Free SEJ Meet-Up at the NESAWG Annual Conference

Food issues and sustainability are under the spotlight at a free regional journalist meet-up in in Saratoga Springs, NY on November 10. A field trip to an area farm (homemade lunch included) will show innovations in sustainable agriculture, while a panel discussion showcases Saratoga’s grassroots actions for creating a more sustainable city-scape. The day will conclude with a panel that will give you the tools you need to move your GMO coverage from reporting on superficial disagreements to a deeper examination of the benefits and threats implicit in this technology.

The SEJ meet-up will include a a greeting from Saratoga Springs’ mayor and a reception at the conclusion of the day’s events. The meet-up will run from noon to 6:15 PM and will precede the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Working Group’s  (NESAWG) annual conference (Nov. 10-12), which includes dozens of workshops and panels, plus press briefings and other programming specifically for journalists. Discounted registration to the conference for journalists is available from NESAWG (free, in some cases), and inexpensive lodging is available for meet-up attendees.

Registration for Monday’s conference events is also free.

Nov. 10 SEJ Meet-up Agenda

12 - 12:30: Welcome

12:30 – 3 PM: Field trip to farm

3:30 – 4:45: Sustainable Saratoga panel

4:45 – 6:15 PM: GMO reporter’s toolbox panel

7 PM: Reception

The GMO Reporter's Toolbox panel features:

• Glenn Monastersky, Director of Operations and Associate Center Director at RPI's Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies to explain the technical process of genetic engineering.
• Aaron Gabriel, Sr. Extension Resource Educator, Agronomy for Cornell Cooperative Extension explaining the role of GMOs for farmers in the Northeast
• Mark Lindeman, a political scientist and environmental politics expert who teaches at Columbia U., to explain the politics of GMOs
• Abby Kinchy, RPI professor of sociology,  author of Seeds, Science, and Struggle: The Global Politics of Transgenic Crops and expert on the social impacts of technology to explain the social impacts of GMOs.

Please join us for an informative afternoon in the company of friends. There will be a small fee for transportation to the farm. For more information or to register for the SEJ meet-up, contact Madeline Bodin madelinebodin@gmail.com or Dale Willman dale@fieldnotes.tv. And/or register here for the full conference (not free).