Let The Countdown Begin: Foodprint Toronto

IMAGE: Picture this former streetcar storage and maintenance facility filled with people who are curious, concerned, and/or enthusiastic about the relationship between food and cities… it’s Foodprint Toronto!

Just a quick reminder that Foodprint Toronto takes place this Saturday, between 12:30 and 5:00 p.m. EST, at Artscape Wychwood Barns (map) in Toronto. It’s the second in an international event series co-curated with Sarah Rich, as well as the reason for the sad (for me, anyway) lack of recent posts here on Edible Geography.

IMAGE: Water farming the American South-West, a design proposal by Mason White and Zoning Diet panelist Lola Sheppard of Lateral Office / Infranet Lab.

The full schedule, complete with panelists’ bios, is online here, and you can also get a sense of what the Foodprint Project is all about by watching footage of our first event in NYC, as well as by reading these interviews with Pruned, Azure, and Urban Omnibus (check out the Toronto Star on Friday for more coverage).

The day’s conversations should be a fantastic blend of insight, provocation, inspiration, and speculation, ranging from the evolution of restaurant design to the impact of climate change on Toronto’s foodscape. And, as in New York City, we’ve managed to find panelists who can approach these questions from a wide variety of perspectives, including the VP of Merchandising at Longo’s Grocery Chain, the co-author of the City’s new food strategy report, an urban fruit forager, and a First Nations fishing family.

IMAGE: Urban fruit foraging, photo courtesy of Toronto’s own Not Far From The Tree.

If you’re in Toronto, then I hope to see you there: no RSVP is necessary and it’s a $5 donation on the door for admission. Thanks to our lovely sponsors, in between panels we’ll be able to refuel you with a range of local, sustainable, and delicious treats, including foraged fruit from Not Far From The Tree, smoked fish from Akiwenzie’s Fish & More, organic snacks from the Ontario Natural Food Co-op, refreshing Steam Whistle pilsner, and cold-brewed White Squirrel Coffee.

If you’re not in Toronto… first of all, consider a spontaneous weekend mini-break: our sponsor (and my favourite airline in the North American skies), Virgin America, has just launched a new SFO-YYZ route, and our hosts at the Gladstone Hotel offer CSA-sourced deliciousness as well as artist-designed rooms.

And if that’s not possible, don’t worry: thanks to our generous volunteer videographer, Kevin Lisoy, we’re going to be able to stream the entire event live here. We’ll even take your questions on Twitter — just use #foodprintTO.

Finally, if you can, please help us keep the Foodprint Project on the road with a Kickstarter pledge — any amount is very welcome. We owe a huge thank you to everyone who has helped us make Foodprint Toronto happen, including Geoff Manaugh, Alexis Madrigal, Tim Maly, Mason White, Lola Sheppard, Dan and Stacy Lewis, John Knechtel, Michael Wolfson, Greg J. Smith, Leslie McBeth, Rebecca Federman, Andrew Blum, Jennifer Leonard, Kirsten Valentine Cadieux, Laura Taylor, our generous sponsors, our inspiring panelists, and everyone who helped us spread the word!