Share Your Story, Change Your Community
We invite you to join our storytelling process.
The HCFPC knows that stories shape the world we live in. We know that power rests with those whose stories are heard, recorded, and shared. We know that stories shape culture, and that culture shapes the systems that run our world.
This includes the food system.
While the conventional food system does not serve most people, it is especially oppressive for marginalized communities, who are historically and systematically excluded from power and decision making. Therefore, the HCFPC endeavors to collectively build the power of marginalized community members to tell their own food stories, shifting cultural narratives toward the life-giving, community-led food system we envision.
INTERESTED IN PARTICIPATING?
PROJECT
Through this project, we will create space for you to express your story in your own voice, exactly the way you want to be heard. We hope this will help people cultivate curiosity, build shared understanding and culture, and empower each other to realize our visions for change.
This project will establish the Hampshire County Community Food Story Archive, a digital collection of stories about food experiences and culture in Hampshire County, focused on elevating the voices of marginalized residents - especially those with lived experiences of food insecurity.
This program is funded in part by Mass Humanities, which receives support from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and is an affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities. It is also funded in part by the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission.
PROCESS
Part 1: Community Story Workshops
This fall we hosted two Community Story Workshops for community members to share a meal and learn about storytelling! This part of the process has now ended.
Part 2: Tell Your Story & Record for the Archive
We are now in the process of scheduling interviews with storytellers!
During this phase, a trained community interviewer will meet with you at a time and location convenient for you (a community room, public library, your home, etc.). Your interviewer will ask you some simple questions about your food experiences during the pandemic. Our audio production partner will also be present during the interview to make sure we get a good recording.
After the interview, you will have a chance to review the audio recording and request light editing, before it is uploaded to our digital collection.
We hope you will join us at our Spring Exhibit, when we will share all the stories we have collected! More information coming soon.
COMPENSATION
All storytellers will receive a $30 Visa gift card to honor your time spent sharing your story.
INTERPRETATION
Interpretation into other languages is available upon request. If you need interpretation or want to tell your story in a language other than English, let us know us in the interest form down below.
INTERESTED IN PARTICIPATING?
Please note space is limited. We hope to hear from a diverse range of community members and will prioritize this in selecting storytellers. If you are not selected for this round, we will follow up with you about participating in a future session!
QUESTIONS?
Scroll down to see our FAQ. More questions?
Email us at foodpolicycouncil@collaborative.org
Call us at (413) 247 - 4765
Not feeling well?
Before attending any of the workshops or interviews, please let us know if you’re feeling unwell. We encourage you to rest and take care of yourself.
If you've been around anyone that's been sick in the past three days, we encourage you to reschedule.
Masks are welcome, but not required.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a stipend?
The Hampshire County Food Policy Council is committed to honoring people’s time for their contributions to our work. To do this, we provide stipends in the form of Visa gift cards. Visa gift cards can be used anywhere a debit or credit card can be used.
How much money will I receive in stipends?
Participants will receive one $30 Visa gift card for participating in an Interview.
If you need help getting to the Interview Recording Session, we will set up a taxi for you and cover the cost.
If you need to arrange caregiving for someone while you are participating, we will provide you with an additional $30 Visa gift card to help cover the cost.
How will I receive the stipend?
Your interviewer will give you the gift card after you complete your interview.
If you need help getting to the Recording Session, we will set up a taxi for you and cover the cost.
If you need to arrange caregiving for someone while you are participating in the interview, we will provide you with an additional $30 Visa gift card to help cover the cost.
What if I don’t have transportation to get to the workshop or recording session?
No problem, we will coordinate with you to get you a taxi and we will cover the cost.
Can my child join me at the interview?
If you are comfortable with having your child present for your interview, they are welcome to come. Just be sure to let us know so we can be prepared with some toys and games to help keep them busy!
What if I am not able to participate now, but am still interested in this project?
We hope to offer more workshops next year. In addition, we will be hosting an Exhibit in early 2024, which will be open to the public! Finally, check out the Hampshire County Food Policy Council website for more opportunities to get involved in our work.
What is the Hampshire County Food Policy Council (HCFPC)?
The Hampshire County Food Policy Council (HCFPC) is a coalition of community members, non-profit leaders, and people who work in the food system. We are advocates for food systems change and we center those with lived experiences of food insecurity.
Our vision: We envision a resilient community-owned regional food system where all people are empowered to live more joyful and gratifying lives through access to affordable, healthy, locally grown food of their choice.
Our mission: We cultivate shared governance and a county-wide network that builds the power of community voice to make food policies more equitable, honor diverse cultures, and help local food economies to flourish.
We use a self-governance model called sociocracy, which decentralizes power and allows everyone to participate in the decision making process with equivalence and effectiveness.
We currently have 14 circles that each work on autonomous yet interconnected projects that work toward our mission. For example, we have several circles working on community gardens, mobile food markets, policy advocacy, leadership development, communications, and of course…storytelling!
All of our meetings are open to anyone and we welcome new decision-making partners into our circles. Most meetings are held virtually on Zoom. Check out our calendar and come visit us at a meeting!
What is the Storytelling Circle?
The Storytelling Circle is one of the 14 circles of the Hampshire County Food Policy Council. We have a set of aims that we work on, including:
Training FPC partners in trauma informed and social justice practices to understand and reflect on their own and other people’s food experiences and culture
Collecting stories about food experiences and culture, especially those of community members with lived experiences of food insecurity, that focus on narratives of resilient, equitable, and community-owned food systems
Sharing stories with our community, partners, and the public
Collaborating with other storytelling initiatives in Hampshire County
This is our first storytelling project and we hope to host many more!
What is a community archive? Why would I want to contribute my story to one?
A community archive is like a collective memory of our experiences. It is a way to document what life is like, what challenges we face, and what our dreams are for the future.
Oftentimes, we don’t have much control over what stories get told and documented about us. We see things in the news, online, and eventually in history books, which don’t always represent our own experiences.
We believe that our stories are important and that by telling them, documenting them, and sharing them, we can change the larger narratives about food systems and culture toward our vision of a resilient community-owned regional food system.
Our community archive will live online. Once we have audio-recorded stories, we will upload them to a web page where they will live and be accessible to the public.
We want you to join us in telling our stories, on our own terms, by contributing your unique story to our archive!
How will my story be used once it is recorded?
With your full consent, your story will be stored on a publically accessible online website in perpetuity. We are also planning an exhibit, where we will highlight the stories that have been told. We will invite you to be a part of the Exhibit! We also hope that the experiences that are shared in the stories we collect will help the Hampshire County Food Policy Council shape its food advocacy priorities into the future.
Most importantly, you will get to decide how you want your story to be used and whether you want your name attached to it. We will talk more about this before you tell your story.