Dear NESAWG Community,

We are deeply saddened to announce that we have decided to cancel our 2022 It Takes a Region Conference in Providence, RI. This was a very difficult decision, but we believe it is in NESAWG’s best interest as well as that of our community’s. 

As NESAWG transitions from being a white-led organization to a majority BIPOC-led organization, we realize that we need to pause, reflect, refocus and redefine NESAWG’s identity and NESAWG’s role in creating an equitable food systems change at a local, regional, and national level. It is important for us to move away from rushing into doing business as usual, from going through the motions of addressing and resolving mounting conference planning logistics and challenges, and simply checking off performance boxes. Rather, we want to be true to ourselves and be transparent with this transition process. 

NESAWG is unable to offer a conference this year that reflects our best in both who we are now and who we are becoming. Our conference theme this year was “Creating Food Systems Change Rooted in Love”. We continue to be guided by the spirit of this theme to dive critically, curiously and deeply into how we can build a stronger foundation to model a values-aligned approach—one rooted in justice and love—as we hope to ask and guide our community and network to do the same. 

We sincerely apologize for the timing of this decision and any inconvenience this may cause you. We are so grateful to everyone who has contributed their time and effort to this conference. While we regret the missed opportunity to connect with each of you in person, we are excited about this new chapter for NESAWG, and we look forward to growing and working with you along the way. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach us at [email protected]. 

Grateful to be in community with you,

NESAWG Board and Staff

“What surprised me about the NESAWG conference is the number of attendees who were womxn or people of color.  As a woman of color, I usually find myself in the minority at food system and ag-related events, so it was refreshing to see my community being embraced. I also appreciated that we were being centered in the event by our inclusion in plenary sessions and was delighted by the acknowledgement that we were on Lenni Lenape land. None of this would have been possible for me without the scholarship and free childcare that NESAWG provided.”

– Asiyah, #NESAWG2019 attendee 

“NESAWG 2019 was a lit experience for me, I was able to not only grow more as a facilitator, but I was able to continue learning more about the urban agricultural work as well as the amazing community involved. As we shared our experiences with each other, I felt our connection continuing to grow and felt so relieved and excited to see that I wasn’t alone in this fight. I have a whole community behind my back and it they only make me feel stronger in this fight to reclaim our land.”

– Tommy, VietlLead youth leader & facilitator at #NESAWG2019

Our annual conference is widely regarded as the conference for anyone doing food system change work in any Northeast state. Hundreds of practitioners convene not only workshops, plenaries, and networking, but to roll up their sleeves and do the real work needed to create a just and fair regional food system. Youth, academics, farmers, advocates, entrepreneurs, and organizers all find a home at NESAWG.

Be sure to sign up for our newsletter for conference updates.

• Getting it done in youth workshops
• NESAWG’s 2019 Executive Director, Tracy Lerman
• Chief Vincent Mann of the Ramapough Lenape Turtle Clan
• NESAWG staff – Tracy, Malaika, Nicole
• NESAWG Board Member Heber Brown, Stephanie Morningstar, and Chief Vincent Mann
• NESAWG Board member, Lindsay Gilmour
• Food Justice Timeline youth workshop
• Working at the Policy pre-conference
• Youth facilitating workshops
• NESAWG Board member, Onika Abraham
• Big ideas at Policy pre-confernece
• Brainstorming at the Policy pre-conference