There will be no marshmallows atop our sweet potato casserole this Thanksgiving. No cranberry sauce on our table. No French wine in our glasses.
If you’re feeling sorry for us, stop. While we may be taking some liberties with the traditional holiday menu, we won’t be sacrificing any of the delicious decadence of a Thanksgiving meal.
What we will be doing is sharing a meal that is as good for our bodies, our community and our planet as it is delicious.
How? By eating locally.
As an expression of gratitude for the food that nourishes us and the farmers who produce it (and in the spirit of embracing quests), I’m embarking on a quest of my own: Project Local Thanksgiving. This year the ingredients used in our Thanksgiving meal will all have been produced within a 30-mile radius of our home.
Think I’m crazy? Here are three reasons why a local Thanksgiving makes sense:
1. Local Food is Good Food
“Good food depends almost entirely on good ingredients.” — Alice Waters, chef and owner of Chez Panisse
Eating locally is hands down the easiest way to ensure that your diet is simultaneously delicious, healthy and ethical.
When the majority of your diet is comprised of local food sources, you’re highly unlikely to be consuming many processed foods or chemical additives. What’s more, eating locally is by nature eating seasonally, so what you’re getting is practically guaranteed to be fresh and flavorful (unlike those sad, tasteless grocery store tomatoes).
2. Local Food Supports Local Economies
“Every time you spend money, you’re casting a vote for the kind of world you want.” — Anna Lappé, author and educator
When you buy local food, you support local farms and businesses by putting money into the pockets of real, hardworking people instead of faceless corporations. You also have the opportunity to see firsthand where your food is coming from and confirm that the farmer is using practices that align with your ethics — whether that means free-range poultry, grass-fed meat, organic produce or fair wages for farm workers.
3. Local Food is Ecofriendly
“Each food item in a typical U.S. meal has traveled an average of 1,500 miles. If every U.S. citizen ate just one meal a week (any meal) composed of locally and organically raised meats and produce we would reduce our country’s oil consumption by more than 1.1 million barrels of oil every week.” — Barbara Kingsolver, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life
At this point most of us are familiar with the idea that our dietary choices have a profound impact on our carbon footprint. No matter how healthy your diet may be, if you’re relying on food sources shipped in from half a world away, you aren’t doing the environment any favors. Whatever your dietary preferences are, sourcing your food locally and eating with the seasons will help reduce your carbon footprint.
Ready to go local?
Aside from all the logical arguments I can make in favor of local food, there are emotional factors at play as well. Simply put, there is something magical about eating food raised within miles of your home, by people you know, on farms you have visited. It is an experience the feeds both body and soul.
So yeah, I might be a little jealous of all you New Englanders who can rightfully claim cranberry sauce as a local dish. But mostly I’m just excited.
I’m excited to spend the next month on a quest for the most delicious local food I can find. I’m excited to stretch my culinary imagination and learn some new skills (grinding my own cornmeal can’t be that hard, right?). I’m excited to visit local farms and markets and get to know my community and my bioregion, in a more meaningful way. And, when all is said and done, I’m excited to sit down and eat a really damn good meal, surrounded by the people I love.
If any of that sounded exciting to you, too, then I hope you’ll hop on the Project Local Thanksgiving bandwagon. And if you’re not ready to go all in, thats just fine. How about a modified approach. Go for a 50 or 100 mile radius instead of 30. Or ensure that one ingredient in each dish (e.g. the apples in your pie or the rosemary in your stuffing) is sourced locally. However you do it, you’ll be nourishing more than just your body this Thanksgiving.
Emma Moulton Huvos is an educator, permaculture designer and founder of The Riverside Project.
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Here are three new films to watch this Earth Week that will transport you from pole to pole and introduce you to the scientists and activists working to save our shared home.
1. The Year Earth Changed
Where to Watch: Apple TV+
When to Watch: From April 16
The coronavirus pandemic has brought home the stakes of humanity's impact on the environment. But the lockdowns also proved how quickly nature can recover when humans give it the space. Birds sang in empty cities, whales surfaced in Glacier Bay and capybara roamed the South American suburbs.
The Year Earth Changed captures this unique year with footage from more than 30 lockdowned cities between May 2020 to January 2021. Narrated by renowned wildlife broadcaster David Attenborough, the film explores what positive lessons we can take from the experience of a quieter, less trafficked world.
"What the film shows is that the natural world can bounce back remarkably quickly when we take a step back and reduce our impact as we did during lockdown," executive producer Alice Keens-Soper of BBC Studios Natural History Unit told EcoWatch. "If we are willing to make even small changes to our habits, the natural world can flourish. We need to learn how to co-exist with nature and understand that we are not separate from it- for example if we closed some of our beaches at for a few weeks during the turtle breeding we see that it can make a huge difference to their success. There are many ways that we can adapt our behavior to allow the natural world to thrive as it did in lockdown."
2. After Antarctica
Where to Watch: San Francisco International Film Festival
When to Watch: 12 a.m. PST April 9 to 11:59 p.m. April 18
In 1989, Will Steger led an international team of six scientists and explorers to be the first humans to cross Antarctica by dogsled. Steger and his team weren't just in it for the adventure. They also wanted to draw attention to the ways in which the climate crisis was already transforming the icy continent and to rally support for the renewal of the Antarctic Treaty, which would keep the continent safe from extractive industries.
In After Antarctica, award-winning filmmaker Tasha Van Zandt follows Steger 30 years later as he travels the Arctic this time, reflecting on his original journey and once again bringing awareness to changes in a polar landscape. The film intersperses this contemporary journey with footage from the original expedition, some of which has never been seen before.
"Will's life journey as an explorer and climate activist has led him not only to see more of the polar world than anyone else alive today, but to being an eyewitness to the changes occurring across both poles," Van Zandt told EcoWatch. "But now, these changes are happening in all of our own backyards and we have all become eyewitnesses. Through my journey with Will, I have learned that although we cannot always control change, we can change our response. I feel strongly that this is a message that resonates when we look at the current state of the world, as we each have power and control over how we choose to respond to hardships, and we all have the power to unite with others through collective action around a common goal."
After Antarctica is available to stream once you purchase a ticket to the San Francisco International Film Festival. If you miss it this weekend, it will screen again at the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival from May 13 to May 23.
Tasha Van Zandt
3. The Race to Save the World
Where to Watch: Virtual Cinema
When to Watch: From Earth Day, April 22
While many films about the climate crisis seek to raise awareness about the extent of the problem, The Race to Save the World focuses on the people who are trying to stop it. The film tells the story of climate activists ranging from 15-year-old Aji to 72-year-old Miriam who are working to create a sustainable future. It follows them from the streets to the courtroom to their homes, and explores the impact of their advocacy on their personal lives and relationships.
Emmy award-winning documentary filmmaker Joe Gantz told EcoWatch that he wanted to make a film about climate change, but did not want to depress viewers with overwhelming statistics. Instead, he chose to inspire them by sharing the stories of people trying to make a difference.
"Unless millions of people take to the streets and make their voices heard for a livable future, the politicians are not going to get on board to help make the changes needed for a sustainable future," Gantz told Ecowatch. "I think that The Race To Save The World will energize and inspire people to take action so that future generations, as well as the plants, animals and ecosystems, can survive and thrive on this planet."
Check back with EcoWatch on the morning of Earth Day for a special preview of this inspiring film!
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