1 00:00:01,470 --> 00:00:03,148 Hello everyone. 2 00:00:03,148 --> 00:00:06,154 This is Katherine Elmer with a lecture on the connections 3 00:00:06,154 --> 00:00:08,460 between community herbalism and the ways that it can 4 00:00:08,460 --> 00:00:11,670 contribute to and enhance sustainable food systems 5 00:00:11,670 --> 00:00:13,530 and really be a reciprocal relationship 6 00:00:13,530 --> 00:00:16,800 to sustain and enhance each other. 7 00:00:16,800 --> 00:00:18,120 And before I get into that, 8 00:00:18,120 --> 00:00:20,490 I wanna provide a definition 9 00:00:20,490 --> 00:00:22,953 that I'm using for sustainable food systems. 10 00:00:23,818 --> 00:00:25,530 And the definition that I like to use in my class 11 00:00:25,530 --> 00:00:29,310 because it's really simple and comprehensive, 12 00:00:29,310 --> 00:00:31,260 is based on the SEED model, 13 00:00:31,260 --> 00:00:35,634 which is something that was proposed by UVM, 14 00:00:35,634 --> 00:00:37,803 I think it was a continuing education department 15 00:00:37,803 --> 00:00:40,260 that put out a video about sustainable food systems. 16 00:00:40,260 --> 00:00:42,060 And I'm gonna share that video in a moment. 17 00:00:42,060 --> 00:00:44,100 But what I like about this model is 18 00:00:44,100 --> 00:00:48,210 it really emphasizes the ways that the food system, 19 00:00:48,210 --> 00:00:52,410 particularly globally and certainly in the United States, 20 00:00:52,410 --> 00:00:55,680 has overemphasized economic benefit at the expense 21 00:00:55,680 --> 00:01:00,300 of impacts on social structures, environmental health, 22 00:01:00,300 --> 00:01:03,543 as well as human health and a healthy diet. 23 00:01:09,450 --> 00:01:10,830 So I did some more homework. 24 00:01:10,830 --> 00:01:14,340 Lo and behold, it is not as simple as you'd think. 25 00:01:14,340 --> 00:01:17,670 Turns out that people often confuse the term food system 26 00:01:17,670 --> 00:01:19,680 with what is just a profit driven system 27 00:01:19,680 --> 00:01:22,140 of production and consumption. 28 00:01:22,140 --> 00:01:24,960 That's the way that food is grown, processed, 29 00:01:24,960 --> 00:01:29,520 distributed, marketed, consumed, and disposed of. 30 00:01:29,520 --> 00:01:31,920 But this production model falls woefully short 31 00:01:31,920 --> 00:01:33,660 when considering the multitude of factors 32 00:01:33,660 --> 00:01:34,680 that go into sustaining 33 00:01:34,680 --> 00:01:37,020 a healthy person and a healthy planet. 34 00:01:37,020 --> 00:01:39,360 It's really more layered and complex than that. 35 00:01:39,360 --> 00:01:41,640 Several additional factors need to be considered 36 00:01:41,640 --> 00:01:44,130 to understand the full impact of the food system, 37 00:01:44,130 --> 00:01:47,640 including the social and cultural aspects, 38 00:01:47,640 --> 00:01:51,090 the environmental impacts, the economic aspects, 39 00:01:51,090 --> 00:01:53,343 and the diet and health implications. 40 00:01:54,900 --> 00:01:57,570 Now that I've planted the seed, 41 00:01:57,570 --> 00:01:59,970 let's look at a few examples in each of these areas. 42 00:01:59,970 --> 00:02:02,550 To give you a better idea of what I mean. 43 00:02:02,550 --> 00:02:04,920 In social, we have food traditions, 44 00:02:04,920 --> 00:02:08,070 treatment of farm workers, and taste and flavor. 45 00:02:08,070 --> 00:02:10,590 In environmental, there are farming practices, 46 00:02:10,590 --> 00:02:14,190 land use, topsoil loss and climate change. 47 00:02:14,190 --> 00:02:16,800 The economics looks at the consumers' food costs, 48 00:02:16,800 --> 00:02:19,530 trade policies, and crop subsidies. 49 00:02:19,530 --> 00:02:21,270 And the diet and health category includes 50 00:02:21,270 --> 00:02:24,720 diet related diseases, hunger and food safety. 51 00:02:24,720 --> 00:02:26,913 And that, of course is just to name a few. 52 00:02:28,380 --> 00:02:30,810 The SEED way of looking at our food system allowed me 53 00:02:30,810 --> 00:02:33,150 to make some sense of this complex web. 54 00:02:33,150 --> 00:02:35,820 All of a sudden I could look at a can of soda 55 00:02:35,820 --> 00:02:38,070 and see that it was much more than a drink. 56 00:02:38,070 --> 00:02:40,680 It actually involves relationships between government, 57 00:02:40,680 --> 00:02:43,320 food policy, what is grown, what is produced, 58 00:02:43,320 --> 00:02:45,300 and the health and cultural consequences 59 00:02:45,300 --> 00:02:46,800 of what is consumed. 60 00:02:46,800 --> 00:02:49,170 Once I started looking at the food system this way, 61 00:02:49,170 --> 00:02:51,180 I started wondering how our food system 62 00:02:51,180 --> 00:02:53,670 got this complicated in the first place. 63 00:02:53,670 --> 00:02:55,980 Lucky for me, there are a lot of smart people out there 64 00:02:55,980 --> 00:02:58,440 who have already asked this question. 65 00:02:58,440 --> 00:03:00,840 What I found out is that we've arrived at the current 66 00:03:00,840 --> 00:03:02,670 industrial system of food production 67 00:03:02,670 --> 00:03:05,190 because of several factors driving the industry, 68 00:03:05,190 --> 00:03:07,380 including government policies 69 00:03:07,380 --> 00:03:10,620 and increasing corporate consolidation. 70 00:03:10,620 --> 00:03:12,780 But what does that all mean? 71 00:03:12,780 --> 00:03:14,520 In the industrial food system, 72 00:03:14,520 --> 00:03:17,460 consolidation is not just happening within individual 73 00:03:17,460 --> 00:03:19,440 sectors along the supply chain, 74 00:03:19,440 --> 00:03:22,080 but a few large multinational corporations 75 00:03:22,080 --> 00:03:25,080 are controlling more and more of the entire process. 76 00:03:25,080 --> 00:03:29,340 They own or control the seeds, the farms, the trucks, 77 00:03:29,340 --> 00:03:33,090 the processing plants, the brands and the grocery stores. 78 00:03:33,090 --> 00:03:35,460 It's called vertical integration. 79 00:03:35,460 --> 00:03:38,586 Yikes, this is why the food you find 80 00:03:38,586 --> 00:03:40,830 at the grocery store is relatively cheap. 81 00:03:40,830 --> 00:03:43,770 But before you get too excited about cheap food, 82 00:03:43,770 --> 00:03:45,480 because that would be looking at only 83 00:03:45,480 --> 00:03:48,228 the economic aspect and not the whole SEED picture, 84 00:03:48,228 --> 00:03:51,630 remember all those other areas we talked about, 85 00:03:51,630 --> 00:03:54,330 my guess is that once you start looking at it that way, 86 00:03:54,330 --> 00:03:57,390 it will get complicated pretty quickly. 87 00:03:57,390 --> 00:04:00,240 Even if we just look deeper into the economic aspects, 88 00:04:00,240 --> 00:04:02,760 you'll see that there are other costs such as, 89 00:04:02,760 --> 00:04:05,250 pollution cleanup, treating illness, 90 00:04:05,250 --> 00:04:06,930 maintaining infrastructure, 91 00:04:06,930 --> 00:04:08,430 and different kinds of taxes that you 92 00:04:08,430 --> 00:04:10,473 and your community pay for indirectly. 93 00:04:11,520 --> 00:04:14,700 Ah, what else don't I know about our food system? 94 00:04:14,700 --> 00:04:17,580 In my search for the story behind my salad, 95 00:04:17,580 --> 00:04:19,140 remember that salad? 96 00:04:19,140 --> 00:04:21,600 I looked at tons of resources and found some amazing 97 00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:23,190 statistics on our food system 98 00:04:23,190 --> 00:04:24,420 and I thought you'd like to know. 99 00:04:24,420 --> 00:04:27,690 50% of all groceries in this country are purchased 100 00:04:27,690 --> 00:04:30,150 at four supermarket chains 101 00:04:30,150 --> 00:04:32,880 among children ages two to 19 in the US. 102 00:04:32,880 --> 00:04:35,973 About one in three are overweight and obese. 103 00:04:36,990 --> 00:04:38,486 Around the world, 104 00:04:38,486 --> 00:04:41,130 soil is being eroded way faster than is being replenished, 105 00:04:41,130 --> 00:04:45,930 destroying over 36,000 square miles of cropland each year. 106 00:04:45,930 --> 00:04:48,090 That is the size of Indiana. 107 00:04:48,090 --> 00:04:51,990 Your average carrot in the US travels 1,835 miles 108 00:04:51,990 --> 00:04:54,090 to reach the dinner table on a truck 109 00:04:54,090 --> 00:04:58,200 that consumes fossil fuels and emits CO2 all along the way. 110 00:04:58,200 --> 00:05:01,230 There are over 800,000 farm workers in the US, 111 00:05:01,230 --> 00:05:03,180 many of whom work in dangerous conditions 112 00:05:03,180 --> 00:05:06,393 that get paid significantly less than minimum wage. 113 00:05:07,380 --> 00:05:09,480 In the US our system of food production 114 00:05:09,480 --> 00:05:12,960 and distribution results in 40% of food grown 115 00:05:12,960 --> 00:05:14,643 being lost through spoilage. 116 00:05:15,540 --> 00:05:19,050 So the industrial food system is controlled 117 00:05:19,050 --> 00:05:22,830 by a handful of corporations, makes our children sick. 118 00:05:22,830 --> 00:05:25,920 Erodes are soils, pollutes our air and water, 119 00:05:25,920 --> 00:05:27,270 mistreats farm workers, 120 00:05:27,270 --> 00:05:30,390 and wastes almost half the food it produces. 121 00:05:30,390 --> 00:05:33,390 Ick, I think I just lost my appetite. 122 00:05:33,390 --> 00:05:34,890 This salad may be cheap to buy, 123 00:05:34,890 --> 00:05:37,230 but it's not the salad I was hoping for. 124 00:05:37,230 --> 00:05:38,100 And as I learned, 125 00:05:38,100 --> 00:05:40,350 it's not the only salad I can eat. 126 00:05:40,350 --> 00:05:41,430 Like I mentioned before, 127 00:05:41,430 --> 00:05:43,020 there is an alternative food system 128 00:05:43,020 --> 00:05:45,660 that is alive and thriving across the country. 129 00:05:45,660 --> 00:05:49,440 So all this question asking made me realize that one, 130 00:05:49,440 --> 00:05:51,660 there is a complicated and important story 131 00:05:51,660 --> 00:05:53,760 behind every plate of food. 132 00:05:53,760 --> 00:05:55,770 And two, it is my responsibility 133 00:05:55,770 --> 00:05:57,600 as a consumer in the food system 134 00:05:57,600 --> 00:05:59,400 to think about the SEED framework 135 00:05:59,400 --> 00:06:01,410 when choosing which food to buy. 136 00:06:01,410 --> 00:06:03,933 And that involves asking a lot of questions. 137 00:06:05,190 --> 00:06:06,900 It turns out that here in Vermont 138 00:06:06,900 --> 00:06:10,770 I'm surrounded by savvy and smart food systems experts. 139 00:06:10,770 --> 00:06:11,850 Vermont has become a leader 140 00:06:11,850 --> 00:06:14,040 in the area of local and regional food systems, 141 00:06:14,040 --> 00:06:15,750 largely because its mountainous terrain 142 00:06:15,750 --> 00:06:17,850 has limited large scale production, 143 00:06:17,850 --> 00:06:20,700 but it is also Vermont's legislative initiatives coupled 144 00:06:20,700 --> 00:06:23,280 with a university and colleges committed to research 145 00:06:23,280 --> 00:06:25,290 and innovation in the food system, 146 00:06:25,290 --> 00:06:27,660 an abundance of entrepreneurial farmers 147 00:06:27,660 --> 00:06:29,790 and a plethora of informed consumers 148 00:06:29,790 --> 00:06:31,692 already thinking the SEED way 149 00:06:31,692 --> 00:06:32,820 that have turned Vermont 150 00:06:32,820 --> 00:06:35,160 into a hotbed of innovation in the fields. 151 00:06:35,160 --> 00:06:39,210 This expertise is also being shared around the world, 152 00:06:39,210 --> 00:06:41,340 and it's not just for monitors who are working towards 153 00:06:41,340 --> 00:06:43,080 a more sustainable food system, 154 00:06:43,080 --> 00:06:46,710 it's a bonafide national and international movement, 155 00:06:46,710 --> 00:06:49,530 and there's a true sense of urgency and momentum behind it. 156 00:06:49,530 --> 00:06:52,440 From our dwindling supply of oil to resource depletion, 157 00:06:52,440 --> 00:06:56,460 to chronic disease, the reasons for change are endless. 158 00:06:56,460 --> 00:06:58,830 The most effective way to make that positive change 159 00:06:58,830 --> 00:07:00,330 in our food system is to work 160 00:07:00,330 --> 00:07:02,280 from both ends of the spectrum. 161 00:07:02,280 --> 00:07:03,180 On one side, 162 00:07:03,180 --> 00:07:05,490 we need more transparency and accountability 163 00:07:05,490 --> 00:07:09,420 from corporations to include some of the externalized costs. 164 00:07:09,420 --> 00:07:10,260 And on the other side, 165 00:07:10,260 --> 00:07:11,700 we need regional food systems 166 00:07:11,700 --> 00:07:15,600 and local diversified farms distributing fresh food. 167 00:07:15,600 --> 00:07:18,360 Informed consumers are in the middle, driving the change, 168 00:07:18,360 --> 00:07:20,670 and also putting pressure on the government to protect 169 00:07:20,670 --> 00:07:23,403 the planet and create healthier food and communities. 170 00:07:24,840 --> 00:07:27,000 To accelerate the move to a healthier food system, 171 00:07:27,000 --> 00:07:29,640 we need to cultivate innovative leaders who can chart 172 00:07:29,640 --> 00:07:31,440 a course for a more sustainable future 173 00:07:31,440 --> 00:07:34,953 where food is abundant and healthy and accessible to all. 174 00:07:36,120 --> 00:07:38,880 It sounds like we have our work cut out for us, 175 00:07:38,880 --> 00:07:41,730 but while we are busy working on this food revolution, 176 00:07:41,730 --> 00:07:44,580 let's be sure to slow down and take time 177 00:07:44,580 --> 00:07:46,680 to cook and eat together. 178 00:07:46,680 --> 00:07:48,030 Now that I've done my homework, 179 00:07:48,030 --> 00:07:51,060 my January salads look a lot different than last year's. 180 00:07:51,060 --> 00:07:54,000 I replaced the lettuce and tomato with kale, beets, 181 00:07:54,000 --> 00:07:55,950 apples and local cheese. 182 00:07:55,950 --> 00:07:59,730 It is delicious and has a story I love to tell, 183 00:07:59,730 --> 00:08:01,989 but that's me, what's on your plate. 184 00:08:01,989 --> 00:08:04,140 (light music) 185 00:08:04,140 --> 00:08:06,030 So what can you do to help move us towards 186 00:08:06,030 --> 00:08:08,040 a more sustainable food system? 187 00:08:08,040 --> 00:08:10,020 Here are a few ideas. 188 00:08:10,020 --> 00:08:12,570 Be curious about where your food comes from. 189 00:08:12,570 --> 00:08:15,000 Learn about the different companies that produce food 190 00:08:15,000 --> 00:08:16,140 and what their practices are 191 00:08:16,140 --> 00:08:18,210 so you can make informed choices. 192 00:08:18,210 --> 00:08:21,363 You can learn or surmise a lot just from reading labels. 193 00:08:22,410 --> 00:08:24,540 Advocate for transparency and labeling. 194 00:08:24,540 --> 00:08:26,220 You have the right to know where your food 195 00:08:26,220 --> 00:08:29,010 is coming from and how it was grown and processed. 196 00:08:29,010 --> 00:08:31,650 If it was irradiated or grown with GMO seeds, 197 00:08:31,650 --> 00:08:33,300 you should know that. 198 00:08:33,300 --> 00:08:35,940 Try to shorten the distance between where most of your food 199 00:08:35,940 --> 00:08:39,540 is grown and you, it will be fresher and taste better 200 00:08:39,540 --> 00:08:42,240 and we'll have used less fuel to get to you. 201 00:08:42,240 --> 00:08:45,630 Eat and cook with an emphasis on fresh whole foods. 202 00:08:45,630 --> 00:08:48,570 And don't forget, ask lots of questions. 203 00:08:48,570 --> 00:08:51,293 There's always more to learn about what's on your plate. 204 00:08:52,350 --> 00:08:55,096 So hopefully all of you have had some exposure 205 00:08:55,096 --> 00:08:56,580 to sustainable food systems models 206 00:08:56,580 --> 00:09:00,853 and the ideas of how these systems have developed 207 00:09:00,853 --> 00:09:04,080 and the way that the scale of the food system can really, 208 00:09:04,080 --> 00:09:08,910 the scale and the emphasis on economics over other impacts 209 00:09:08,910 --> 00:09:11,670 can really cause issues in terms of environmental 210 00:09:11,670 --> 00:09:14,700 degradation and social impacts and health impacts. 211 00:09:14,700 --> 00:09:17,340 I think what's interesting to consider in a class 212 00:09:17,340 --> 00:09:19,150 about plant-based healing medicine 213 00:09:20,374 --> 00:09:23,640 is how can the food system and a local medicine system 214 00:09:23,640 --> 00:09:26,130 that includes access to local plants, 215 00:09:26,130 --> 00:09:29,010 merge to support social, environmental, 216 00:09:29,010 --> 00:09:32,370 economic and improve diet and health. 217 00:09:32,370 --> 00:09:36,360 So that's what I wanna explore and this conversation today. 218 00:09:36,360 --> 00:09:39,540 I also think it's really important to emphasize, 219 00:09:39,540 --> 00:09:44,160 since we are coming through this COVID-19 pandemic, 220 00:09:44,160 --> 00:09:46,980 that there's a lot of evidence to suggest 221 00:09:46,980 --> 00:09:50,280 that the roots of the coronavirus 222 00:09:50,280 --> 00:09:52,980 and the roots of this pandemic are related 223 00:09:52,980 --> 00:09:56,301 to a food system and an over-emphasis 224 00:09:56,301 --> 00:09:59,280 on large scale production, particularly of poultry. 225 00:09:59,280 --> 00:10:02,550 And a lot of the links back to the virus in China are 226 00:10:02,550 --> 00:10:05,550 related to industrial production of poultry, 227 00:10:05,550 --> 00:10:07,500 high intensity production of poultry, 228 00:10:07,500 --> 00:10:11,520 and a really clear and acute example 229 00:10:11,520 --> 00:10:14,160 of how the food system really needs to change 230 00:10:14,160 --> 00:10:16,410 to support social, environmental, 231 00:10:16,410 --> 00:10:17,670 economic diet and health 232 00:10:17,670 --> 00:10:19,770 and have a more balanced approach to that. 233 00:10:23,164 --> 00:10:23,997 And I also wanna emphasize, 234 00:10:23,997 --> 00:10:25,500 I spoke a little bit about this 235 00:10:25,500 --> 00:10:27,150 in the community herbalism lecture, 236 00:10:27,150 --> 00:10:30,600 but one of the ways that I've approached my role 237 00:10:30,600 --> 00:10:33,180 as an activist in the community herbalism 238 00:10:33,180 --> 00:10:35,760 and sustainable food system here in Vermont 239 00:10:35,760 --> 00:10:37,950 and the work that I've done over the last decade 240 00:10:37,950 --> 00:10:41,550 in that area is it can be helpful to use 241 00:10:41,550 --> 00:10:44,850 the supply chain as a framework for looking 242 00:10:44,850 --> 00:10:49,850 at areas where there might need to be more infrastructure. 243 00:10:49,950 --> 00:10:53,040 For example, there may be lots of growing 244 00:10:53,040 --> 00:10:54,900 of medicinal plants on the landscape, 245 00:10:54,900 --> 00:10:57,120 especially those that are growing wild, 246 00:10:57,120 --> 00:10:59,880 but there may be limited processing and distribution, 247 00:10:59,880 --> 00:11:03,180 which means that if there is a gap in those two areas, 248 00:11:03,180 --> 00:11:06,552 then even if there is a market for those medicinal plants, 249 00:11:06,552 --> 00:11:09,150 they aren't getting local access to the plants 250 00:11:09,150 --> 00:11:11,790 that are growing in the surrounding area. 251 00:11:11,790 --> 00:11:16,230 I also agree with the SEED video in discussing 252 00:11:16,230 --> 00:11:19,080 the importance of informed consumers 253 00:11:19,080 --> 00:11:21,870 in the medicine system and in consumers 254 00:11:21,870 --> 00:11:23,280 that feel like they have agency 255 00:11:23,280 --> 00:11:26,640 to add information in order to advocate for their needs. 256 00:11:26,640 --> 00:11:29,430 And also the importance of innovative leadership. 257 00:11:29,430 --> 00:11:31,920 And I feel really fortunate to be here in Vermont surrounded 258 00:11:31,920 --> 00:11:35,070 by food systems and wellness leaders 259 00:11:35,070 --> 00:11:37,170 that are doing a lot of the work in that area. 260 00:11:37,170 --> 00:11:40,617 And I see my role as an educator of all of you 261 00:11:40,617 --> 00:11:42,810 to look at ways to support you 262 00:11:42,810 --> 00:11:44,520 to be more informed consumers 263 00:11:44,520 --> 00:11:47,310 and also to develop your skills in innovation 264 00:11:47,310 --> 00:11:49,290 and critical thinking and leadership. 265 00:11:49,290 --> 00:11:51,256 So hopefully you'll get some 266 00:11:51,256 --> 00:11:53,250 of those tools out of this class. 267 00:11:53,250 --> 00:11:56,040 And again, when I define community herbalism, 268 00:11:56,040 --> 00:11:57,330 it's really based on the idea 269 00:11:57,330 --> 00:11:59,430 that sustainable and healthy communities, 270 00:11:59,430 --> 00:12:01,830 these communities that are relying on sustainable food 271 00:12:01,830 --> 00:12:04,260 systems also really depend on access 272 00:12:04,260 --> 00:12:07,830 to sustainable and ideally local plant-based medicine. 273 00:12:07,830 --> 00:12:09,780 And there's a huge enhancement that comes 274 00:12:09,780 --> 00:12:14,700 from developing robust medicine system alongside 275 00:12:14,700 --> 00:12:16,740 a sustainable food system. 276 00:12:16,740 --> 00:12:19,650 And this is a photograph of volunteers 277 00:12:19,650 --> 00:12:23,310 harvesting linden blossoms on campus. 278 00:12:23,310 --> 00:12:26,590 And this is something that blooms all over Burlington 279 00:12:28,322 --> 00:12:30,780 in particularly June, 280 00:12:30,780 --> 00:12:32,670 and is a really important remedy 281 00:12:32,670 --> 00:12:34,080 for the nervous system as well 282 00:12:34,080 --> 00:12:36,630 as the cardiovascular system and specifically 283 00:12:36,630 --> 00:12:38,883 for anxiety-related high blood pressure. 284 00:12:40,440 --> 00:12:43,140 So I wanted to get your thinking going. 285 00:12:43,140 --> 00:12:46,350 So if you have a moment to pause this recording, 286 00:12:46,350 --> 00:12:49,110 get out a piece of paper and jot down some notes. 287 00:12:49,110 --> 00:12:50,210 I want you to consider 288 00:12:51,195 --> 00:12:53,520 these two different bottles of supplements. 289 00:12:53,520 --> 00:12:58,330 First, consider the dandelion root as a supplement 290 00:12:59,460 --> 00:13:02,430 and what might be wrong with getting 291 00:13:02,430 --> 00:13:04,470 your dandelion root from a bottle. 292 00:13:04,470 --> 00:13:07,860 And my understanding is that Solgar is based in Oregon 293 00:13:07,860 --> 00:13:11,223 and that they source their dandelion globally. 294 00:13:13,253 --> 00:13:14,790 And once you've jotted down a few notes 295 00:13:14,790 --> 00:13:18,790 about what might be wrong or just not ideal 296 00:13:20,051 --> 00:13:22,350 about sourcing your dandelion root in this way, 297 00:13:22,350 --> 00:13:26,280 shift to the calcium carbonate supplement 298 00:13:26,280 --> 00:13:29,650 and consider what might be suboptimal 299 00:13:30,903 --> 00:13:34,563 about getting your calcium supplementation in this form. 300 00:13:40,830 --> 00:13:42,060 And then I'm going to get into these 301 00:13:42,060 --> 00:13:43,410 in a little bit more depth. 302 00:13:44,640 --> 00:13:48,847 So let's take the calcium carbonate example first. 303 00:13:48,847 --> 00:13:50,040 First of all, 304 00:13:50,040 --> 00:13:54,180 I'm a big proponent of whole foods over supplements. 305 00:13:54,180 --> 00:13:56,790 Calcium carbonate is the cheapest 306 00:13:56,790 --> 00:13:58,170 and most common form 307 00:13:58,170 --> 00:14:00,420 of calcium supplementation in the market. 308 00:14:00,420 --> 00:14:03,840 However, calcium carbonate is essentially 309 00:14:03,840 --> 00:14:07,980 blackboard chalk and it's not bioavailable. 310 00:14:07,980 --> 00:14:10,620 It takes a lot of stomach acid to be able 311 00:14:10,620 --> 00:14:12,060 to break it down in the majority 312 00:14:12,060 --> 00:14:13,980 of the American population actually 313 00:14:13,980 --> 00:14:15,873 has too little stomach acid. 314 00:14:16,830 --> 00:14:18,843 And that's a whole other conversation. 315 00:14:19,693 --> 00:14:21,810 And I think one of the reasons is that stress affects the 316 00:14:21,810 --> 00:14:23,490 level of stomach acid and the therefore 317 00:14:23,490 --> 00:14:26,310 the bioavailability of minerals. 318 00:14:26,310 --> 00:14:30,000 But also a lot of the older population is medicating 319 00:14:30,000 --> 00:14:31,990 with Tums and proton pump inhibitors 320 00:14:34,015 --> 00:14:35,693 like Prilosec or omeprazole, 321 00:14:35,693 --> 00:14:38,340 which also lowers the ability to absorb calcium. 322 00:14:38,340 --> 00:14:42,060 One of the most bioavailable forms of calcium is not milk. 323 00:14:42,060 --> 00:14:43,890 Milk is promoted as a form of calcium 324 00:14:43,890 --> 00:14:46,260 because of needing to subsidize 325 00:14:46,260 --> 00:14:48,780 and market the dairy industry. 326 00:14:48,780 --> 00:14:52,260 But kale and other brassicas is actually 327 00:14:52,260 --> 00:14:55,440 the most bioavailable form of calcium. 328 00:14:55,440 --> 00:14:57,540 And I'll discuss that soon 329 00:14:57,540 --> 00:14:59,730 and how to make it more bioavailable. 330 00:14:59,730 --> 00:15:03,000 You can also get a supplement of calcium in the form of 331 00:15:03,000 --> 00:15:07,325 calcium citrate if you're not able to access fresh food. 332 00:15:07,325 --> 00:15:08,850 And calcium citrate is slightly more expensive, 333 00:15:08,850 --> 00:15:11,100 but definitely worth the money because of its 334 00:15:11,940 --> 00:15:14,820 enhanced bioavailability as a calcium supplement. 335 00:15:14,820 --> 00:15:17,880 It's also generally a better idea to take a calcium 336 00:15:17,880 --> 00:15:20,880 magnesium combination supplement because too much calcium 337 00:15:20,880 --> 00:15:23,130 can actually contribute to problems in the body 338 00:15:23,130 --> 00:15:25,170 if it's not balanced with magnesium. 339 00:15:25,170 --> 00:15:29,700 And that's another reason why I promote consuming foods 340 00:15:29,700 --> 00:15:31,320 that are high in the minerals 341 00:15:31,320 --> 00:15:32,970 and vitamins that we need rather 342 00:15:32,970 --> 00:15:36,570 than trying to get the the right dosage 343 00:15:36,570 --> 00:15:38,730 and the right source of the vitamins 344 00:15:38,730 --> 00:15:40,500 and minerals in the body. 345 00:15:40,500 --> 00:15:41,610 And if you recall, 346 00:15:41,610 --> 00:15:44,310 when I shared about the survey that the program 347 00:15:44,310 --> 00:15:46,110 and integrative health did of physicians 348 00:15:46,110 --> 00:15:48,390 at the UVM Medical Center, 349 00:15:48,390 --> 00:15:51,960 only 12% of the 700 physicians that responded 350 00:15:51,960 --> 00:15:54,690 to the survey had taken a nutrition class. 351 00:15:54,690 --> 00:15:57,090 Most of them had only taken one nutrition class 352 00:15:57,090 --> 00:15:59,670 and nutrition classes in medical schools 353 00:15:59,670 --> 00:16:02,220 in this time primarily focused on supplements 354 00:16:02,220 --> 00:16:05,460 and don't actually talk about food as a nutritional support. 355 00:16:05,460 --> 00:16:09,120 UVM Medical Center is developing a very innovative culinary 356 00:16:09,120 --> 00:16:11,490 medicine program that I urge you to check out. 357 00:16:11,490 --> 00:16:12,330 And so I think that they're on 358 00:16:12,330 --> 00:16:15,390 the cutting edge and my colleague Diane Emery, 359 00:16:15,390 --> 00:16:17,580 who's the director of nutrition at the UVM Medical Center, 360 00:16:17,580 --> 00:16:19,350 is really leading that effort. 361 00:16:19,350 --> 00:16:22,485 But there's a lot of work to be done in the medical system 362 00:16:22,485 --> 00:16:26,116 to provide patients with accurate information 363 00:16:26,116 --> 00:16:29,220 about how to support their bodies with nutrition. 364 00:16:29,220 --> 00:16:30,780 And I'm a huge proponent 365 00:16:30,780 --> 00:16:33,750 of whole foods nutrition to provide that. 366 00:16:33,750 --> 00:16:37,650 So a little bit about how best to prepare these brassicas. 367 00:16:37,650 --> 00:16:41,359 Brassicas are a class of plants that include broccoli, 368 00:16:41,359 --> 00:16:44,010 cauliflower, arugula, even horse radish, 369 00:16:44,010 --> 00:16:46,035 kale, brussel sprouts. 370 00:16:46,035 --> 00:16:49,863 And they are pretty hard to digest when they are raw. 371 00:16:50,700 --> 00:16:51,870 Takes a lot of stomach acid 372 00:16:51,870 --> 00:16:54,011 to break down a bunch of raw kale. 373 00:16:54,011 --> 00:16:56,610 And if you've ever tried to eat raw cabbage or kale, 374 00:16:56,610 --> 00:16:58,760 you probably got a stomach ache afterwards. 375 00:16:59,624 --> 00:17:01,170 Much easier to do in the summer months when our digestion 376 00:17:01,170 --> 00:17:04,920 tends to be stronger and it's just warmer in general. 377 00:17:04,920 --> 00:17:07,710 But I recommend massaging with salts 378 00:17:07,710 --> 00:17:10,900 the brassicas in the summer or steaming them 379 00:17:12,163 --> 00:17:14,310 and different from the dark berries where heating 380 00:17:14,310 --> 00:17:18,300 them actually makes them more bioavailable. 381 00:17:18,300 --> 00:17:21,510 The primary, especially the anti-inflammatory 382 00:17:21,510 --> 00:17:24,360 constituents in Nebraska's are really fragile. 383 00:17:24,360 --> 00:17:27,360 So cooking them gently or fermenting them is actually 384 00:17:27,360 --> 00:17:31,620 the best way to preserve the nutrients, 385 00:17:31,620 --> 00:17:33,690 but also to cook them enough so 386 00:17:33,690 --> 00:17:37,860 that they're more digestible and bioavailable to our bodies. 387 00:17:37,860 --> 00:17:40,680 And the interesting thing about fermentation 388 00:17:40,680 --> 00:17:45,433 is that it actually enhances your digestion 389 00:17:45,433 --> 00:17:48,210 and the ability to absorb many of these minerals 390 00:17:48,210 --> 00:17:50,190 when you're consuming the cabbage 391 00:17:50,190 --> 00:17:54,270 and brassicas with probiotic bacteria. 392 00:17:54,270 --> 00:17:56,760 So I'm highlighting Flack Family Farm, 393 00:17:56,760 --> 00:17:58,770 which is a local farm in Vermont, 394 00:17:58,770 --> 00:18:01,590 but I also encourage you all to try your hand 395 00:18:01,590 --> 00:18:03,120 at home fermentation. 396 00:18:03,120 --> 00:18:05,490 It's a very, very simple process 397 00:18:05,490 --> 00:18:07,110 and a great way to get these important 398 00:18:07,110 --> 00:18:08,730 vitamins and minerals. 399 00:18:08,730 --> 00:18:13,730 If you are steaming or having massaged salads of brassicas, 400 00:18:14,430 --> 00:18:15,990 you can boost the assimilation, 401 00:18:15,990 --> 00:18:18,510 particularly of the calcium and magnesium 402 00:18:18,510 --> 00:18:21,510 and the vitamin K with oil and vinegar. 403 00:18:21,510 --> 00:18:23,850 Vitamin K is an important vitamin 404 00:18:23,850 --> 00:18:26,640 for healthy blood coagulation, 405 00:18:26,640 --> 00:18:29,760 and consuming it with oil helps with absorption 406 00:18:29,760 --> 00:18:32,433 because it's a fat soluble vitamin. 407 00:18:33,270 --> 00:18:36,630 And then vinegar or lemon juice as an acid helps 408 00:18:36,630 --> 00:18:39,240 to chelate or bind magnesium 409 00:18:39,240 --> 00:18:42,720 and calcium so that the body can absorb it more readily. 410 00:18:42,720 --> 00:18:45,600 So knowing how to prepare superfood 411 00:18:45,600 --> 00:18:47,130 can greatly help with assimilation, 412 00:18:47,130 --> 00:18:49,080 help you get the most out of that food. 413 00:18:51,030 --> 00:18:55,170 So one of the arguments for a sustainable food system 414 00:18:55,170 --> 00:18:57,330 that will help to support not only 415 00:18:57,330 --> 00:19:00,000 the farmers producing the whole food, 416 00:19:00,000 --> 00:19:01,860 but also diet and human health, 417 00:19:01,860 --> 00:19:05,430 improved diet for human health is emphasizing whole food, 418 00:19:05,430 --> 00:19:08,760 consuming this rainbow of colorful, pigmented fruits 419 00:19:08,760 --> 00:19:12,543 and vegetables instead of an emphasis on supplements. 420 00:19:13,890 --> 00:19:16,515 I also wanna speak to the dandelion root example 421 00:19:16,515 --> 00:19:19,260 and see how my comments might resonate 422 00:19:19,260 --> 00:19:23,100 with some of your lists of why getting 423 00:19:23,100 --> 00:19:25,770 your dandelion root in this way might be suboptimal. 424 00:19:25,770 --> 00:19:27,810 And you know, as you might guess, 425 00:19:27,810 --> 00:19:31,170 dandelion root is a widely available weed. 426 00:19:31,170 --> 00:19:34,380 It's available in most green spaces. 427 00:19:34,380 --> 00:19:37,470 There are some concerns about harvesting dandelion 428 00:19:37,470 --> 00:19:38,670 in polluted areas. 429 00:19:38,670 --> 00:19:40,263 And it is commonly, 430 00:19:41,244 --> 00:19:46,244 often there are herbicides applied to dandelion on lawns 431 00:19:46,470 --> 00:19:49,320 and so there can be concern about toxicity 432 00:19:49,320 --> 00:19:51,681 from any herbicides might be applied. 433 00:19:51,681 --> 00:19:52,733 But generally speaking, 434 00:19:53,615 --> 00:19:55,770 if you can find a clean space to harvest 435 00:19:55,770 --> 00:20:00,770 your dandelion root, it's really silly, it's expensive, 436 00:20:01,380 --> 00:20:04,050 it contributes to a higher carbon footprint to be purchasing 437 00:20:04,050 --> 00:20:07,350 dandelion root in this packaging in something 438 00:20:07,350 --> 00:20:10,110 that is coming from across the country 439 00:20:10,110 --> 00:20:12,063 and you don't know about the source. 440 00:20:13,642 --> 00:20:18,252 So dandelion root is a great example of many wild 441 00:20:18,252 --> 00:20:20,460 and weedy medicinal plants that you really shouldn't need 442 00:20:20,460 --> 00:20:22,200 to be buying from the shelves. 443 00:20:22,200 --> 00:20:25,110 But I understand that in some urban environments, 444 00:20:25,110 --> 00:20:28,680 the human systems may have limited access to these herbs. 445 00:20:28,680 --> 00:20:31,110 And so it might be more complicated to change 446 00:20:31,110 --> 00:20:33,120 the land use practices to make it more possible 447 00:20:33,120 --> 00:20:34,533 to harvest the medicines. 448 00:20:37,212 --> 00:20:41,280 So I wanna share a little bit of examples of how the farm 449 00:20:41,280 --> 00:20:44,790 and the agricultural landscape can be enhanced 450 00:20:44,790 --> 00:20:48,840 by using cultivated wild and weedy plant medicines. 451 00:20:48,840 --> 00:20:52,800 And this comes out of a workshop that I've taught 452 00:20:52,800 --> 00:20:55,380 at the Northeast Organic Farming Association 453 00:20:55,380 --> 00:20:57,240 of Vermont Conference every winter 454 00:20:57,240 --> 00:20:58,980 and really looking at the opportunities 455 00:20:58,980 --> 00:21:03,980 for taking medicinal plants from farm landscapes 456 00:21:04,032 --> 00:21:06,210 at the homestead and farm scale 457 00:21:06,210 --> 00:21:10,170 and boosting the the bottom line of those farms 458 00:21:10,170 --> 00:21:14,700 through value added products such as medicinal plants, 459 00:21:14,700 --> 00:21:16,770 but also boosting the health of the farm family, 460 00:21:16,770 --> 00:21:19,808 whether or not they choose to offer it commercially. 461 00:21:19,808 --> 00:21:21,330 And then of course, as we're discussing in this lecture, 462 00:21:21,330 --> 00:21:24,450 there are huge food system implications to increasing 463 00:21:24,450 --> 00:21:27,330 the number of nutrient dense superfood 464 00:21:27,330 --> 00:21:29,970 that are available in a food system, 465 00:21:29,970 --> 00:21:33,397 as well as supporting other aspects of human health 466 00:21:33,397 --> 00:21:36,540 such as remedies that might be supportive 467 00:21:36,540 --> 00:21:38,250 to not just diet nutrition, 468 00:21:38,250 --> 00:21:40,350 but other health needs in the community. 469 00:21:40,350 --> 00:21:41,940 And really looking at the synergy 470 00:21:41,940 --> 00:21:44,322 between the local food movement 471 00:21:44,322 --> 00:21:46,983 and the local plant-based medicine movement. 472 00:21:48,480 --> 00:21:50,670 And here's an example of the, 473 00:21:50,670 --> 00:21:52,320 here are some slides from the presentation 474 00:21:52,320 --> 00:21:54,900 that I've taught with my colleague Kara Buchanan 475 00:21:54,900 --> 00:21:56,970 for several years at the NOFA Vermont Conference. 476 00:21:56,970 --> 00:22:00,750 We taught it in 2020 to a fully packed 477 00:22:00,750 --> 00:22:03,270 standing room only room, 478 00:22:03,270 --> 00:22:07,020 really trying to share this opportunity for farmers 479 00:22:07,020 --> 00:22:10,260 to tap into what's often an untapped resource 480 00:22:10,260 --> 00:22:11,730 because the plants are already there, 481 00:22:11,730 --> 00:22:12,960 they just might not know 482 00:22:12,960 --> 00:22:15,475 how to identify and how to use them. 483 00:22:15,475 --> 00:22:17,460 So this is one of our programs through Spoonful Herbals 484 00:22:17,460 --> 00:22:19,480 is working with farmers and home setters 485 00:22:20,913 --> 00:22:23,310 to help them access and use these remedies 486 00:22:23,310 --> 00:22:25,350 for their families, but also to support 487 00:22:25,350 --> 00:22:29,583 their economic vitality through value added products. 488 00:22:31,710 --> 00:22:34,170 So some plant medicine that's common in the Vermont 489 00:22:34,170 --> 00:22:36,450 farm landscape includes not only 490 00:22:36,450 --> 00:22:39,630 what's available in the cultivated fields, 491 00:22:39,630 --> 00:22:41,250 there are also many cover crops 492 00:22:41,250 --> 00:22:45,090 that provide the ecosystem service of cover crops, 493 00:22:45,090 --> 00:22:48,450 which includes helping to manage moisture in the fields, 494 00:22:48,450 --> 00:22:51,090 helping to provide nutrition in the soil, 495 00:22:51,090 --> 00:22:53,190 but also have medicinal benefits. 496 00:22:53,190 --> 00:22:55,530 So I'll share a couple of examples of those. 497 00:22:55,530 --> 00:22:57,870 They're also weedy plants that tend to grow 498 00:22:57,870 --> 00:22:59,760 in the cultivated fields as well 499 00:22:59,760 --> 00:23:02,100 as certain crops such as annuals 500 00:23:02,100 --> 00:23:04,830 and some perennials that are very easy to grow 501 00:23:04,830 --> 00:23:09,720 and have a high yield in terms of economic benefits. 502 00:23:09,720 --> 00:23:12,810 We also might find medicinal plants growing in flower 503 00:23:12,810 --> 00:23:15,150 gardens or other landscape areas on farms 504 00:23:15,150 --> 00:23:17,640 because they're popular landscaping plants 505 00:23:17,640 --> 00:23:19,500 that also have medicinal benefits. 506 00:23:19,500 --> 00:23:22,380 And then in pastures and green spaces. 507 00:23:22,380 --> 00:23:25,383 And there are also some slides about forest medicine. 508 00:23:26,451 --> 00:23:28,830 Many of Vermont farms have a mixed land use, 509 00:23:28,830 --> 00:23:33,690 including a fair amount of open fields either for livestock 510 00:23:33,690 --> 00:23:37,590 or just because they haven't been cultivated in forests. 511 00:23:37,590 --> 00:23:40,170 And there's many medicinal plants that grow wild 512 00:23:40,170 --> 00:23:42,907 in those areas that are available for wildcrafting. 513 00:23:44,994 --> 00:23:46,740 So one of the roles that Spoonful Herbals has played 514 00:23:46,740 --> 00:23:50,190 in terms of the distribution gap is for farmers 515 00:23:50,190 --> 00:23:52,680 who are interested in using those weedy 516 00:23:52,680 --> 00:23:55,320 and additional plants on their own. 517 00:23:55,320 --> 00:23:58,920 We organize medicinal plant gleaning events on those farms 518 00:23:58,920 --> 00:24:01,350 and some of our primary partners in the Burlington area 519 00:24:01,350 --> 00:24:04,503 for that are Shelbourne Farms, Bread and Butter Farm. 520 00:24:05,520 --> 00:24:09,573 Shelbourne Farms is probably our most prominent partner. 521 00:24:11,550 --> 00:24:14,520 We end up going there five or six times a summer 522 00:24:14,520 --> 00:24:17,310 and this is an opportunity to close 523 00:24:17,310 --> 00:24:19,953 that distribution gap of abundant plants 524 00:24:19,953 --> 00:24:22,595 in the landscape and a local market 525 00:24:22,595 --> 00:24:24,556 of consumers that are looking for these plants. 526 00:24:24,556 --> 00:24:26,610 But farmers don't yet know or don't have 527 00:24:26,610 --> 00:24:30,339 the infrastructure or the desire to harvest them themselves. 528 00:24:30,339 --> 00:24:33,750 So trying to bring groups of essentially organized labor 529 00:24:33,750 --> 00:24:35,790 to get these plants off the landscape 530 00:24:35,790 --> 00:24:39,183 but also to process them through drying or other means. 531 00:24:40,620 --> 00:24:42,370 We also work with farmers 532 00:24:44,120 --> 00:24:46,807 to identify what's on their plant. 533 00:24:46,807 --> 00:24:47,700 This is a quote from Tim Wall, 534 00:24:47,700 --> 00:24:49,683 who's the owner of Three Chimney Farm, 535 00:24:51,344 --> 00:24:52,410 and I, a few years ago, 536 00:24:52,410 --> 00:24:54,900 went out to his farm and spent an hour with him, 537 00:24:54,900 --> 00:24:57,250 essentially doing a plant walk and teaching him 538 00:24:58,175 --> 00:24:59,850 about what plants were already available in his landscape. 539 00:24:59,850 --> 00:25:02,958 He was really excited about the St. John's wort 540 00:25:02,958 --> 00:25:04,440 and he had just hired a new worker 541 00:25:04,440 --> 00:25:06,930 who had some skills in herbal processing. 542 00:25:06,930 --> 00:25:09,750 So as a result of this herb walk, 543 00:25:09,750 --> 00:25:13,426 they added a section of their CSA 544 00:25:13,426 --> 00:25:15,000 where their members were 545 00:25:15,000 --> 00:25:18,030 getting value added herbal products as well. 546 00:25:18,030 --> 00:25:20,993 So this is a relatively new program 547 00:25:20,993 --> 00:25:22,723 that we've been offering not only 548 00:25:22,723 --> 00:25:25,140 to homeowners but also to farmers who might want 549 00:25:25,140 --> 00:25:28,260 to get to know how to use their land more fully 550 00:25:28,260 --> 00:25:30,660 in terms of the plant medicine that's available. 551 00:25:32,010 --> 00:25:34,920 So here's some examples of common medicinal plants 552 00:25:34,920 --> 00:25:36,750 that might be found on the landscape. 553 00:25:36,750 --> 00:25:40,470 First of all, I'm a big fan of using invasive plants. 554 00:25:40,470 --> 00:25:43,890 So here's garlic mustard, purple loosestrife. 555 00:25:43,890 --> 00:25:46,050 I have tried to use Japanese knotweed 556 00:25:46,050 --> 00:25:47,824 I've had some success, 557 00:25:47,824 --> 00:25:50,010 but Japanese knotweed is very hard to process. 558 00:25:50,010 --> 00:25:53,910 It requires hatchet and lots of muscle to harvest 559 00:25:53,910 --> 00:25:56,026 the medicine and I don't quite have 560 00:25:56,026 --> 00:25:57,420 the staff and infrastructure to do that. 561 00:25:57,420 --> 00:26:00,210 But garlic mustard is a really wonderful addition 562 00:26:00,210 --> 00:26:04,590 to pesto and other sort of flavored remedies, 563 00:26:04,590 --> 00:26:07,590 especially if you harvest it early enough in the spring. 564 00:26:07,590 --> 00:26:12,590 And there are a lot of crews that are involved in basically 565 00:26:13,410 --> 00:26:15,870 pulling up and eradicating these invasive plants. 566 00:26:15,870 --> 00:26:18,180 And I think that there's a huge opportunity for connecting 567 00:26:18,180 --> 00:26:20,550 with area herbalists to use the plants 568 00:26:20,550 --> 00:26:22,350 and not just put them in landfills. 569 00:26:22,350 --> 00:26:23,800 Purple loosestrife is another 570 00:26:24,963 --> 00:26:26,460 common invasive plant in Vermont 571 00:26:26,460 --> 00:26:28,890 where there are programs trying to eradicate 572 00:26:28,890 --> 00:26:30,753 and control the population. 573 00:26:31,739 --> 00:26:35,400 And purple loosestrife is a traditional mucus membrane, 574 00:26:35,400 --> 00:26:37,419 emollient or demulcent. 575 00:26:37,419 --> 00:26:39,660 It's very soothing and moistening to mucus membranes 576 00:26:39,660 --> 00:26:42,750 it's also slightly antimicrobial. 577 00:26:42,750 --> 00:26:46,050 So mucus membranes such as the nose and the throat. 578 00:26:46,050 --> 00:26:48,390 We at Spoonful Herbals for our CSA, 579 00:26:48,390 --> 00:26:50,040 we make a throat spray every 580 00:26:50,040 --> 00:26:52,263 year including purple loosestrife. 581 00:26:53,135 --> 00:26:55,522 And for me it's not just providing 582 00:26:55,522 --> 00:26:57,170 really good medicine using local remedies, 583 00:26:57,170 --> 00:26:59,790 but it's an opportunity to broaden the public's thinking 584 00:26:59,790 --> 00:27:02,370 about these invasive plants and not just seeing them 585 00:27:02,370 --> 00:27:04,080 as a scourge to be eradicated, 586 00:27:04,080 --> 00:27:06,330 but as a resource that might be used 587 00:27:06,330 --> 00:27:08,230 to support their health and wellbeing. 588 00:27:09,780 --> 00:27:11,670 Other common plants. 589 00:27:11,670 --> 00:27:13,350 Here's dandelion again, 590 00:27:13,350 --> 00:27:15,990 and I'm not gonna share as much about this plant 591 00:27:15,990 --> 00:27:17,550 because we've talked about it often, 592 00:27:17,550 --> 00:27:19,980 but a really wonderful plant to include 593 00:27:19,980 --> 00:27:21,600 in many different forms. 594 00:27:21,600 --> 00:27:24,330 Spoonful Herbals makes a backyard bitters formula 595 00:27:24,330 --> 00:27:27,420 every year that varies depending on what's abundant, 596 00:27:27,420 --> 00:27:31,459 but always includes dandelion, burdock and yellow dock, 597 00:27:31,459 --> 00:27:33,253 which are all really common 598 00:27:33,253 --> 00:27:35,703 and often misunderstood weeds in our environment. 599 00:27:37,170 --> 00:27:41,370 Plantain, sorry that name got cut off there. 600 00:27:41,370 --> 00:27:45,180 But plantain is another abundant plant remedy 601 00:27:45,180 --> 00:27:47,130 and some of the products that we've made 602 00:27:47,130 --> 00:27:49,680 with plantain include wound 603 00:27:49,680 --> 00:27:53,670 and other sort of healing salves or skincare products. 604 00:27:53,670 --> 00:27:55,620 We also made a dash your rash wash 605 00:27:55,620 --> 00:27:57,834 and dash your rash powder, 606 00:27:57,834 --> 00:28:01,110 which emphasized plantain as a soothing antihistamine. 607 00:28:01,110 --> 00:28:04,170 And this was given out in the summer share to try 608 00:28:04,170 --> 00:28:06,693 and support people with Poison ivy and bug bites. 609 00:28:07,619 --> 00:28:09,480 And we also have often made 610 00:28:09,480 --> 00:28:12,600 an anti-itch salve featuring plantain, 611 00:28:12,600 --> 00:28:15,150 which has been really popular and I've had some people say 612 00:28:15,150 --> 00:28:17,250 it's the only thing that works for them. 613 00:28:17,250 --> 00:28:18,930 But again, the mission at Spoonful Herbals 614 00:28:18,930 --> 00:28:20,523 is not really to make product. 615 00:28:21,504 --> 00:28:23,670 The goal is to show people what's possible off the landscape 616 00:28:23,670 --> 00:28:26,450 and share recipes and build that sense of wellness. 617 00:28:26,450 --> 00:28:29,490 So sovereignty and the skills for them to support 618 00:28:29,490 --> 00:28:32,580 their own households from their own backyard. 619 00:28:32,580 --> 00:28:36,810 And also perhaps teaching commercial farmers to produce 620 00:28:36,810 --> 00:28:39,660 these products as well and share it with their community. 621 00:28:40,770 --> 00:28:44,610 Lamb's quarters is another common weed, 622 00:28:44,610 --> 00:28:46,410 often in cultivated spaces, 623 00:28:46,410 --> 00:28:48,630 it's not as common in a yard 624 00:28:48,630 --> 00:28:50,730 'cause it doesn't compete well with the grass. 625 00:28:50,730 --> 00:28:55,730 But lambs quarters is a really nutritious spinach like herb. 626 00:28:56,970 --> 00:28:58,920 It's very high in calcium magnesium, 627 00:28:58,920 --> 00:29:03,662 it often tends to come up sooner than the greens 628 00:29:03,662 --> 00:29:06,120 in the garden beds and is really delicious raw. 629 00:29:06,120 --> 00:29:08,220 You can see some on this wood-fired pizza 630 00:29:08,220 --> 00:29:11,405 that we cooked at Rock Point 631 00:29:11,405 --> 00:29:14,670 as part of our educational and community events, 632 00:29:14,670 --> 00:29:17,790 but it also can be steamed or incorporated into pesto 633 00:29:17,790 --> 00:29:19,290 and this would be a great plant for you 634 00:29:19,290 --> 00:29:22,413 to get to know if you can find it in your local environment. 635 00:29:23,670 --> 00:29:25,920 Yarrow is another medicinal plant 636 00:29:25,920 --> 00:29:28,320 that I shared in the UVM Gardens, 637 00:29:28,320 --> 00:29:30,558 but it also grows weedy in pastures 638 00:29:30,558 --> 00:29:33,120 and often if it is mowed, 639 00:29:33,120 --> 00:29:36,690 all you'll see is the short little frilly leaves. 640 00:29:36,690 --> 00:29:40,023 Again, this is the finely divided Achillea millefolium, 641 00:29:40,860 --> 00:29:42,270 but if you allow it to bloom, 642 00:29:42,270 --> 00:29:46,020 it makes these spikes of white flowers sometimes 643 00:29:46,020 --> 00:29:49,830 a little bit pink that can be used in many different ways. 644 00:29:49,830 --> 00:29:53,220 Most popularly in skincare products 645 00:29:53,220 --> 00:29:55,770 for healing wounds and stopping bleeding. 646 00:29:55,770 --> 00:29:58,290 But it also makes a really wonderful flower essence 647 00:29:58,290 --> 00:30:01,083 for helping to support energetic boundaries. 648 00:30:02,640 --> 00:30:06,960 St John's wort is one of my favorite weedy plant medicines. 649 00:30:06,960 --> 00:30:11,010 I think because it is more well known in sort 650 00:30:11,010 --> 00:30:15,270 of the modern commercial environment for medicinal plants. 651 00:30:15,270 --> 00:30:17,310 Many citizens know it as a plant 652 00:30:17,310 --> 00:30:21,660 to support depression and reduced depression symptoms. 653 00:30:21,660 --> 00:30:24,060 And it does work pharmacologically very much 654 00:30:24,060 --> 00:30:27,450 like a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor. 655 00:30:27,450 --> 00:30:30,330 It works as a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor 656 00:30:30,330 --> 00:30:31,443 or an SSRI, 657 00:30:32,546 --> 00:30:34,653 which is a very popular class 658 00:30:34,653 --> 00:30:36,574 of pharmaceutical antidepressants. 659 00:30:36,574 --> 00:30:38,460 And so it can be really useful for people who are wanting 660 00:30:38,460 --> 00:30:42,060 to wean off of antidepressants or lower the amount 661 00:30:42,060 --> 00:30:44,010 of pharmaceuticals that they're taking 662 00:30:44,010 --> 00:30:47,640 to basically use St. John's wort as a way 663 00:30:47,640 --> 00:30:51,270 to lower the dose if their physician is on board with that. 664 00:30:51,270 --> 00:30:54,030 But one of my favorite uses of St. John's wort 665 00:30:54,030 --> 00:30:56,265 is to make an infused oil, 666 00:30:56,265 --> 00:30:57,420 which is what you see on the right here. 667 00:30:57,420 --> 00:30:59,670 So this is a solar infused oil and we'll be talking 668 00:30:59,670 --> 00:31:02,553 about infused oils next week. 669 00:31:03,736 --> 00:31:06,210 And the infused oil is an amazing remedy 670 00:31:06,210 --> 00:31:10,890 for any kind of nerve pain, has really quick results. 671 00:31:10,890 --> 00:31:12,930 And the main thing to know about St. John's wort 672 00:31:12,930 --> 00:31:15,240 is that it is a potent liver activator. 673 00:31:15,240 --> 00:31:19,020 So if anyone is taking daily medications 674 00:31:19,020 --> 00:31:22,580 such as statins or birth control pills, 675 00:31:22,580 --> 00:31:25,230 they should not use St. John's wort internally 676 00:31:25,230 --> 00:31:26,610 because it can disrupt how that 677 00:31:26,610 --> 00:31:29,040 medication is metabolized in the body. 678 00:31:29,040 --> 00:31:32,010 But it is safe to use St. John's wort topically. 679 00:31:32,010 --> 00:31:33,960 So I've used that for sciatic pain, 680 00:31:33,960 --> 00:31:35,550 I've used that for fibromyalgia, 681 00:31:35,550 --> 00:31:39,810 I've used it for nerve damage from a burn, 682 00:31:39,810 --> 00:31:41,970 but also nerve damage that can occur 683 00:31:41,970 --> 00:31:44,220 as a side effect of chemotherapy. 684 00:31:44,220 --> 00:31:47,497 And this is one that is often in pastures and green spaces 685 00:31:47,497 --> 00:31:51,240 and blooms this beautiful yellow flower 686 00:31:51,240 --> 00:31:53,223 in mid-summer around the solstice. 687 00:31:54,600 --> 00:31:57,390 Another popular plant is goldenrod 688 00:31:57,390 --> 00:31:58,960 and one of my missions in life 689 00:32:00,769 --> 00:32:04,500 is to dispel the myth that goldenrod causes fall allergies. 690 00:32:04,500 --> 00:32:06,870 It's actually ragweed that blooms 691 00:32:06,870 --> 00:32:10,140 at the same time that causes fall allergies. 692 00:32:10,140 --> 00:32:11,400 And I can explain more about 693 00:32:11,400 --> 00:32:12,900 that if you need more convincing, 694 00:32:12,900 --> 00:32:13,950 but goldenrod is actually 695 00:32:13,950 --> 00:32:17,580 a really amazing remedy for allergies. 696 00:32:17,580 --> 00:32:19,260 It has antihistamine properties, 697 00:32:19,260 --> 00:32:22,893 also potent antiinflammatory properties. 698 00:32:23,822 --> 00:32:27,450 I love to use it in nasal irrigation or neti pot rinse 699 00:32:27,450 --> 00:32:29,190 for helping to remove pollen 700 00:32:29,190 --> 00:32:31,240 from the nose during allergy season 701 00:32:32,451 --> 00:32:35,144 and have great results with that with my clients. 702 00:32:35,144 --> 00:32:38,790 Goldenrod is also really amazing as a urinary tonic 703 00:32:38,790 --> 00:32:42,060 and helping to prevent urinary tract infections. 704 00:32:42,060 --> 00:32:45,420 But one of those plants that is widely available in Vermont, 705 00:32:45,420 --> 00:32:47,940 this is an August and September plant 706 00:32:47,940 --> 00:32:51,213 and very easy to make teas and other medicines with it. 707 00:32:53,010 --> 00:32:56,370 I wanna share a couple of my favorite medicinal cover crops 708 00:32:56,370 --> 00:32:58,590 because I see this as a huge opportunity not only 709 00:32:58,590 --> 00:33:00,150 to support human health, 710 00:33:00,150 --> 00:33:03,240 but also to improve farming practices and contribute 711 00:33:03,240 --> 00:33:07,110 to more agroecological or sustainable farming practices. 712 00:33:07,110 --> 00:33:10,590 So cover crops is a great way to support soil quality, 713 00:33:10,590 --> 00:33:13,290 not just in terms of providing nutrients, 714 00:33:13,290 --> 00:33:14,490 red clover is a legume, 715 00:33:14,490 --> 00:33:17,220 so it's a nitrogen fixer in our soils, 716 00:33:17,220 --> 00:33:19,530 but also to stabilize the soil, 717 00:33:19,530 --> 00:33:22,470 reduce erosion and help with moisture control 718 00:33:22,470 --> 00:33:25,920 and particularly in the wetter colder seasons. 719 00:33:25,920 --> 00:33:28,200 And one of my previous roles was working 720 00:33:28,200 --> 00:33:30,210 with Ernesto Mendez to start 721 00:33:30,210 --> 00:33:32,130 the Vermont Agricultural Resilience 722 00:33:32,130 --> 00:33:33,870 in a Changing Climate Project, 723 00:33:33,870 --> 00:33:37,050 which was looking at ways to support farmers 724 00:33:37,050 --> 00:33:38,940 to adapt to climate change 725 00:33:38,940 --> 00:33:41,460 and the increased extreme weather events 726 00:33:41,460 --> 00:33:43,080 that were coming our way. 727 00:33:43,080 --> 00:33:45,780 And of course, you know, as most researchers, 728 00:33:45,780 --> 00:33:47,760 at least most of my experience with research, 729 00:33:47,760 --> 00:33:49,950 once we started talking with the farmers, 730 00:33:49,950 --> 00:33:52,115 we found that they actually knew 731 00:33:52,115 --> 00:33:54,690 a lot more than the researchers about what to do. 732 00:33:54,690 --> 00:33:58,590 So it became more about validating and amplifying 733 00:33:58,590 --> 00:34:01,440 the voices of farmers to policy makers 734 00:34:01,440 --> 00:34:03,780 so that we could have more incentive programs 735 00:34:03,780 --> 00:34:06,990 at the policy level to support smart 736 00:34:06,990 --> 00:34:09,810 and sustainable farming practices. 737 00:34:09,810 --> 00:34:13,170 But cover crops can be a great way to heal the landscape 738 00:34:13,170 --> 00:34:16,530 and enhance the effectiveness of farming practices. 739 00:34:16,530 --> 00:34:19,350 And then an additional ecosystem service 740 00:34:19,350 --> 00:34:21,450 that it might provide is medicine. 741 00:34:21,450 --> 00:34:24,780 So red clover is a highly nutritious herb, 742 00:34:24,780 --> 00:34:27,060 it's an excellent source of calcium magnesium, 743 00:34:27,060 --> 00:34:30,780 so I often use it for female bodied folks, 744 00:34:30,780 --> 00:34:35,325 post-menopausally to support bone density 745 00:34:35,325 --> 00:34:37,380 and prevent osteoporosis. 746 00:34:37,380 --> 00:34:39,363 It also has a role to play, 747 00:34:40,592 --> 00:34:44,100 particularly in younger adolescents as a way to help 748 00:34:44,100 --> 00:34:47,820 regulate hormones and prevent toxicity 749 00:34:47,820 --> 00:34:50,820 from estrogens in the environment. 750 00:34:50,820 --> 00:34:53,040 So there's a fair amount of hormone pollution 751 00:34:53,040 --> 00:34:54,840 that comes in the form of plasticizers 752 00:34:54,840 --> 00:34:57,300 in certain pesticides and in our food 753 00:34:57,300 --> 00:35:00,665 and particularly the commercial meat, 754 00:35:00,665 --> 00:35:04,353 I guess this is more feedlot meat environment. 755 00:35:05,215 --> 00:35:07,140 And those synthetic estrogens 756 00:35:07,140 --> 00:35:09,720 in the environment can be really harmful to our health. 757 00:35:09,720 --> 00:35:14,720 And legumes such as clover, black beans, chickpeas, 758 00:35:15,120 --> 00:35:18,450 any of the bean family plants can help to buffer 759 00:35:18,450 --> 00:35:21,270 and protect the body from the impact of synthetic estrogens, 760 00:35:21,270 --> 00:35:22,560 which is particularly important 761 00:35:22,560 --> 00:35:25,773 for young people in the puberty years. 762 00:35:27,390 --> 00:35:32,390 One of my favorite cover crops is milky oats and oat seed. 763 00:35:32,790 --> 00:35:36,159 This is the same as breakfast cereal oats, 764 00:35:36,159 --> 00:35:39,090 but it's harvested when it's 765 00:35:39,090 --> 00:35:42,303 the slightly immature seed at the milky phase. 766 00:35:43,637 --> 00:35:45,510 And I grow a lot of milky oats as a cover crop in my garden 767 00:35:45,510 --> 00:35:49,680 because it's such an excellent green manure for the fields. 768 00:35:49,680 --> 00:35:53,897 But also these seeds when they're at the milky sage can be, 769 00:35:53,897 --> 00:35:57,120 they can be dried and put into tea and I would make 770 00:35:57,120 --> 00:36:00,180 a super infusion of this to get the minerals out of it. 771 00:36:00,180 --> 00:36:02,790 But the most effective way to prepare milky oats 772 00:36:02,790 --> 00:36:04,805 is to make a fresh tincture, 773 00:36:04,805 --> 00:36:05,700 which is what's shown here on the right. 774 00:36:05,700 --> 00:36:07,980 You can see it almost looks like guacamole. 775 00:36:07,980 --> 00:36:10,530 The the creaminess of the milky oats 776 00:36:10,530 --> 00:36:13,113 and the green makes it look like avocado. 777 00:36:14,293 --> 00:36:18,510 And milky oat tincture is an extremely nutritious herb, 778 00:36:18,510 --> 00:36:21,030 particularly for the nerves. 779 00:36:21,030 --> 00:36:25,382 And there's a component called called calmodulin, 780 00:36:25,382 --> 00:36:26,520 which is actually a precursor 781 00:36:26,520 --> 00:36:28,620 for the regeneration of neurons. 782 00:36:28,620 --> 00:36:31,500 And this is a really helpful remedy 783 00:36:31,500 --> 00:36:34,410 after traumatic brain injury or concussion 784 00:36:34,410 --> 00:36:36,780 to help to speed healing. 785 00:36:36,780 --> 00:36:38,610 And I've seen really dramatic results 786 00:36:38,610 --> 00:36:40,440 and I teach at the Brain Injury 787 00:36:40,440 --> 00:36:43,540 of Vermont Association Conference every year 788 00:36:43,540 --> 00:36:44,373 about many different remedies, 789 00:36:44,373 --> 00:36:45,720 but particularly milky oats. 790 00:36:45,720 --> 00:36:49,980 And this can also be useful for certain types of anxiety, 791 00:36:49,980 --> 00:36:51,000 especially if there's a feeling 792 00:36:51,000 --> 00:36:53,580 of just sort of like frayed nerves, 793 00:36:53,580 --> 00:36:55,920 just like very anxious, 794 00:36:55,920 --> 00:36:59,580 and it can be helpful for cognitive decline related 795 00:36:59,580 --> 00:37:02,880 to aging or other situations. 796 00:37:02,880 --> 00:37:06,000 So a really amazing nerve tonic as both a tea 797 00:37:06,000 --> 00:37:09,303 and a super infusion or a fresh tincture. 798 00:37:10,821 --> 00:37:13,890 And it's also very easy to grow as a cover crop 799 00:37:13,890 --> 00:37:16,620 and can be rotated in sort of 800 00:37:16,620 --> 00:37:18,390 the fallow fields every season 801 00:37:18,390 --> 00:37:20,250 as part of a sustainable 802 00:37:20,250 --> 00:37:22,983 or agroecological farming process. 803 00:37:25,020 --> 00:37:27,780 There are also a number of cash crops 804 00:37:27,780 --> 00:37:28,980 that have been targeted, 805 00:37:28,980 --> 00:37:31,590 particularly by the Center for Sustainable Agriculture 806 00:37:31,590 --> 00:37:34,050 and Heather Darby's group, 807 00:37:34,050 --> 00:37:37,745 the Vermont Crops and Soils Program, 808 00:37:37,745 --> 00:37:39,900 really trying to support farmers 809 00:37:39,900 --> 00:37:42,420 to grow certain crops that tend to be medicinal, 810 00:37:42,420 --> 00:37:45,360 but also because there's a huge market for them in Vermont. 811 00:37:45,360 --> 00:37:50,360 So hops, some of you may may not be aware, 812 00:37:50,850 --> 00:37:52,440 but I think it was about a decade ago 813 00:37:52,440 --> 00:37:54,900 there was a huge hops shortage 814 00:37:54,900 --> 00:37:57,600 and trying to keep up with all the wonderful micro brewers, 815 00:37:57,600 --> 00:37:59,070 particularly here in Vermont, 816 00:37:59,070 --> 00:38:01,691 that weren't able to get the hops they needed, 817 00:38:01,691 --> 00:38:03,660 which prompted innovative farmers 818 00:38:03,660 --> 00:38:06,750 and farm support organizations to support hop production. 819 00:38:06,750 --> 00:38:08,700 And hops are not just good for beer, 820 00:38:08,700 --> 00:38:11,710 they're also a really important medicinal plant 821 00:38:12,954 --> 00:38:16,050 used as a sedative and for certain types of pain. 822 00:38:16,050 --> 00:38:19,800 So this is something that can be grown on the farm 823 00:38:19,800 --> 00:38:21,090 as a commercial crop and there's 824 00:38:21,090 --> 00:38:24,843 lots of support through UVM in other places to do that. 825 00:38:25,680 --> 00:38:26,730 Shiitake mushroom is also 826 00:38:26,730 --> 00:38:29,160 one of our really important mushroom tonics. 827 00:38:29,160 --> 00:38:31,410 Helpful for prevention of allergies 828 00:38:31,410 --> 00:38:33,660 and treatment of autoimmune conditions, 829 00:38:33,660 --> 00:38:37,620 but also prevention and treatment of cancer. 830 00:38:37,620 --> 00:38:40,260 And there's a resource through the UVM Center 831 00:38:40,260 --> 00:38:41,610 for Sustainable Agriculture 832 00:38:42,513 --> 00:38:43,800 about shiitake cultivation on logs, 833 00:38:43,800 --> 00:38:48,540 which is a great way to diversify the commercial offerings 834 00:38:48,540 --> 00:38:51,480 on the farm as well as just growing small amounts 835 00:38:51,480 --> 00:38:54,720 at a homestead or family scale 836 00:38:54,720 --> 00:38:57,003 to support the family's health and wellbeing. 837 00:38:59,340 --> 00:39:01,990 Elderberries is another crop that has been promoted 838 00:39:03,140 --> 00:39:04,860 by the Vermont Center for Sustainable Agriculture. 839 00:39:04,860 --> 00:39:07,830 This Growing Elderberry guide was something 840 00:39:07,830 --> 00:39:09,879 that I was involved in producing 841 00:39:09,879 --> 00:39:13,710 and this is not just a chance to offer 842 00:39:13,710 --> 00:39:16,290 a really important medicine to our community. 843 00:39:16,290 --> 00:39:21,210 It is a really helpful antiviral cold and flu remedy, 844 00:39:21,210 --> 00:39:26,160 but also because it has the dark berry pigment in the skin. 845 00:39:26,160 --> 00:39:28,080 Also really helpful for prevention 846 00:39:28,080 --> 00:39:30,390 of cardiovascular disease and cancer. 847 00:39:30,390 --> 00:39:32,910 So huge benefits in terms of the human health side 848 00:39:32,910 --> 00:39:35,520 of the sustainable food and medicine system. 849 00:39:35,520 --> 00:39:36,990 But elderberries also provide 850 00:39:36,990 --> 00:39:39,720 a really important ecosystem service on the farm. 851 00:39:39,720 --> 00:39:42,720 It's tends to grow on stream banks 852 00:39:42,720 --> 00:39:46,740 and wetter areas and can be a really helpful, 853 00:39:46,740 --> 00:39:50,340 productive riparian buffer crop and riparian buffers 854 00:39:50,340 --> 00:39:53,070 or stream bank plantings to stabilize 855 00:39:53,070 --> 00:39:55,800 the stream banks in the soil is a really important practice, 856 00:39:55,800 --> 00:39:59,430 particularly in a farm environment where flooding 857 00:39:59,430 --> 00:40:03,060 and extreme rainfall events can be really common. 858 00:40:03,060 --> 00:40:08,060 So this was a grant that we received from the Working Lands. 859 00:40:08,070 --> 00:40:10,470 The Working Lands Initiative in the state of Vermont, 860 00:40:10,470 --> 00:40:12,570 which was not just about producing medicine 861 00:40:12,570 --> 00:40:14,910 and producing cash crops for farmers, 862 00:40:14,910 --> 00:40:17,400 but also about adapting to climate change 863 00:40:17,400 --> 00:40:19,590 and heavy rainfall events. 864 00:40:19,590 --> 00:40:21,940 And then echinacea tends to grow 865 00:40:22,799 --> 00:40:25,002 in landscape areas as a flower garden. 866 00:40:25,002 --> 00:40:27,330 It's a wonderful pollinator plant as you can see. 867 00:40:27,330 --> 00:40:28,980 It's really beautiful 868 00:40:28,980 --> 00:40:32,340 and then it has lots of medicinal value and in fact, 869 00:40:32,340 --> 00:40:34,350 one of my favorite remedies is to make 870 00:40:34,350 --> 00:40:37,500 an elderberry syrup with echinacea tincture in it. 871 00:40:37,500 --> 00:40:39,810 The echinacea tincture helps to preserve it, 872 00:40:39,810 --> 00:40:42,870 but also provides additional immune boosting remedies. 873 00:40:42,870 --> 00:40:43,830 And Urban Moonshine, 874 00:40:43,830 --> 00:40:46,510 which is the company that started in Vermont 875 00:40:47,369 --> 00:40:51,780 that Guido Mase is the chief herbalist and formulator for, 876 00:40:51,780 --> 00:40:53,880 they make a product called Immune Zoom, 877 00:40:53,880 --> 00:40:56,373 which includes elderberry and echinacea in it. 878 00:40:57,960 --> 00:41:00,330 And here's the Working Lands report, 879 00:41:00,330 --> 00:41:04,170 which is available on the Center for Sustainable Ag website, 880 00:41:04,170 --> 00:41:05,470 if you wanna check it out. 881 00:41:06,586 --> 00:41:10,271 And elderflower is also a medicinal plant used 882 00:41:10,271 --> 00:41:13,563 as a flu remedy and in tea form. 883 00:41:15,420 --> 00:41:17,220 So there are a few crops 884 00:41:17,220 --> 00:41:20,043 that farmers might choose to cultivate. 885 00:41:21,301 --> 00:41:24,810 So these are a couple of annuals, tulsi or holy basil, 886 00:41:24,810 --> 00:41:26,640 which you all are hopefully starting 887 00:41:26,640 --> 00:41:31,320 to see sprout in the next week or so in your homes, 888 00:41:31,320 --> 00:41:33,870 is a very easy crop, 889 00:41:33,870 --> 00:41:36,330 it's an amazing pollinator crop, 890 00:41:36,330 --> 00:41:39,450 but very easy to grow and there's a huge market for tulsi. 891 00:41:39,450 --> 00:41:42,250 It's a really popular plant through 892 00:41:43,305 --> 00:41:44,580 sold through our apothecary. 893 00:41:44,580 --> 00:41:46,923 And it's a traditional plant, 894 00:41:47,850 --> 00:41:50,250 it's called holy basil because it's a traditional sacred 895 00:41:50,250 --> 00:41:55,250 plant of India and particularly the Hindi religious groups. 896 00:41:55,680 --> 00:41:57,690 So this is one that's very easy to grow 897 00:41:57,690 --> 00:41:59,190 and could be a way for farmers 898 00:41:59,190 --> 00:42:02,670 to turn one of their cultivated fields 899 00:42:02,670 --> 00:42:05,490 into a cash crop of medicinal plants. 900 00:42:05,490 --> 00:42:08,754 Calendula is also another one that that's very easy 901 00:42:08,754 --> 00:42:11,220 to grow and just sort of keeps giving. 902 00:42:11,220 --> 00:42:13,740 So calendula, it's the flower that's used as medicine, 903 00:42:13,740 --> 00:42:15,630 whereas tulsi on the previous slide, 904 00:42:15,630 --> 00:42:19,290 it's the flowering aerial parts that we use as medicine. 905 00:42:19,290 --> 00:42:20,820 So for flower medicine, 906 00:42:20,820 --> 00:42:23,410 basically it's a practice of going out every other day 907 00:42:23,410 --> 00:42:28,200 and removing the flower heads when they're, 908 00:42:28,200 --> 00:42:32,550 you know, open and fresh look like a ray of basically 909 00:42:32,550 --> 00:42:35,490 a fully open sun and harvesting 910 00:42:35,490 --> 00:42:37,653 the calendula blossoms every other day. 911 00:42:38,648 --> 00:42:40,080 And basically this process of removing 912 00:42:40,080 --> 00:42:42,640 the flower heads in the calendula encourages 913 00:42:43,601 --> 00:42:44,850 the plant to keep producing more flower 914 00:42:44,850 --> 00:42:46,050 rather than going to seed. 915 00:42:46,050 --> 00:42:48,060 If you allow a calendula plant to go to seed, 916 00:42:48,060 --> 00:42:49,890 it will stop producing flowers. 917 00:42:49,890 --> 00:42:52,410 And I've had calendula plants giving 918 00:42:52,410 --> 00:42:54,900 from June all the way into November. 919 00:42:54,900 --> 00:42:58,050 This amazing skin supportive remedy 920 00:42:58,050 --> 00:43:00,870 and also great to include in small amounts in tea 921 00:43:00,870 --> 00:43:04,290 because of its color and also its gut 922 00:43:04,290 --> 00:43:06,423 and digestive system healing properties. 923 00:43:08,370 --> 00:43:09,600 And then lastly, 924 00:43:09,600 --> 00:43:13,410 many Vermont farms include forested landscape. 925 00:43:13,410 --> 00:43:15,330 So don't wanna discount the medicine 926 00:43:15,330 --> 00:43:16,620 that's available in our forests. 927 00:43:16,620 --> 00:43:18,810 And the other benefits of forest medicine 928 00:43:18,810 --> 00:43:21,960 is that they tend to be available year round. 929 00:43:21,960 --> 00:43:26,960 So many of the evergreens, cedar, hemlock, white pine, 930 00:43:28,680 --> 00:43:30,870 are amazing antimicrobial plants 931 00:43:30,870 --> 00:43:35,580 which can be used as a respiratory remedy and steams, 932 00:43:35,580 --> 00:43:38,280 they also are wonderful if they're dried 933 00:43:38,280 --> 00:43:41,730 and burned to sort of smudge or clear a space. 934 00:43:41,730 --> 00:43:45,060 And then the resin, this is pine resin, 935 00:43:45,060 --> 00:43:48,690 is also a traditional remedy for wounds and can be really 936 00:43:48,690 --> 00:43:51,280 helpful as a wilderness first aid if you get a cut 937 00:43:52,929 --> 00:43:56,700 to put pine pitch or pine resin into the wound 938 00:43:56,700 --> 00:43:59,880 to seal it and prevent bleeding. 939 00:43:59,880 --> 00:44:04,680 But also it's full of antimicrobial essential oils 940 00:44:04,680 --> 00:44:07,833 that help to protect the skin from infection. 941 00:44:09,180 --> 00:44:14,180 Another really popular forest medicine is from poplar buds. 942 00:44:14,310 --> 00:44:19,290 So this is the Populus balsamifera, the balsam poplar. 943 00:44:19,290 --> 00:44:23,550 And you can see the spring buds have this sort of, 944 00:44:23,550 --> 00:44:27,720 it's a very sort of sticky resin that can be infused 945 00:44:27,720 --> 00:44:30,540 in olive oil or other carrier oil 946 00:44:30,540 --> 00:44:33,090 and included in salves and body rubs. 947 00:44:33,090 --> 00:44:35,160 And it has that classic sort 948 00:44:35,160 --> 00:44:38,220 of wintergreen methyl salicylate constituent, 949 00:44:38,220 --> 00:44:40,890 which is really helpful not just as an antimicrobial 950 00:44:40,890 --> 00:44:43,590 but also an anti-spasmatic or helping 951 00:44:43,590 --> 00:44:46,023 to reduce muscle pain and tension. 952 00:44:47,871 --> 00:44:51,772 And then black cherry is a classic remedy for 953 00:44:51,772 --> 00:44:56,772 as a antitussive or helps to stop coughing, 954 00:44:57,180 --> 00:45:01,320 so often included in winter cough syrups. 955 00:45:01,320 --> 00:45:02,153 And the important thing 956 00:45:02,153 --> 00:45:04,023 about black cherry is it's more of a, 957 00:45:04,953 --> 00:45:07,170 I would call a green allopathic remedy. 958 00:45:07,170 --> 00:45:09,150 So it helps to stop the coughing, 959 00:45:09,150 --> 00:45:12,510 which can help improve sleep and help someone rest, 960 00:45:12,510 --> 00:45:14,914 but it doesn't actually treat the cough 961 00:45:14,914 --> 00:45:17,163 or get at the underlying infection. 962 00:45:18,147 --> 00:45:20,640 So you'd always wanna combine black cherry syrup 963 00:45:20,640 --> 00:45:23,163 with some sort of antimicrobial. 964 00:45:23,163 --> 00:45:24,990 It could be garlic or horse radish and fire cider 965 00:45:24,990 --> 00:45:29,250 or a lung steam or both echinacea would be good 966 00:45:29,250 --> 00:45:30,693 in that situation as well. 967 00:45:33,228 --> 00:45:35,341 And then, not to mention this 968 00:45:35,341 --> 00:45:36,174 is not necessarily a plant medicine, 969 00:45:36,174 --> 00:45:37,860 but the medicinal mushrooms, 970 00:45:37,860 --> 00:45:40,830 chaga, turkey tail on the right, 971 00:45:40,830 --> 00:45:45,660 and reishi on the left are available in our Vermont woods. 972 00:45:45,660 --> 00:45:47,220 And I always encourage people, 973 00:45:47,220 --> 00:45:50,400 because chaga tends to be over harvested 974 00:45:50,400 --> 00:45:52,890 and you're not harvesting the fruiting body, 975 00:45:52,890 --> 00:45:55,113 you're actually harvesting the whole, 976 00:45:56,430 --> 00:45:58,080 the whole mushroom chaga when you're harvesting chaga. 977 00:45:58,080 --> 00:46:00,450 So it doesn't regenerate very quickly. 978 00:46:00,450 --> 00:46:02,580 I encourage people to leave that in the woods for folks 979 00:46:02,580 --> 00:46:05,610 who really need it, which are often folks with cancer, 980 00:46:05,610 --> 00:46:08,985 whereas turkey tail and reishi can be useful 981 00:46:08,985 --> 00:46:10,020 for cancer prevention and treatment, 982 00:46:10,020 --> 00:46:13,890 but also as a tonic, an immune tonic, 983 00:46:13,890 --> 00:46:17,853 and prevention for allergies and autoimmune conditions. 984 00:46:20,070 --> 00:46:22,110 So another piece that I mentioned 985 00:46:22,110 --> 00:46:24,120 in the community herbalism lecture, 986 00:46:24,120 --> 00:46:28,470 but I wanna emphasize is that sometimes additional support 987 00:46:28,470 --> 00:46:31,290 is needed not only to help farmers learn 988 00:46:31,290 --> 00:46:35,100 how to cultivate crops at the commercial scale, 989 00:46:35,100 --> 00:46:38,127 but also because Vermont's landscape 990 00:46:38,127 --> 00:46:42,750 is not conducive to large industrialized farms, 991 00:46:42,750 --> 00:46:44,610 it often tends to be much more smaller, 992 00:46:44,610 --> 00:46:48,330 decentralized diversified farms that can be an issue 993 00:46:48,330 --> 00:46:50,430 for getting into larger markets such as selling 994 00:46:50,430 --> 00:46:52,320 to large companies like Urban Moonshine 995 00:46:52,320 --> 00:46:54,300 or Traditional Medicinal's Tea. 996 00:46:54,300 --> 00:46:57,660 So Jeff and Melanie Carpenter are owners of a really 997 00:46:57,660 --> 00:47:00,990 successful organic herb farm up in Hyde Park, Vermont. 998 00:47:00,990 --> 00:47:03,630 And a few years ago they received national 999 00:47:03,630 --> 00:47:08,220 and state funding to create a Vermont herb growers co-op. 1000 00:47:08,220 --> 00:47:10,020 And I was on the steering committee 1001 00:47:10,020 --> 00:47:15,020 to develop that initiative and they also published 1002 00:47:15,060 --> 00:47:15,960 a really helpful book. 1003 00:47:15,960 --> 00:47:18,060 So if you or someone you know is interested 1004 00:47:18,060 --> 00:47:20,190 in cultivating medic medicinal plants, 1005 00:47:20,190 --> 00:47:23,760 I highly recommend Jeff and Mel's book. 1006 00:47:23,760 --> 00:47:25,200 But the Vermont Herb Growers co-op 1007 00:47:25,200 --> 00:47:28,361 was a solution to allow Vermont producers 1008 00:47:28,361 --> 00:47:32,220 of medicinal plants to compete on the national market. 1009 00:47:32,220 --> 00:47:33,840 So that basically as a way that 1010 00:47:33,840 --> 00:47:36,750 they could ensure quality and aggregate the supply. 1011 00:47:36,750 --> 00:47:39,270 So producing large amounts of calendula 1012 00:47:39,270 --> 00:47:41,770 from multiple farms but selling it as 1013 00:47:44,758 --> 00:47:47,010 one order to companies such as Urban Moonshine 1014 00:47:47,010 --> 00:47:48,310 or traditional medicinals. 1015 00:47:49,308 --> 00:47:50,550 So Jeff and Mel are definitely leaders 1016 00:47:50,550 --> 00:47:52,080 in this initiative and that's been 1017 00:47:52,080 --> 00:47:54,870 a great support for Vermont farmers 1018 00:47:54,870 --> 00:47:56,898 who are interested in getting 1019 00:47:56,898 --> 00:47:58,998 into the herb growing commercial business. 1020 00:48:00,390 --> 00:48:02,520 So here's a slide for farmers 1021 00:48:02,520 --> 00:48:05,460 and part of what we offer to farmers was not just, 1022 00:48:05,460 --> 00:48:06,870 these are the herbs that are, 1023 00:48:06,870 --> 00:48:08,220 that might be available on your farm, 1024 00:48:08,220 --> 00:48:09,720 but what are some basic techniques 1025 00:48:09,720 --> 00:48:11,220 for processing your herbs? 1026 00:48:11,220 --> 00:48:13,230 And I'm sure some of you would be interested 1027 00:48:13,230 --> 00:48:15,660 in just a review of some of those medicinal crops. 1028 00:48:15,660 --> 00:48:17,763 So I'll share some examples there. 1029 00:48:18,870 --> 00:48:19,800 So first of all, 1030 00:48:19,800 --> 00:48:22,020 drying the herbs is great 1031 00:48:22,020 --> 00:48:26,940 for not only producing herbal teas but also can be useful, 1032 00:48:26,940 --> 00:48:29,320 we have made some super green smoothie powder 1033 00:48:30,565 --> 00:48:32,379 which includes things like lambs quarters 1034 00:48:32,379 --> 00:48:33,660 and nettles and really just trying to get 1035 00:48:33,660 --> 00:48:38,660 Vermonters to use local super greens in their smoothies. 1036 00:48:38,880 --> 00:48:40,410 And this can also be a great way 1037 00:48:40,410 --> 00:48:44,673 to have those local greens throughout the winter. 1038 00:48:45,708 --> 00:48:46,710 And spice blends can be another way 1039 00:48:46,710 --> 00:48:49,320 that you can use dried herbs. 1040 00:48:49,320 --> 00:48:52,260 Also making value added food products, 1041 00:48:52,260 --> 00:48:55,470 such as wild weeds pesto or elderberry syrup is a great way 1042 00:48:55,470 --> 00:48:58,410 to incorporate nutrient dense backyard plants 1043 00:48:58,410 --> 00:49:01,020 and berries as condiments. 1044 00:49:01,020 --> 00:49:05,130 We also made an infused vinegar, vinegar verde, 1045 00:49:05,130 --> 00:49:08,310 which was a way to incorporate some of these nutrient dense 1046 00:49:08,310 --> 00:49:11,370 herbs into an infused apple cider vinegar, 1047 00:49:11,370 --> 00:49:13,983 which could be used in salad dressing recipes. 1048 00:49:15,900 --> 00:49:17,778 Vinegar infusion. 1049 00:49:17,778 --> 00:49:19,350 Here's another slide specifically 1050 00:49:19,350 --> 00:49:20,460 about the vinegar infusion. 1051 00:49:20,460 --> 00:49:23,400 So they can be used in salad dressings and marinades. 1052 00:49:23,400 --> 00:49:25,320 You can also use fruit and vinegar 1053 00:49:25,320 --> 00:49:26,610 to make something like a shrub, 1054 00:49:26,610 --> 00:49:29,730 which is a really popular beverage flavoring. 1055 00:49:29,730 --> 00:49:32,940 And on the picture on the left is making fire cider, 1056 00:49:32,940 --> 00:49:36,810 which we make every year is a really popular remedy, 1057 00:49:36,810 --> 00:49:40,320 really wonderful for respiratory complaints 1058 00:49:40,320 --> 00:49:43,320 and not just preventing colds 1059 00:49:43,320 --> 00:49:44,940 and symptoms related to that 1060 00:49:44,940 --> 00:49:48,060 but also helping to reduce mucus congestion. 1061 00:49:48,060 --> 00:49:49,950 So a great easy to make remedy 1062 00:49:49,950 --> 00:49:52,323 that's also strangely delicious. 1063 00:49:54,570 --> 00:49:56,310 Alcohol infusions is something 1064 00:49:56,310 --> 00:50:00,960 that is great for preserving medicinal plants. 1065 00:50:00,960 --> 00:50:03,750 There can be some legal issues if you are interested 1066 00:50:03,750 --> 00:50:06,960 in the commercial sale of alcohol-based tinctures 1067 00:50:06,960 --> 00:50:10,260 and products, but certainly for the household scale, 1068 00:50:10,260 --> 00:50:13,313 making digestive bitters 1069 00:50:13,313 --> 00:50:14,910 from alcohol extracts of bitter roots 1070 00:50:14,910 --> 00:50:18,360 or we also make a sleep remedy called Snooze Full Spoonful, 1071 00:50:18,360 --> 00:50:20,910 which features things such as skull cap, 1072 00:50:20,910 --> 00:50:23,315 which is a mint that's very easy to grow. 1073 00:50:23,315 --> 00:50:25,500 And the valerian root, which is also readily abundant, 1074 00:50:25,500 --> 00:50:30,120 not only in gardens but also growing wild in in ditches. 1075 00:50:30,120 --> 00:50:34,590 And we also try to encourage farmers to find their local 1076 00:50:34,590 --> 00:50:36,690 herbalist to share weeds with 1077 00:50:36,690 --> 00:50:38,220 'cause they could be the medicine maker 1078 00:50:38,220 --> 00:50:42,213 and they could be transforming their weeds into medicine. 1079 00:50:43,440 --> 00:50:45,810 Here's the solar infused oil 1080 00:50:45,810 --> 00:50:48,396 which can be incorporated into salves, 1081 00:50:48,396 --> 00:50:50,700 which is what you're gonna be experiencing 1082 00:50:50,700 --> 00:50:53,343 next week in the lab number three. 1083 00:50:55,188 --> 00:50:57,480 And then just a reminder for farmers, 1084 00:50:57,480 --> 00:50:59,550 but also for all of you as a resource 1085 00:50:59,550 --> 00:51:01,620 that there's lots of research and support 1086 00:51:01,620 --> 00:51:04,710 for medicinal agriculture and that many 1087 00:51:04,710 --> 00:51:09,710 of the food systems support is also offering programs 1088 00:51:10,050 --> 00:51:14,763 for farmers to get involved in the production of medicinals. 1089 00:51:17,430 --> 00:51:19,465 So when we're thinking about 1090 00:51:19,465 --> 00:51:20,580 a sustainable food and medicine system, 1091 00:51:20,580 --> 00:51:22,680 I think it's really important to look 1092 00:51:22,680 --> 00:51:25,050 at all aspects of the food system. 1093 00:51:25,050 --> 00:51:27,420 And so part of the work that I do at the program 1094 00:51:27,420 --> 00:51:30,390 in integrative health and also you know, 1095 00:51:30,390 --> 00:51:32,400 teaching at the University of Vermont and the integrative 1096 00:51:32,400 --> 00:51:36,150 health certificate program is in the role of creating 1097 00:51:36,150 --> 00:51:40,470 more informed consumers and also informed practitioners. 1098 00:51:40,470 --> 00:51:42,810 So part of incorporating botanical medicine 1099 00:51:42,810 --> 00:51:44,610 into the integrative health program 1100 00:51:44,610 --> 00:51:45,930 is raising awareness 1101 00:51:45,930 --> 00:51:48,360 about the evidence-based effectiveness, 1102 00:51:48,360 --> 00:51:51,690 particularly for preventable diseases such as heart disease 1103 00:51:51,690 --> 00:51:56,043 and cancer and the important role that that can play. 1104 00:51:57,330 --> 00:52:01,106 And some of you who have taken food systems classes 1105 00:52:01,106 --> 00:52:03,660 may have read some of Eric Holt-Gimenez, 1106 00:52:03,660 --> 00:52:05,490 who's one of Ernesto Mendez', 1107 00:52:05,490 --> 00:52:08,040 another agriologist colleague. 1108 00:52:08,040 --> 00:52:11,610 But I wanna talk a little bit about food sovereignty 1109 00:52:11,610 --> 00:52:15,750 and its relationship to medicine or wellness sovereignty. 1110 00:52:15,750 --> 00:52:20,400 So a lot of the discourse around food sovereignty 1111 00:52:20,400 --> 00:52:23,670 compares it to different aspects 1112 00:52:23,670 --> 00:52:28,021 of the food system and initiatives in the food system. 1113 00:52:28,021 --> 00:52:29,370 And the neoliberal column 1114 00:52:29,370 --> 00:52:32,822 on the left is basically the status quo. 1115 00:52:32,822 --> 00:52:36,030 This is the economic driven capitalist food system 1116 00:52:36,030 --> 00:52:39,750 which focuses on a discourse of food enterprise, 1117 00:52:39,750 --> 00:52:43,540 making money from food and is the sort of 1118 00:52:45,270 --> 00:52:47,370 the dominant threat in the food system in this time, 1119 00:52:47,370 --> 00:52:49,810 which really emphasizes a corporate monopoly 1120 00:52:50,845 --> 00:52:54,090 and focuses on technology and marketing globally, 1121 00:52:54,090 --> 00:52:56,970 not so much looking at at local markets. 1122 00:52:56,970 --> 00:52:58,680 And there are a fair number of initiatives 1123 00:52:58,680 --> 00:52:59,820 that are looking at issues 1124 00:52:59,820 --> 00:53:04,820 such as that 40% of the food ends up being wasted 1125 00:53:05,087 --> 00:53:06,750 'cause we have a food distribution issue. 1126 00:53:06,750 --> 00:53:09,210 And reformer strategies are more related 1127 00:53:09,210 --> 00:53:11,670 to food security and anti-hunger. 1128 00:53:11,670 --> 00:53:14,070 So making sure that people are getting food even 1129 00:53:14,070 --> 00:53:16,110 if it may not be food that is culturally 1130 00:53:16,110 --> 00:53:18,300 appropriate or food that they want. 1131 00:53:18,300 --> 00:53:20,850 And the main critique of these reformist strategies 1132 00:53:20,850 --> 00:53:25,770 is they're not really addressing issues with the system. 1133 00:53:25,770 --> 00:53:28,650 There are some serious issues with the food enterprise 1134 00:53:28,650 --> 00:53:32,400 system that creates these disparities in access. 1135 00:53:32,400 --> 00:53:35,580 And a reformist strategy is basically just keeping 1136 00:53:35,580 --> 00:53:37,950 the same system and looking at places 1137 00:53:37,950 --> 00:53:40,890 where food might be pooling in certain areas 1138 00:53:40,890 --> 00:53:42,780 of the food system and redistributing it, 1139 00:53:42,780 --> 00:53:45,270 which isn't actually getting at the underlying structure 1140 00:53:45,270 --> 00:53:47,400 and sort of changing how the food system is structured 1141 00:53:47,400 --> 00:53:50,490 and how power is structured within a system. 1142 00:53:50,490 --> 00:53:51,960 The more progressive and radical 1143 00:53:51,960 --> 00:53:54,540 are moving into food security, 1144 00:53:54,540 --> 00:53:57,660 food justice and food justice and food sovereignty. 1145 00:53:57,660 --> 00:54:00,540 And the main difference between these areas is really 1146 00:54:00,540 --> 00:54:02,940 looking at underlying structural issues 1147 00:54:02,940 --> 00:54:05,190 and starting to get at the root cause, 1148 00:54:05,190 --> 00:54:07,470 looking at decentralized food systems, 1149 00:54:07,470 --> 00:54:10,050 emphasizing community empowerment, 1150 00:54:10,050 --> 00:54:12,540 emphasizing human rights and labor rights 1151 00:54:12,540 --> 00:54:13,980 within the food system and really 1152 00:54:13,980 --> 00:54:17,610 looking at disentangling our food system 1153 00:54:17,610 --> 00:54:22,020 from the corporate monopoly in ways that might be harmful 1154 00:54:22,020 --> 00:54:23,370 to human health and wellbeing 1155 00:54:23,370 --> 00:54:25,220 and environment health and wellbeing. 1156 00:54:26,064 --> 00:54:28,500 And the main difference between food security 1157 00:54:28,500 --> 00:54:32,190 and food justice and food sovereignty 1158 00:54:32,190 --> 00:54:33,990 is that food sovereignty is much more 1159 00:54:33,990 --> 00:54:37,530 about appropriate choice of food. 1160 00:54:37,530 --> 00:54:39,420 And in the case of wellness sovereignty, 1161 00:54:39,420 --> 00:54:42,220 medicine and wellness strategies and making sure 1162 00:54:43,301 --> 00:54:45,180 that the cultural values are incorporated 1163 00:54:45,180 --> 00:54:48,600 in what food is available, certain food security, 1164 00:54:48,600 --> 00:54:50,550 especially global food security programs, 1165 00:54:50,550 --> 00:54:53,370 might be providing the calories to a population 1166 00:54:53,370 --> 00:54:55,350 that is food insecure, 1167 00:54:55,350 --> 00:54:57,337 but may not be providing culturally 1168 00:54:57,337 --> 00:55:00,087 appropriate food and remedies. 1169 00:55:00,087 --> 00:55:03,570 And food justice and food sovereignty really acknowledges 1170 00:55:03,570 --> 00:55:06,180 the emotional and sort of soul components 1171 00:55:06,180 --> 00:55:09,660 of food in the community and making sure 1172 00:55:09,660 --> 00:55:13,260 that the food choices are culturally appropriate. 1173 00:55:13,260 --> 00:55:15,575 And food sovereignty is really looking at power 1174 00:55:15,575 --> 00:55:18,239 and particularly looking at many 1175 00:55:18,239 --> 00:55:20,460 of the food security and even 1176 00:55:20,460 --> 00:55:24,236 the food justice movements are still emphasizing leaders 1177 00:55:24,236 --> 00:55:27,360 that come from a white middle class, 1178 00:55:27,360 --> 00:55:30,750 highly educated background and really may not be able 1179 00:55:30,750 --> 00:55:33,030 to represent accurately the views 1180 00:55:33,030 --> 00:55:34,530 of the populations that are impacted, 1181 00:55:34,530 --> 00:55:37,647 which are often people of color, lower class, 1182 00:55:37,647 --> 00:55:40,548 not traditionally educated individuals. 1183 00:55:40,548 --> 00:55:43,830 So one of my favorite examples of food sovereignty 1184 00:55:43,830 --> 00:55:45,120 and food justice initiative 1185 00:55:45,120 --> 00:55:48,843 is Soul Fire Farm and Leah Penniman's work, 1186 00:55:49,975 --> 00:55:53,197 and you'll have a chance to read from her recent book 1187 00:55:53,197 --> 00:55:55,320 "Farming While Black", about some of their initiatives. 1188 00:55:55,320 --> 00:55:58,734 But if you're interested in learning more about their work, 1189 00:55:58,734 --> 00:56:01,500 we're also gonna see them in the film 1190 00:56:01,500 --> 00:56:03,120 that we watched in the last week of class. 1191 00:56:03,120 --> 00:56:07,080 But great examples of ways that food sovereignty movements 1192 00:56:07,080 --> 00:56:10,980 can be a way to uplift and redistribute power 1193 00:56:10,980 --> 00:56:14,133 to people of color for supporting their communities. 1194 00:56:15,390 --> 00:56:17,820 So wellness sovereignty is really an expansion of that 1195 00:56:17,820 --> 00:56:20,220 and really looking at not just making sure 1196 00:56:20,220 --> 00:56:23,460 that people are well and accessing healthcare, 1197 00:56:23,460 --> 00:56:26,070 which is already a huge issue in our culture. 1198 00:56:26,070 --> 00:56:28,530 And there are many reformist strategies 1199 00:56:28,530 --> 00:56:31,071 which are trying to make sure 1200 00:56:31,071 --> 00:56:33,510 that people have access to the medicine that they need. 1201 00:56:33,510 --> 00:56:38,460 But there there's a huge cultural and interpersonal 1202 00:56:38,460 --> 00:56:40,740 and spiritual lineage related to 1203 00:56:40,740 --> 00:56:42,420 how we care for our bodies 1204 00:56:42,420 --> 00:56:44,490 and what types of remedies feel good for us. 1205 00:56:44,490 --> 00:56:49,050 And many of my clinical clients don't feel supported 1206 00:56:49,050 --> 00:56:51,720 by their physicians recommending pharmaceutical medicine 1207 00:56:51,720 --> 00:56:54,180 and actually feel resistant 1208 00:56:54,180 --> 00:56:55,530 to using pharmaceutical medicine 1209 00:56:55,530 --> 00:56:56,820 and are looking for strategies 1210 00:56:56,820 --> 00:57:00,270 that are more nutritional or locally available 1211 00:57:00,270 --> 00:57:01,980 because they get their food locally 1212 00:57:01,980 --> 00:57:04,290 so they'd like to get their medicine locally. 1213 00:57:04,290 --> 00:57:06,810 So there's huge opportunities where community herbalism 1214 00:57:06,810 --> 00:57:09,270 can help contribute to food sovereignty 1215 00:57:09,270 --> 00:57:12,270 and wellness sovereignty because it is such 1216 00:57:12,270 --> 00:57:14,970 a grassroots and accessible, 1217 00:57:14,970 --> 00:57:18,393 it can be a grassroots and accessible form of medicine. 1218 00:57:18,393 --> 00:57:20,070 And that's something that I'm working toward 1219 00:57:20,070 --> 00:57:22,053 with my colleagues here in Burlington. 1220 00:57:24,428 --> 00:57:27,078 So the vision of healthcare that I wanna put forward, 1221 00:57:28,248 --> 00:57:30,330 and this is just mine and adapted 1222 00:57:30,330 --> 00:57:32,370 from the Vermont Center for Integrative Herbalism, 1223 00:57:32,370 --> 00:57:34,530 which is where I received my training, 1224 00:57:34,530 --> 00:57:37,260 is really a vision for a system of healthcare 1225 00:57:37,260 --> 00:57:39,570 where primary care is nature-based 1226 00:57:39,570 --> 00:57:40,870 and practiced in the home. 1227 00:57:41,730 --> 00:57:46,730 So people have the resources to access nature-based remedies 1228 00:57:46,770 --> 00:57:49,770 and the tools and confidence to prepare home remedies 1229 00:57:49,770 --> 00:57:51,630 for themselves and their families. 1230 00:57:51,630 --> 00:57:53,670 The tools of technological, 1231 00:57:53,670 --> 00:57:55,530 in this case, conventional medicine 1232 00:57:55,530 --> 00:57:59,010 is a secondary resource and the herbalist, 1233 00:57:59,010 --> 00:58:01,260 or it could be other, you know, naturopath, 1234 00:58:01,260 --> 00:58:03,600 someone else who knows about plant-based remedies, 1235 00:58:03,600 --> 00:58:06,360 acts as a bridge between the two. 1236 00:58:06,360 --> 00:58:09,273 This model ensures the individual central role, 1237 00:58:11,370 --> 00:58:14,490 utilizes the simplest and least invasive treatments, 1238 00:58:14,490 --> 00:58:17,040 emphasizes the co-evolutionary and interdependent 1239 00:58:17,040 --> 00:58:20,643 relationship between humans and our environment. 1240 00:58:21,690 --> 00:58:24,300 So this is a vision to put put forward, 1241 00:58:24,300 --> 00:58:28,110 which I think also promotes a sustainable medicine system 1242 00:58:28,110 --> 00:58:31,620 because it connects people back to the environment 1243 00:58:31,620 --> 00:58:34,743 and sustainable production of medicines. 1244 00:58:35,790 --> 00:58:38,850 If you've ever taken classes with Christine Vitovic 1245 00:58:38,850 --> 00:58:40,860 and the environment and human health, 1246 00:58:40,860 --> 00:58:43,890 she gets into a lot more of the carbon footprint 1247 00:58:43,890 --> 00:58:48,551 and the environmental impact of modern medicine. 1248 00:58:48,551 --> 00:58:50,370 And I think there's a huge opportunity 1249 00:58:50,370 --> 00:58:53,490 to converting our medicine system 1250 00:58:53,490 --> 00:58:56,970 to one where citizens feel confident 1251 00:58:56,970 --> 00:58:59,340 supporting their general health and wellbeing, 1252 00:58:59,340 --> 00:59:00,720 which is their primary care 1253 00:59:00,720 --> 00:59:02,470 from their surrounding environment. 1254 00:59:04,080 --> 00:59:07,980 So with that, I'll close with these pictures 1255 00:59:07,980 --> 00:59:09,900 of some of the elements of the food 1256 00:59:09,900 --> 00:59:12,780 and medicine system and particularly elements 1257 00:59:12,780 --> 00:59:14,580 that contribute to different aspects 1258 00:59:14,580 --> 00:59:16,410 of the supply chain. 1259 00:59:16,410 --> 00:59:20,021 And I would love to hear from all of you if there are 1260 00:59:20,021 --> 00:59:22,830 examples in your own community of components 1261 00:59:22,830 --> 00:59:25,020 of a sustainable food and medicine system 1262 00:59:25,020 --> 00:59:27,333 that you can share as an example. 1263 00:59:28,320 --> 00:59:30,020 Thanks for listening, and be well.