Photo Credit: Renee Wilde
About Grounded Hope
Wet springs, climate challenges, trade woes, supply chain breakdowns, and COVID-19 concerns are rapidly changing the face of farming across Ohio. Globalization of farming—like globalization of industry—has hollowed out communities and left the population of an agricultural-rich state food imperiled. Yet within this crisis lie profound opportunities for change—a change rooted in practices from the past and helps heal the divisions that also plague us—inequality, racism, the rural-urban divide.The Grounded Hope podcast is a series that collectively introduce the people of Ohio to the past, present, and future of Ohio agriculture. Listeners will learn how historical farming practices--including those of indigenous people and early Black farmers--hold ideas for how our degraded soils can be regenerated. They will travel Ohio cities and back roads to meet current farmers and learn how they are rebuilding local food systems that can be resilient in the face of pandemics and climate change. They will hear about unusual crops and the hope they hold for new products--including fibers, medicines, and foods. And they will be invited to examine how Ohio economics is embedded in agriculture and how that both supports and challenges the state and its communities.
Our Story
The inspiration for the name “Grounded Hope” came from hearing Laura Lengnich, author of Resilient Agriculture: Cultivating Food Systems for a Changing Climate, during her keynote address at the 2020 OEFFA Conference: A Climate for Change in Dayton, Ohio.
During her keynote, she defined “grounded hope” for the audience:
“Grounded hope is the belief that in order to create the future that you desire, you have to be part of creating that. Turns out, grounded hope is very much a community-based thing. You get together with others, you agree on the desired future, and you start to head that way together.”
Shortly after the OEFFA conference which took place on February 13–15 of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the state of Ohio and much of the world. In the face of the pandemic, failing global supply chains, and the increasingly devastating global climate challenges – the need for Agraria’s work of cultivating community resilience, strengthening our local food system, and providing vital education about soil regeneration as a tool to mitigate climate change became what seemed to be more apparent than ever before.
Thankfully, we weren’t the only ones inspired by Laura Lengnich’s message.
Near the end of 2020, Renee Wilde, an award-winning public radio producer (who was also Lengnich’s audience at the OEFFA conference), reached out to Agraria to partner on producing a podcast that would not just amplify Agraria’s work, but the voices and work of the many people and communities from all over the state of Ohio with whom we are co-creating a shared desired vision of the future with.
With the help of Renee Wilde as our podcast director and host, our sponsor the Ohio Humanities Council, and our education scholars Rick Livingston from Ohio State University and Beth Bridgeman from Antioch College — Agraria Center for Regenerative Practice began 2021 with the launch of Grounded Hope’s first episode on January 12, 2021. Renee Wilde has since passed her host duties to Lauren Shows, who is now carrying the torch of being a voice for Grounded Hope until the end of the season.
Season 1 of Grounded Hope collectively introduced the people of Ohio to the past, present, and future of Ohio agriculture. We learned how historical (and current) farming practices such as those of Indigenous peoples and Black farmers hold ideas for how our degraded soils can be regenerated. We traveled to various Ohio cities and back roads to meet with growers to learn how they are rebuilding our local food system to be more resilient in the face of pandemics and climate change. We heard about “unusual” crops that hold hope for new food, fibers, and medicines; the importance of livestock in regenerating soils; experienced the Brood X cicadas as they emerged after 17 years; learned about what is being done to protect Ohio’s water, and for those who explored our resources for educators – learned new (and delicious) edible recipes related to each episode!
Wow. What a journey it has been. And, it’s just begun.
In 2022, we’ll be launching Season 2 of Grounded Hope. We’ll introduce new stories and new storytellers as we delve into the past, present, and future of Black farming and efforts around food justice, community healing, and collective empowerment, in the Dayton area and beyond.
Acknowledgements
Susan Jennings is a staff member of this podcast helping overlook the project and find funding.
Susan Jennings became Executive Director of The Arthur Morgan Institute for Community Solutions (AMICS) in 2014. Since that time, she has partnered with the AMICS board to implement a new strategic plan oriented toward the support of resilient communities. She also led AMICS in the 2017 purchase of Agraria, a 128-acre farm on the outskirts of Yellow Springs which is being developed into a Center for Regenerative Practice. Susan serves on The Village of Yellow Springs’ Economic Sustainability Commission, the Board of the Greater Dayton Conservation Fund, and on the national Council for Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching on behalf of Central State University.
Beth Bridgeman is one of our scholars providing educational resources for this project. She is also overseeing the podcast. Beth is an Associate Professor of Cooperative Education and Sustainable Practice at Antioch College. With a background in regenerative and sustainable agriculture, her prior experience includes 12 years as an extension educator with Ohio State University and agricultural work in the Philippines. At Antioch College, Beth teaches a series of Reskilling and Resilience courses, exploring seed-resilience, plant medicine, regenerative agriculture, and commensality. Beth has convened three Seed Schools and is a regular conference presenter on seed sovereignty. In 2021 she was a featured speaker at the Organic Association of Kentucky conference and in 2022 is convening a Heritage Grain School in partnership with Agraria, Antioch College, Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance, and the Tecumseh Land Trust.
Rachel Isaacson is a Project Assistant of this podcast working on web development and podcast distribution.
She is an Antioch College graduate who is currently an Americorps VISTA for the Arthur Morgan Institute for Community Solutions (AMICS) in Yellow Springs, Ohio. She has 1.5 years of experience as a student podcast producer at WYSO Public Radio, and has done web development work with AMICS.
Dr. Rick Livingston is the Assistant Director of The Humanities Institute and Senior Lecturer at The Ohio State University. Rick has a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from Yale University (1990), and teaches regularly in the Department of Comparative Studies. Long-standing research interests include literary and cultural theory, postcolonial studies and 20th century literature; more recently, he has been working on the cultural dimensions of sustainability. He’s been part of the Advisory Group to the President's Council on Sustainability, serves as a Cultural Facilitator in OSU's Excellence in Eminence Initiative, and is an active member of OSU's Art of Hosting Conversations That Matter community of practice. Rick’s expertise in cultural theory and the cultural dimensions of sustainability is the perfect combination for this project. He can advise us on the cultural contexts behind many of the themes we will be exploring, such as indigenous, immigrant and black farmer populations.