Interdependence Reflection- Genevieve Ireland

This workshop was extremely useful in understanding my place within the food and agricultural industry. We talked about food insecurity and how many interruptions along the chain of command could be detrimental to all involved. Someone to talk about these concepts because people often feel disconnected from where their food comes from, specifically meet people often do not realize they think meat comes from my grocery store instead of an actual animal. They do not realize how that meat is produced, which is not always the most hygienic or the most Humane.
We also talked about food insecurity in our breakout group, mainly in urban areas; however, we also talked about rural food deserts. When we talk about food insecurity, we forget that people who live out in more isolated places such as the Great Plains or Appalachia also experience food insecurity. It is interesting to see the differences in reactions between urban communities and rural communities. Talk about how in her community, it was prevalent for folks to have vegetable gardens all their own and trade with their neighbors, while in cities, communities depend more on mutual aid networks and, in some cases, even passing to the nearest grocery store. As someone who has lived in the DC area my entire life, I have seen the vast inequality of white and black neighborhoods, specifically between West DC and East DC. In East DC, wards seven and eight separated by the Anacostia River. When the white supremacist violence happened at the Capitol, and they shut down the city, they shut down all bridges and tunnels entering in and out of the city, cutting off Ward seven and eight, which only had I think around one grocery store for both wards. Incidences are like this demonstrate that often we take food for granted.