Dear Friend of NOFA-VT,
We write with news about our beloved yearly winter conference. This is an unprecedented time. Although we look forward to a time when we are able to gather safely in person, it isn’t safe now to plan to hold a thousand-person gathering this winter. We are filled with sadness to miss being together at our annual NOFA-VT Winter Conference, and we're also excited for the possibilities to continue connecting during this unique time.
We will not let physical distance keep us from continuing to build community, strengthen a just, organic food movement, and learn and celebrate together. Next February, NOFA-VT will host an incredible month-long series of events, with many different opportunities for online learning, gathering and movement building.
2021 is NOFA-VT's 50th (!!) anniversary, and we're using this month of events in February to kick off a year-long series of opportunities for reflections, celebrations, movement building, and envisioning the future we long for in the coming 50 years.
After a rich February with a “conference-ish” experience spread out over the course of the month—inspiring speakers, workshops, lunchtime roundtables, community art, advocacy and movement building opportunities—we will move into a continued celebration of 50 years of NOFA-VT: the community that you helped to create and will help to innovate into the next 50 years.
Each month in 2021, we will share stories of the last fifty years of the organic food and farming movement. We will celebrate those elders on whose shoulders we stand, while assessing where we are now and then imagining boldly what is possible for our shared future. We will create space to explore together: Where are we going? What can we envision for our future in ten, twenty, fifty years? How are we planting seeds now for the food system we need for our grandchildren?
Keep an eye out in your inbox for more details. And please share your thoughts, memories, and ideas with us: click on the names below to send a message, or call (802) 434-4122. We’re looking forward to gathering, learning, and celebrating with you soon!
With gratitude,
❤️ The NOFA-VT Engagement Team
Livy Bulger, Education & Engagement Manager
Megan Browning, Winter Conference Coordinator
Kim Norman Mercer, Communications Manager
Erin Buckwalter, Development & Engagement Director
Grace Oedel, Executive Director