.nfu.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/NFUniversity-2023-2024-900-x-600-px.jpg
LOCATION:
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250528T190000
DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20250528T203000
DTSTAMP:20260302T182631Z
CREATED:20250520T163149Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260302T182631Z
UID:10000671-1748458800-1748464200@www.nfu.ca
SUMMARY:Exploring Small Water Cycles: Expanding the Climate Conversation
DESCRIPTION:Didi Pershouse presents an entirely new view of water\, soils\, and climate. You will learn how the living matrix of a “soil sponge” is foundational to making life on earth possible\, and how the work of other species creates our climate and weather. \n\n\n\nWe can address many of our major challenges in the agricultural sector through simple changes in land management\, in collaboration with the essential workforce of plants\, animals\, insects\, fungi\, and microbes. Managing land in ways that restore nature’s soil sponge and diverse vegetation can provide many interrelated benefits such as: increased resilience to flood and drought\, reduction of wildfire risk\, and increased habitat and biodiversity. It can also result in healthier crops\, animals\, and humans\, and thriving local economies. \n\n\n\n\nEvent Presenter(s)\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nDidi Pershouse\n\n\n\nDidi Pershouse is the author of  The Ecology of Care: Medicine\, Agriculture\, Money\, and the Quiet Power of Human and Microbial Communities and Understanding Soil Health and Watershed Function. She teaches participatory workshops both in person and online\, helping to show the nested relationships between soil health\, human health\, water cycles\, and climate resiliency.  She is the founder of the Land and Leadership Initiative and the Center for Sustainable Medicine\, and a co-founder of the “Can we Rehydrate California?” Initiative. She is an independent trainer and curriculum developer for the UN-FAO Farmer Field School Program and the Andhra Pradesh Community Managed Natural Farming Initiative in India. She was one of five speakers at the United Nations-FAO World Soil Day in 2017. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nWebinar recording\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nExploring Small Water Cycles: Expanding the Climate Conversation\n\n\n\nLinks to works cited in the webinar: \n\n\n\n\nThe Ecology of Care: Medicine\, Agriculture\, Money\, and the Quiet Power of Human and Microbial Communities\, by Didi Pershouse \n\n\n\nHealth and Watershed Function\n\n\n\nLand and Leadership Initiative\n\n\n\n “Can we Rehydrate California?” Initiative  \n\n\n\n2017 United Nations-FAO World Soil Day\n\n\n\n\nVisit our NFUniversity playlist on our Youtube channel to see a complete list of our NFUniversity recorded webinars.
URL:https://www.nfu.ca/event/exploring-small-water-cycles-expanding-the-climate-conversation/
CATEGORIES:NFUniversity
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.nfu.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/NFUniversity-2023-2024-900-x-600-px.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Regina:20260226T140000
DTEND;TZID=America/Regina:20260226T153000
DTSTAMP:20260527T230655Z
CREATED:20260210T131301Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260527T230655Z
UID:10000711-1772114400-1772119800@www.nfu.ca
SUMMARY:We Farm Because We Remember: Honouring Ancestors Through Radical Black Farming\, Self-Determination\, Land\, and Food Sovereignty
DESCRIPTION:This session centres Radical Black Farming as an ancestral and contemporary practice rooted in memory\, resistance\, and self-determination. Guided by Black farmers\, land stewards\, and organizers\, the conversation honours ancestors whose agricultural knowledge\, spiritual relationships to land\, and collective labour continue to shape Black food systems today. \n\n\n\nFeaturing Jacqueline Dwyer\, Matriarch of the Toronto Black Farmers\, who grow and share clean\, organic food within Black communities\, alongside Nadine Dominique\, engaged in reforestation and land restoration efforts in Ayiti\, this session highlights how Black communities steward land across geographies shaped by colonization\, displacement\, and extraction. \n\n\n\nIsaac Saney\, professor at Dalhousie University\, will draw connections to Black agrarian movements and reparations-based land justice initiatives through his work examining Black farmers in Cuba. Cikiah Thomas of the Global African Congress will further explore how farming\, reforestation\, and land reclamation function as tools for healing\, climate resilience\, collective repair\, and reparative justice. \n\n\n\nThis session will be followed up with organizing session on Thursday\, March 5th (Noon PST / 1pm MST / 2pm SK\, MB / 3pm EST / 4pm AST).Here\, we’ll be turning knowledge into action! This session will be a guided conversation about how mobilize and organize around what we learned in the knowledge-building session on Feb. 26th. Register for both sessions below.
URL:https://www.nfu.ca/event/we-farm-because-we-remember-honouring-ancestors-through-radical-black-farming-self-determination-land-and-food-sovereignty/
CATEGORIES:NFUniversity
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.nfu.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/We-Farm-Because-We-Remember.jpg
LOCATION:https://nfu-ca.zoom.us/j/87667070432?pwd=RhXgDj3hJfGa8qBGAT1Ky2O2JAyKUd.1
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Vancouver:20260312T120000
DTEND;TZID=America/Vancouver:20260312T133000
DTSTAMP:20260528T000206Z
CREATED:20260210T175008Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260528T000206Z
UID:10000713-1773316800-1773322200@www.nfu.ca
SUMMARY:Growing Seed Sovereignty: Farmers\, Seed Policy\, and the Common Good
DESCRIPTION:As part of SeedChange’s Where Does Your Seed Come From? series and the National Farmers Union’s NFUniversity\, this webinar offers a clear\, farmer-focused perspective on seed policy and why it matters now. Grounded in farmers’ experience\, rights and time-honoured practices of saving\, adapting\, and exchanging seed\, we’ll explore how farmers are impacted by seed policies in Canada and internationally. \n\n\n\nWe’ll outline a shared vision for what a public-interest seed system can look like and examine the ways our current Canadian policy environment benefits or hinders seed sovereignty. For decades\, farmers and allies have organized to fight for seed systems that support farm livelihoods\, food sovereignty\, the environment\, and the public good – and we sustain those advantages by staying engaged. Join us to explore how you can help shape policies that strengthen farmers’ rights and our collective seed sovereignty into the future. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEvent Presenter(s)\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAabir Dey\n\n\n\nAabir developed his passion for seeds while he was completing his Sustainable Farming Certificate at Everdale\, a teaching farm in Hillsburgh\, Ontario\, and supporting research trials for Seeds of Diversity’s collection of over 3\,000 different Canadian seed varieties. After completing a Master of Environmental Studies at York University\, researching organic seed systems in Ontario\, Aabir joined the The Bauta Family Initiative on Canadian Seed Security\, as Regional Program Coordinator for Ontario. Aabir has co-authored publications on Canada’s seed system including the Canadian Organic Seed Sector Environmental Scan\, the Discussion Paper on Seed Policy in Canada\, and Canadian Organic and Ecological Plant Breeding Priorities for Vegetable Crops\, and Building Climate Resilient Seed Systems in Canada. He has been instrumental in shaping and leading the training\, research\, and policy programs developed for SeedChange’s Canadian program. Aabir loves working in the field with seed producers and farmers all over the country\, and is committed to helping them build climate-resilient seed systems. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nCathy Holtslander\n\n\n\nCathy Holtslander is the Director of Research and Policy at the National Farmers Union. In addition to policy research\, analysis and writing articles and briefs on NFU policy issues\, she convenes working groups of NFU members addressing policy issues. Prior to joining the NFU staff in 2011 she taught ABE in Northern Saskatchewan\, was the Coordinator of the Saskatchewan Eco Network\, co-published Synergy Magazine\, and was a founder of\, and worked for the Beyond Factory Farming Coalition\, an organization promoting sustainable livestock production. Her Master’s degree focussed on social movement adult education and the history of women’s leadership in the farm movement in Saskatchewan. She also has degrees in Sociology and Regional and Urban Development. She and her partner have operated a certified organic grain farm near Mont Nebo\, SK since 2009. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEvent Materials\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nGrowing Seed Sovereignty: Webinar recording\n\n\n\nThis NFU University webinar features our presenters exploring seed policy and farmer sovereignty in Canada. Seeds carry stories of culture\, migration\, adaptation\, breeding\, and resistance\, yet for many growers\, understanding ends at the seed packet. Holtslander and Day frame seed policy around common farmer needs—recognition\, fair rewards\, freedom to farm as they choose\, good seeds that don’t compromise autonomy\, and supportive communities with food control.  \n\n\n\nHoltslander traces Canada’s seed system from its colonial origins through the development of quality standards and public plant breeding infrastructure in the early 1900s. She explains how hybrid corn\, plant breeders’ rights\, genetic engineering\, and patents progressively shifted control of seeds toward private corporations\, restricting farmers’ ability to save and replant seed. The NFU has organized farmer resistance since the 1970s against plant breeders’ rights and intellectual property frameworks that limit farmer autonomy. \n\n\n\nFinally\, our presenters outline current threats and advocacy priorities: proposals to eliminate farmer’s privilege for horticultural\, vegetable\, and hybrid crops; regulatory exemptions that allow gene-edited varieties onto the market without transparency; and devastating cuts to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada research facilities. Rather than pursuing only incremental regulatory changes\, they call for permanent positions on seed policy: massive public investment in farmer-led plant breeding\, robust seed conservation systems\, constitutional protections for farmer seed-saving rights\, and mandatory transparency for all gene-edited and genetically engineered varieties. \n\n\n\nVisit our NFUniversity playlist on our Youtube channel to see a complete list of our NFUniversity recorded webinars.
URL:https://www.nfu.ca/event/seed-policy-for-farmers/
CATEGORIES:NFUniversity
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.nfu.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/SeedChangeNFU-Seed-Policy-for-Farmers-1.png
LOCATION:
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Regina:20260319T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/Regina:20260319T143000
DTSTAMP:20260324T182250Z
CREATED:20260226T191243Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260324T182250Z
UID:10000728-1773925200-1773930600@www.nfu.ca
SUMMARY:Basic Income 101: What is a guaranteed annual income?
DESCRIPTION:Incomes continue to tumble for many Canadian farmers. Increasing costs\, stagnating product prices\, and tight margins are making farm livelihoods untenable. Canadian farmers are increasingly seeking off-farm jobs to fill in the gaps. New farmers are faced with high start-up costs\, with few long-term guarantees that they can keep farming and make a livelihood. What’s the solution? At our National Convention in 2025\, members of the National Farmers Union passed a resolution calling for a guaranteed annual income of $50\,000 to support Canadian farmers. Income guarantees come in all shapes and sizes\, so how can we organize successfully for a policy that makes sense for Canadian farmers? \n\n\n\nIn this NFUniversity session\, Sheila Regehrs will give a history of organizing for basic income in Canada. This historical overview will answer important questions for the NFU’s organizing work\, including: What basic income policies have been proposed in Canada in the past? Are there examples of successful basic income policies in Canada or abroad? How can we effectively organize for a basic income in Canada? \n\n\n\nThis session will be followed up with organizing session on Thursday\, March 26th (Noon PST / 1pm MST / 2pm SK\, MB / 3pm EST / 4pm AST).Here\, we’ll be turning knowledge into action! This session will be a guided conversation about how to mobilize and organize around what we learned in the knowledge-building session on March 15th. Register for both sessions below. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEvent Presenter(s)\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSheila Regehr\n\n\n\nSheila Regehr is a founding member of the Basic Income Canada Network and former Executive Director of the National Council of Welfare. Her 29 years of federal public service spanned front-line work\, policy analysis and development\, international relations and senior management\, with a focus on improving fairness and equality\, and on gender and race in particular. She has policy expertise in areas of income security and taxation\, such as child tax benefits\, child support\, maternity/parental benefits\, pensions and social assistance. Her insight also comes from experiencing poverty as a young parent. Sheila is grateful\, in her retirement\, to have resources\, time and health to do volunteer work and help care for twin grandsons.
URL:https://www.nfu.ca/event/basic-income-101-what-is-a-guaranteed-annual-income/
CATEGORIES:NFUniversity
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.nfu.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Basic-Income.jpg
LOCATION:https://nfu-ca.zoom.us/j/87667070432?pwd=RhXgDj3hJfGa8qBGAT1Ky2O2JAyKUd.1
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Regina:20260409T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/Regina:20260409T143000
DTSTAMP:20260427T151837Z
CREATED:20260325T162245Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260427T151837Z
UID:10000737-1775739600-1775745000@www.nfu.ca
SUMMARY:The Past\, Present and Future of Canada’s Agricultural Policy Framework
DESCRIPTION:This is a moment for change! We need your voice to help shape the future of agriculture in Canada. \n\n\n\nThe Canadian Agricultural Policy Framework is the main funding framework for programs and services for farmers across Canada. Consultations are underway towards the Next Agricultural Policy Framework (NPF) – this means that the next few months are a very important time for farmer voices and advocacy! \n\n\n\nPolicies in this framework impact on-the-ground experiences of farmers and farm workers across the country. They are integral to Canada’s agricultural success\, not just today but for generations in the future. \n\n\n\nThe NPF represents billions of dollars of spending that sets the goals of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and provincial Ministries of Agriculture for the next five years. The NPF negotiations are a special opportunity to advocate for programs and policies that support Canadian farmers for years to come. This session is the first part of a series that the NFU is running in collaboration with Young Agrarians and the Ecological Farmers Association of Ontario to hear from our members about what they want included in the NPF and to provide information on how to get involved. Be a part of grassroots organizing to shape the Canadian food system you want to see. \n\n\n\nBefore we look forward to the 2028-2033 NPF\, Naomi Robert will take us back in time to give us a historical view of how the goals of the framework have shifted over time and its treatment of support for family farms\, rural communities and sectoral growth. This narrative analysis sets the stage for the importance of grassroots advocacy on the NPF. \n\n\n\nThis session will be followed up with an organizing session on Thursday\, April 16th (Noon PST / 1pm MST / 2pm SK\, MB / 3pm EST / 4pm AST) with event facilitators Ayla Fenton (Young Agrarians)\, Stuart Oke (EFAO)\, and Sophie McCafferty (Young Agrarians). They will walk through the consultation question by question\, using a survey guide to anchor answers around new farmer issues and local food system development. Your own perspective matters\, and we want to hear it! \n\n\n\nHere\, we’ll be turning knowledge into action! This session will be a guided conversation about how to mobilize and organize around what we learned in the knowledge-building session on April 9th. It will be a chance to learn about and dig into the NPF\, figure out what actually matters to you\, and fill out the public consultation together\, live. Register for both sessions today! \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEvent Presenter (April 9th)\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nNaomi Robert\n\n\n\nNaomi Robert is a Senior Research and Extension Associate at the Institute for Sustainable Food Systems\, at Kwantlen Polytechnic University. Her research\, teaching\, and community work focuses on regional food systems\, the impacts of neoliberalism in Canadian food and agricultural policy\, and how to center equity and ecological integrity through economic reform. Naomi is a founder of the Pacific Coastal Dry Farming Collaborative and co-chair of the Comox Valley Food Policy Council. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nOrganizing Session Facilitators (April 16th)\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAyla Fenton\n\n\n\nSince 2013\, Ayla has worked on diverse agroecological farms throughout Anishnaabe and Haudenosaunee territories (eastern Ontario)\, learning how to live in right relations with the land through regenerative and community-oriented food production. For over a decade\, she has been organizing new and young farmers and farmworkers nationally through the National Farmers Union and internationally through La Via Campesina\, building collective power and advocating for the transition to agroecology\, food sovereignty and climate justice. Over the past several years\, she has developed an urban community farm and new farmer training program in her hometown of Kingston\, ON. She currently works as the Policy Manager for Young Agrarians\, organizing and advocating to improve access to land and capital for new and young farmers across Canada. She is excited to bring her social movements experience and a collaborative focus to this work.You can read more about Young Agrarians policy work at youngagrarians.org/policy. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nStuart Oke\n\n\n\nStuart Oke is the co-owner and operator of Rooted Oak Farm\, a certified organic CSA and market garden serving customers from Ottawa to Kingston. Alongside his work on the farm\, he is the Government Relations Coordinator at the Ecological Farmers Association of Ontario. Stuart is deeply involved in agricultural policy and advocacy. He serves as a Director and Land Transition Research Coordinator for the National Farmers Union (Ontario) and sits on the Policy Working Group for Farmers for Climate Solutions. He is a current National Board member and previous Youth president of the National Farmers Union. He is a past Vice President of Canadian Organic Growers as well as Communications and Membership Manager at the Organic Council of Ontario. In addition to his farming and policy work\, Stuart co-produces and hosts the Sow and Grow Podcast\, which explores the forces shaping Canadian agriculture. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSophie McCafferty\n\n\n\nPassionate about food\, community and ecology\, Sophie (she/her) can usually be found with her hands in the ground. Currently completing a Master’s in Environmental Science at l’Université de Québec à Montréal (UQAM)\, Sophie’s research explores how market access impacts beginning farmer resilience. Her work takes a holistic\, transdisciplinary approach to environmental research\, stewardship\, and justice. She also is grateful for her time supporting the NDP agriculture critic\, MP Richard Cannings\, gaining insight into how federal politics can support grassroots initiatives.  Committed to amplifying farmers’ voices\, Sophie is currently working as the Farm Engagement Coordinator at Young Agrarians. Most of all\, Sophie loves spending time on the Hudson Heartbeet Community farm where she gets to ground her knowledge and spend time with the people she loves.
URL:https://www.nfu.ca/event/the-past-present-and-future-of-canadas-agricultural-policy-framework/
CATEGORIES:NFUniversity
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DTSTART;TZID=America/Regina:20260604T130000
DTEND;TZID=America/Regina:20260604T143000
DTSTAMP:20260702T143413Z
CREATED:20260514T160613Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20260702T143413Z
UID:10000739-1780578000-1780583400@www.nfu.ca
SUMMARY:An Oneida Historical Perspective
DESCRIPTION:As settlers\, our relationship to land in Canada is complicated. Indigenous peoples and nations on Turtle Island\, in what we now call Canada\, have lived on and stewarded the land for tens of thousands of years. As farmers we strive to be stewards of the land that we occupy now\, but what does this mean for our relationship to Indigenous people and nations? \n\n\n\nAl Day\, hereditary chief of the Oneida Nation will present a world view that will help us to understand our relationship to land and Indigenous peoples of Turtle Island. He will speak to NFU members about the types of Treaties made with Indigenous peoples by the Canadian Government and laws that enabled the colonization of Canada. Al will also introduce us to the Oneida worldview\, the role of critical thinking in understanding Indigenous relations and the role of matrilineal leadership. He will then introduce us to the roots of Crown and Indigenous relations that shape and influence our relation to land\, Indigenous peoples\, and power. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nEvent Presenter\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nAl Day\n\n\n\nAnowal (Turtle) Clan member\, Shonuhses\, one of nine traditional Chiefs of the On^yota a:ka Lotiyaneshu (Oneida Nation Council of Chiefs)
URL:https://www.nfu.ca/event/an-oneida-historical-perspective/
CATEGORIES:NFUniversity
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