Austin Eats Movie in the Garden, hosted at BUILD on Aug. 13, partnered with the One Earth Film Festival to bring Austin residents, local chefs, urban farmers and community leaders together for food, film and conversations about food access, sustainability and the future of Chicago’s food system.
This event featured excerpts from Food 2050 and highlighted community-driven efforts to build a healthier, more sustainable food system in Austin.
Shelia Owens, executive director of GSJ Family Life Center, served as the panel moderator. Derrick S. Patrick Jr., program coordinator and founder/treasurer of Austin Garden Collective; Anika Coates, senior manager of horticulture and wellness at Bethel New Life; and Kenya Vera-Sample, owner and operator of DuSable City Winery and Vineyards, served as panelists.
The panel focused on food justice, urban agriculture, community wellness and creating a more equitable and sustainable food system in Austin.
The three Food 2050 documentary segments shown were “Lima 2035,” “Cool Waters,” and “Seventh Generation.” After each mini-documentary, moderator Shelia Owens asked the panelists to reflect on what they saw and connect the films’ themes to their own work in Chicago and on the West Side, including food access, urban farming, water, climate resilience and community-led solutions.
In “Lima 2035,” Patrick said the film’s focus on a young woman growing food stood out, particularly because younger generations are needed to carry farming and food production into the future. She also connected the film’s focus on rainwater and water access to challenges facing Chicago residents, including the high cost of water for their operations.
“We’re looking at working with the city to see how we can tailor it to best fit urban farmers, so that the city can show that urban farmers and urban farms are critical assets to this community, instead of just something that might be pretty and not really thought about as critical,” Patrick said.
Coates emphasized the importance of environmental literacy in communities and keeping conversations about climate change ongoing. She urged residents not to dismiss climate change, stressing that its effects are real and communities must learn how to reduce its impact.
“My concern has been that Black and Brown communities often, if we don’t have the environmental literacy and we’re not having these conversations, when things actually get moving, we’re like, ‘Oh, snap, this really is like a movie left behind,’ and we’re kind of scrambling. It made me even think of (Hurricane) Katrina,” Coates said.
The film about Lima prompted Vera-Sample to reflect on Chicago’s connection to Lake Michigan and the importance of protecting its natural resources and witnessing changes to its ecosystem over the years.
“It makes me sad, going inward and figuring out how we can now restore these natural resources, even having the Indiana Dunes that rivals the diversity of the Amazon. So we have to really take what we have in our own backyard,” Vera-Sample said.
After watching “Cool Waters,” Coates highlighted the work of the Food Justice Task Force, a group of young people working to secure 10,000 pounds of food for the Austin community to help feed 500 additional families. She emphasized their role as the community’s future and their hands-on efforts to address local food access.
“They’re out there for four hours in the sun, farming for the first time at Finding Justice Gardens, a flower and vegetable garden. They will be learning hydroponics, food nutrition and mobility. They will be doing workshops and teaching others, and we’re planting seeds of generational health as well,” Coates said.
Vera-Sample works with the Chicago Botanic Garden and has been involved with its Youth Farm, where she encourages young people to think about their plans and legacy over the next 100 years. She also envisions a diverse network of gardens and community groups on every block, creating a strong local microeconomy rooted in diversity.
“It all kind of goes together — understanding our population, understanding what our populations need, supplying them with those resources and then connecting that to the climate: how climate change is affecting our health and how our health is affecting the climate,” Vera-Sample said.
Patrick said families in Austin face barriers to accessing quality food because many grocery stores have closed or struggled to stay in business, forcing residents to travel outside the neighborhood for groceries. This can be especially difficult for homebound residents who rely on community-led initiatives for fresh produce, while government funding cuts and rising food prices have also made food less affordable.
“This is why the work that I’m doing is really important, because it’s about building resiliency. So, when I don’t have that extra $10 or $15 to buy the fruits and vegetables that I need for my diet, at least I have a garden or somewhere that I’ve grown food and put in some work. Or at least I know somebody on the block who is growing it, has it and is willing to give it to me, or we can work something out by sharing or paying what you can on a sliding scale, if you need it.” Patrick said.
The film “Seventh Generation” focused on Lakota efforts to reclaim food sovereignty, restore traditional foodways and buffalo stewardship, care for the land, and build a healthier future for generations to come.
“Our city’s design, all of the streets, Michigan, Erie, Superior — all of those were already here. The elaborate design was already in place. So, I really want to acknowledge the Indigenous people, the Potawatomi, for all of their genius contributions to making this community and this city. I would like us to return the value of the land to them and celebrate and acknowledge that in our everyday conversations. So, that was really what he talked about with the seven generations,” Vera-Sample said.