Helen Woodcock

Fellow’s Profile

Helen Woodcock

Fellow’s Profile

Helen Woodcock

The time is ripe: increasing sustainable food access

Fellowship

Themes

Focus

Creating a sustainable food system through co-operatives, organic food initiatives and community engagement

Countries

Fellowship year

2010

Locality

North West

Biography

I co-founded Kindling in 2007, with the aim of creating a fairer and more sustainable food system for all. My current role is to establish Kindling Farm, a pioneering community-owned agroforestry farm for the north west.

Through my Fellowship I researched the best models for increasing access to sustainable food in a city like Manchester. The lessons I learnt from the amazing co-ops and organisations I met on my trip were super-helpful for setting up a number of practical initiatives over the years. These included the first organic FarmStart training programme in the UK (in which I was also a trainee grower for the first five years), Manchester Veg People and Veg Box People co-operatives, set up to create a fairer market for the new and existing growers, and Woodbank Community Food Hub, set up to engage a wider range of people in food and increase access to all that lovely produce to all of our local communities.

My motivation stems from frustration at the destructive nature of our current food system. Gaining the knowledge to change this – creating a more ecologically and socially just food system – is possible and also offers a more desirable, hopeful way to live.

Activity

Disclaimer

All Reports are copyright © the author. The moral right of the author has been asserted. The views and opinions expressed by any Fellow are those of the Fellow and not of the Churchill Fellowship or its partners, which have no responsibility or liability for any part of them.

Activity

Disclaimer

All Reports are copyright © the author. The moral right of the author has been asserted. The views and opinions expressed by any Fellow are those of the Fellow and not of the Churchill Fellowship or its partners, which have no responsibility or liability for any part of them.

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