Cultivate Connections Lessons from Women Farmers on Growing a Local Network
N
by Lisa Kivirist
ever underestimate what women coming together for a potluck can do. More than 15 years ago, a dozen women, organic farmers gathered with a simple goal of connecting with other women that shared their love for the land and having fingers in the soil to grow healthy, seasonal food. This network, now called Soil Sisters, has grown to more than 250 women in southern Wisconsin that over the years have discovered what works in empowering women through cultivating community, one shared casserole dish at a time. “Soil Sisters exemplifies how when women know each other personally and share stories over potlucks and meals together, we grow and feel personally supported to take important personal risks such as starting one’s own farm to running for county board,” shares Jan Joannides, executive director of Renewing the Countryside (RenewingTheCountryside.org), the nonprofit home for the Soil Sisters project 30
Chicago
NAChicago.com
that works to champion rural revitalization and stewarding the land. “Finding kindred spirits that share values of sustainability and local food is so empowering; even more so in our rural countryside where organic women farmers can often feel alone and isolated.” For those inspired to start organizing locally to find a tribe of allied sisters with hands in the soil, here are five starter tips from Soil Sisters on building a network: Start Small: “When we first started, we simply focused on gathering through potlucks and getting to know each other,” explains Dela Ends, of Scotch Hill Farm (ScotchHillFarm.com) and Innisfree Farmstay, in Brodhead, Wisconsin, who attended that first gathering. Things slowly and organically started to bloom, with now this group leading the annual, award-winning Soil Sisters weekend coming up August 5 through 7 with more than 25 on-farm
workshops and events connecting folks with homesteading and farming skills, the largest women-farmer-led event of its kind in the country. Share Food: “It’s all about the food,” laughs Kriss Marion, of Circle M Farm (CircleMFarm.com), in Blanchardville, Wisconsin, who has also been involved with Soil Sisters since that inaugural potluck. “But women bringing a dish to pass and sharing a meal is so much more than just eating. We naturally bond over every shared piece of pie and cup of coffee where we have the time and safe space to hear about and encourage each other’s hopes and dreams.” Create Welcome: Crafting open and inclusive space for others to feel comfortable and explore goes a long way. “I attended the Soil Sisters weekend almost 10 years ago, and the welcome I received, along with the shared knowledge and support from the women I met, inspired my family to follow our rural dream and move from Bolingbrook, Illinois, to our own homestead here in Green County,” shares Bethany Storm, an avid conservationist who recently started a business, Driftless Tannery (DriftessTannery.com), with a fellow Soil Sisters member. “By being our authentic selves and sharing that with others, both our successes and failures, we as women grow stronger.” Foster Diversity: Just like Mother Nature plants more than one seed, women that
Photo credit John D Ivanko Photography
conscious eating
