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Live webcast set for discussion on local food, farming

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The future of farming and food will be the topic of a panel discussion on campus that is open to the public and also will be webcast live for those who can’t attend.

The discussion will be held 4:30 p.m. Thursday in Love Auditorium, and the live webcast, available to anyone with an Internet connection, will be shown on

The discussion features two historians of food and agriculture, a sociologist who studies agricultural extension practices, a local agriculture extension officer, and an artist whose work engages the social meaning of food.

It is part of a symposium hosted by Morrisville State College’s Science, Technology & Society program, with support from 51Թ and its Upstate Institute.

Earth Day

Several other events are planned Thursday, including:

• A campus bird walk with 51Թ’s sustainability coordinator John Pumilio. Each year, chickadees, juncos, sparrows, hummingbirds, warblers, hawks, owls, woodpeckers, and many other species build their nests and raise their families’ right outside buildings on campus. Take a leisurely stroll and learn more about your feathered neighbors. Details are .

• Songs for Mother Earth: Everyone is invited to a folk festival concert at the Palace Theater in Hamilton, with
information tables from “green” organizations and businesses, plus prize raffles including a full season’s share of produce. Music begins at 6:30. Free.

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The symposium will explore modes of producing food such as genetic modification vs. heirloom varieties (plants and animals) and organic vs. conventional farming.

Combining technical explanations with tours of existing facilities and nearby farms, participants also will learn about different types of agricultural practices in Central New York.

The symposium, which is free and open to the public, begins at 11 a.m. at Morrisville State and ends with the 51Թ panel discussion.

Among those taking part in the panel discussion, titled “On the Limits of Local: Engaging the Problems of Food and Agriculture,” is Christopher Henke, assistant professor of sociology and anthropology at 51Թ and author of Cultivating Science, Harvesting Power: Science and Industrial Agriculture in California.

He will be joined by James E. McWilliams, Texas State University; Benjamin R. Cohen, University of Virginia; Becca Jablonski, agricultural economic development specialist for Madison County; and Fernando Mastrangelo, professional artist.

For more information about the symposium, including a complete schedule, visit www.morrisville.edu/sts