New Year Social: Hang out at Goose Island with Oxfam!

Want to start 2012 with something new?  Heard about the Oxfam Action Corps, but waiting for the right time to join?  Or, do you simply love Chicago's Goose Island Brew pub?

If so--our first meeting of 2012 is for YOU!

Come meet the Chicago Oxfam Action Corps for a New Year Social at Goose Island Brewery on January 19th, 2012 at 6:00pm.  We will give a short introduction to the Chicago Oxfam Action Corps and our current campaigns.  But, we mostly want to get to mix-and-mingle with all of you!  Light appetizers will be provided and drinks will be available for purchase.

Please contact us at chicago.oxfamactioncorps@gmail.com if you have any questions.  We hope to see you there!

What:  Chicago Oxfam Action Corps' New Year Social Meeting
When:  Thursday, January 19th
6:00pm-7:30pm
Where:  Goose Island Brewery, Lincoln Park
The Siebel Room
1800 North Clybourn Ave.
Chicago, Illinois 60614

Celebrate World Food Day on the Farm with the Action Corps - Crop Mob to Spence Farm

Join us for the second annual Crop Mob to Spence Farm!  Sponsored by Chicago Oxfam Action Corps, White Oak Gourmet, and the Spence Farm Foundation, we'll be celebrating World Food Day helping out on the farm.

Click Here to Register on Eventbrite

You'll be joining other Chicago area residents who are committed to a sustainable food supply. We'll be taking a bus from Chicago to Spence Farm 100 miles south of Chicago. Spence Farm in Livingston County was first settled in 1830. You'll be joining the Travis Family; Marty, Kris, and Will, descendants of the original settlers. We'll assist them with harvesting organic farm produce and with fall clean-up chores around the farm. Spence Farm supplies leading restaurants in Chicago like Frontera Grill and Blackbird with specialty produce and its famous Iroquois corn.

Because the farms are typically family owned and operated, most of the labor is done by hand. The term "Crop Mob" was coined by city dwellers who have an interest in sustainable agriculture and would like to help more than just by going to the farmer's market or joining a CSA. The "Crop Mob" gives the farmer(s) a valuable source of volunteer labor.

You'll need to bring the following for the trip:

• Packed Lunch
• Hand held gardening or pruning shears to help with the harvestng
• Sturdy shoes or boots and a change of socks.
• Gardening or work gloves.
• A re-fillable water bottle.
• A hat & sunscreen.
• A sweater or light jacket.
• Snacks for the trip down and return home.
• Money in case you'd like purchase some products from the farm. 

Spence Farm will provide beverages and snacks.

Children are welcome, however, but because the bus trip is 2 hours, and the inherent risks of working on a farm, this trip is more appropriate for children over 12 years of age.

The bus will depart from City Provisions Deli & Catering, located at 1818 W. Wilson, Chicago (Ravenswood) at 9:00 a.m., so please arrive No Later than 8:30 a.m

For those traveling to City Provisions via the CTA, they are just steps away from the Damen Brown Line stop, and the Damen bus. For those in vehicles, There's parking for your car anywhere in the gravel parking lot behind the shop (please don't park under the EL! City Provisions cannot be responsible for damage caused by tar falling from the tracks). For those on bikes, there are ample bike racks to lock your bike securely for the duration of the day.

Questions, need to carpool in from the 'burbs?  Don't hesitate to phone Organizer Tom Leavitt at 847-754-0708.

Click Here to Register on Eventbrite

Soaring Global Food Price "Pressure Points" Mapped

The people of Chicago have spoken:  rising food prices and hunger are issues that must be taken on today.  Deaths due to a lack of food must end.

The vast famine in Somalia and across the Horn of Africa is just one example of an area in which droughts, instability, and injustice have hit poor, small farmers first and the worst.  Oxfam America has compiled this interactive map--including stats and photos--to depict this global crisis and other areas being hit by rising food prices.  Check it out and spread the word!

Famine in Somalia: Realities of a Broken Food System

With ongoing drought and food shortages across East Africa, the United Nations has declared a famine in parts of Somalia.  The UN claims that "10 million people are on the verge of starvation" and Oxfam America reports that millions in neighboring Kenya and Ethiopia also struggle as thousands of refugees pour into refugee camps.  This crisis has been the culmination of multiple factors.  The lack of rainfall, for instance, has sliced harvests in half across Somalia and caused mass livestock losses for many communities already living in poverty.  

Immediate humanitarian aid is needed to alleviate starvation and rising displacement across Eastern Africa.  Yet, Oxfam America also emphasizes the need for a long term vision in dealing with the famine.  Small farmers like those living in the drought-stricken areas of Somalia, for example, need support to develop sustainable farming economies in times of climate change.  Stable and robust crop yields mean security for millions that rely on sustenance farming to support themselves and their family.  Success for small farmers can mean a global stabilization of food prices and fewer conflicts in competition over resources and markets.  


This famine demonstrates that we have reached a place of no return; it is time to address our broken food system.  Let's not support more of the same policies that continue to leave 1 in 7 people chronically hungry and unable to feed their children.  Let's ensure that everyone has the opportunity to grow food justly and a seat at the table in our future. 

Photo Source:  BBC News