Governor Scott has declared that August 2022 is Agritourism month drawing attention to this week’s Vermont Open Farm week as well as the upcoming global agritourism gathering in Burlington. We are excited to welcome folks from near and far here at the farm and to be part of these statewide and global efforts!
As we get warmed up (heat wave humor!), we hope some of you can join us here Thursday, August 11th for a tour that explores “Growing the Changes We Want to See in the World”. Or take part the exciting and diverse Open Farm Week offers around the state.
We have had a blast supporting conference planning efforts (through multi-year COVID delays) to host the 2nd global gathering of agritourism experts and practitioners and welcome the world to Vermont.
And whether you will be with us in Burlington August 29 – September 1st or not, anyone interested can learn from colleagues from more than 45 countries via the hybrid online option, which will also enable this wealth of content to be accessed over time.
We are especially excited to welcome dear friends from the Design Studio for Social Innovation to the farm and the conference where we together present Radical Welcoming! Sensing, questioning and reimagining agritourism’s existing arrangements. We will ask What makes guests feel welcome…or unwelcome? How do we stay true to our roots while also tending to those with very different ones? This interactive workshop begins with the premise of their book, that “ideas are embedded in social arrangements, which in turn produce effects.” Together we will explore the physical and social arrangements of agritourism as a rich terrain for inspection and meaningful change. AND leading up to this workshop WE ARE KEEN TO HEAR FROM ANY AND ALL OF YOU ANY REFLECTIONS YOU MAY HAVE ON THESE THEMES!
PERHAPS MOST IMPORTANTLY!… There are several pre and post conference tours which are now being opened to the public. Our dynamic friends, Origins of Food have organized to welcome fellow agritourism colleagues from around the world to the Green Mountain State and showcase a wide variety of Vermont farms and food producers and we are excited they are able to share open slots with a wider audience.
Origins of Food is hosting a series of day trips departing from Burlington with a variety of themes, including Wild Foods, Regenerative Agritourism and Fruits of the Champlain Valley the last week of August and first week of September. These tours showcase some of the best of agritourism in Vermont with a variety of farms, food and fiber producers. With a focus on small and medium scale working farms, these tours offer a behind the scenes peek into producers you may know and love, or don’t know but will soon love! Tours have limited space; registration closes August 12th.
Oxford says August = adjective “respected and impressive”. Meriam-Webster says, “marked by majestic dignity or grandeur”.
We think Governor Scott’s message captures the augustness of Agritourism and we know the global spotlight on agritourism can help not only Vermont and small farms but all of us at this moment in time. Food brings us together. Farms ground and nourish us.
Here’s to #people2farms & #farms2people!
