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Drawdown Food Summit

April 25th 2018. 18:30 to 21:30
Join Unify Toronto for the first of seven Drawdown sector summits. Learn about food sector solutions to global warming that are already in place and in action in Toronto. Discover how you can help reverse global warming by growing more of what is already working. By donation.

Wed, 25 April 2018
6:30 PM – 9:30 PM EDT
Peace Lounge, 7th floor, OISE
252 Bloor St. W (at St. George Station)


Eventbrite tickets here - event is free

Project Drawdown has identified, researched and modeled the 100 most substantive, existing solutions to address climate change, grouped into seven sectors. Put together, they reveal a path forward that can roll back global warming by 2050. 

Project Drawdown’s food-sector solutions to global warming relate to agricultural production (crops and livestock) as well as food preparation, consumption, and waste. Put together, food-related activity accounts for about a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions. Supply-side agricultural solutions, like farmland restoration, regenerative agriculture, and tree intercropping, reduce emissions from farming and ranching, while also sequestering significant amounts of carbon. Demand-side solutions like a plant-rich diet, composting and reduced food waste reduce the need for land clearing.

In this informative and collaborative evening:

  • Learn more about the food sector solutions identified and modelled by Project Drawdown
  • Hear from experts and practitioners working on inspiring food solutions in Toronto
  • Build a long and local vision for accelerating food sector solutions in Toronto to their fullest potential
  • Offer what you can give and/or request what you need, to help grow food solutions in Toronto and reverse our greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

Guest speakers:

Owen Goltz of Riverdale Farm and Forest, organic “second-career” farmer, arborist, permaculturist, educator, and farmers’ market vendor from Inglewood, Caledon. Owen recently presented his story and shared his knowledge of soil health at Peel County’s “Our Common Ground” food sustainability event. We welcome this speaker to discuss Drawdown-related solutions for Nutrient Management, Regenerative Agriculture, and Conservation Agriculture.

Steven Bourne of Ripple Farms, owner and Chief Operating Officer of self-sustaining food systems just emerging from startup to growth phase. Combining greenhouse vertical farming and aquaponics, they operate and provide education at EverGreen Brickworks and Seneca College in Toronto. Their urban farming methods are geared to a “circular economy” and have been featured in mainstream media. We welcome this speaker to discuss Drawdown-related solutions for Plant-Rich Diet, Nutrient Management, Reduced Food Waste, as well as local foods (cross-related to Drawdown’s Energy Sector and Transportation Sector solutions).

Cathy Nesbitt of Green Connections and Cathy's Crawly Composters (vermi-composting and home-grown sprouts), lecturer, educator, and charismatic and fun speaker. An award-winning expert on urban farming opportunities, she brings together “wiggly worms and kitchen compost” in the vertical spaced compact Garden Tower. We welcome this speaker to connect with Drawdown-related solutions of Composting, Plant-Rich Diet, and Nutrient Management in urban gardens.

Rob Zend-Gabori of Feedback App, Vice President of Sales. Feedback uses digital technology to connect restaurants with leftover food with people looking for low-cost, off peak hours meals. We welcome this speaker to engage our imagination with opportunities for Drawdown-related solutions on Reduced Food Waste.

Mark Hathaway, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Waterloo studying transformative learning in permaculture. We are pleased to have Dr. Hathaway share some concluding reflections on food, ecological wisdom, and regenerative transformation. 


This is the first of seven sector summits:

April 25 - Food Sector Summit
May 16 - Transport Sector Summit
July 25 - Energy Sector Summit
August 29 - Building and Cities Sector Summit
October 24 - Women and Girls Sector Summit
November 28 - Land Use Sector Summit
January 30 - Materials Sector Summit


More about Project Drawdown and Unify Toronto’s Drawdown program:

Project Drawdown, founded by author and environmentalist, Paul Hawken, is a scientifically based, comprehensive plan to implement the top 100 solutions to reverse global warming by 2050. Reversing climate change is not only possible, but feasible and eminently practical. The New York Times bestselling book sets out the solutions, the math and the economics of how we can actually do this in an inspirational and accessible way. 

Unify Toronto's 13-month program aims to generate enough activity to make Toronto a hub of Drawdown activity in North America. It includes a series of introductions to Drawdown, seven sector summits, and a 4-session course, that will put vital information about how we can reverse global warming in your hands, connect you with other change makers, and galvanize your action with a new sense of optimism and agency. 

Access details of Unify Toronto’s full Drawdown program at www.unifytoronto.ca.

Find out more about Drawdown at www.drawdown.org.

Learn about the Pachamama Alliance, creators of the Drawdown introduction and course, at www.pachamama.org.