In this episode, Mary Sketch Bryant, Jeff Ishee, and Eric Bendfeldt have a conversation with Karen Washington of Rise and Root Farm. Karen Washington was the recipient of the 2014 James Beard Leadership Award and continues to work for food justice, community change, and the overall wellness of the planet for everyone. She shares about the deeply rooted connections of soil health to power, dignity, racial justice, community, and a sense of belonging. As a physical therapist and grower, she reflects on the impact of soil fertility on where people live, where people play, and where people eat. Good soil means good health. Soil is alive and can reconnect people to the history and intergenerational knowledge of agriculture as a starting point for cross-pollinating greater understanding and wellbeing.

To learn more about Karen Washington and her ongoing work, please visit https://www.riseandrootfarm.com/. We also encourage you to follow the four core principles of soil health and take the 4 The Soil pledge at https://www.4thesoil.org/take-the-pledge.html

4 the Soil: A Conversation is made possible with funding support from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and The Agua Fund. Other partners include the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service; Virginia Cooperative Extension; Virginia State University; Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation; and partners of the Virginia Soil Health Coalition.

Disclaimer: Views expressed on this podcast are those of each individual guest.

To download a copy of this, or any other show, visit the website 4thesoil.org. Music used during today’s program is courtesy of the Flip Charts. All rights reserved. 4 the Soil: A Conversation is produced by On the Farm Radio in collaboration with Virginia Tech. The host and co-hosts are Jeff Ishee, Mary Sketch Bryant, and Eric Bendfeldt.