{"id":16079,"date":"2020-12-23T10:20:03","date_gmt":"2020-12-23T14:20:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mofga.org\/advocacy\/mofga-policy-bulletin-copy\/"},"modified":"2025-09-22T21:47:32","modified_gmt":"2025-09-23T01:47:32","slug":"public-policy-teach-ins","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.mofga.org\/public-policy-teach-ins\/","title":{"rendered":"Public Policy Teach-ins"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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MOFGA's Public Policy Teach-ins<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Countering the \u201cRace to the Bottom\u201d<\/strong><\/p>

Join us to hear how a food system focused on cheap prices and chemical production costs us all more in the long term. A panel of speakers representing different perspectives will discuss how farmers are often encouraged to engage in a \u2018Race to the Bottom\u2019 in terms of price and quality of their food in order to compete in the marketplace. Is a just food system that addresses environmental, economic, and health injustice inherently too expensive to feed the hungry in our world? Opponents argue that environmental and economic justice costs too much, and people will go hungry as a result. Is it possible to address the underlying issues of injustice in our food system and still produce enough food to feed everybody?<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tHear How Maine\u2019s Youth Are Taking Action on Issues of Food and Climate Justice\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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A marvelous and inspiring group of young people led our public policy panel at the 2024 Common Ground Country Fair in the Spotlight tent. Heather Spalding, deputy director of MOFGA, moderated the event, asking the panelists about their experiences working for change within their own organizations or while on the Maine Climate Council. We were<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tRead More \u00bb\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tNurturing Native Wildlife in Your Landscape Without Hazardous Chemicals\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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Saturday, September 23, 2023 at the Common Ground Country Fair Professional horticulturalist Chip Osborne started using pesticides in the 1970s, when the pesticide industry was just over 20 years old. \u201cTwenty-five years of my business, I was up to my elbows in pesticides,\u201d said Osborne. \u201cWe buttoned up our collars, put on some glasses, a<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tRead More \u00bb\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tClimate Change in Maine: The Problem, the Response and What All of Us Can Do\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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The 2020 Common Ground Country Fair Public Policy Teach-In offers participants a broad view of the impacts of climate change in Maine, how Maine is responding, and what all of us citizens can do to join this critical movement. MOFGA deputy director Heather Spalding hosts a panel of experts including Hannah Pingree, Director of Governor<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tRead More \u00bb\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tLocal Pesticide Control: How Your Town Can Protect Health and the Environment\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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Saturday, September 24, 2016 Common Ground Country Fair With a 700 percent increase in the distribution of home-use pesticide products in Maine in recent years, what are citizens’ options when state and federal governments are not adequately protecting our health and environment from these toxic chemicals? Maine is one of seven states that allow towns<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tRead More \u00bb\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tMaking America Green Again: A Workshop in Resistance\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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Saturday, September 23, 2017 Common Ground Country Fair The Trump administration and its allies are pursuing the most aggressive environmental rollbacks in U.S. history. Attacks on federal laws that protect our climate, public lands, air and water as well as attacks on the agencies that administer these laws could set us back decades. These threats,<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tRead More \u00bb\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tToday\u2019s Agriculture \u2013 An Important Piece of Maine\u2019s Economic Development Strategy\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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Saturday, September 22, 2018 The Public Policy Teach-in, co-hosted in 2018 by MOFGA\u2019s Public Policy Committee and Maine Farmland Trust (MFT) at the Common Ground Country Fair, focused on creating an agricultural platform for Maine\u2019 next governor. The teach-in is posted on\u00a0YouTube. Panelists were\u00a0Ellen Stern Griswold,\u00a0MFT policy and research director;\u00a0Penny Jordan\u00a0of Jordan\u2019s Farm in Cape<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tRead More \u00bb\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tPublic Policy Teach-In\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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Pesticides: In the News and All Around Us Who decides which pesticides can be approved for use \u2013 are these \u201cforever\u201d decisions? Saturday, September 21, 2019 1 to 2:30 p.m. on the Spotlight Stage Join us to learn how pesticides are evaluated by state and federal authorities. Pesticides are available for sale in hardware, grocery<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tRead More \u00bb\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tGMO Labeling Efforts Draw Crowd at Common Ground Country Fair\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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A panel discussed Maine\u2019s GMO labeling bill at the Fair. From left to right, Jim Gerritsen, Laura Murphy, Sen. Chris Johnson and Rep. Lance Harvell. English photo. Maine\u2019s GMO labeling initiative, LD 718, is alive and well. Foods made with genetically modified organisms are often called GMO foods \u2013 or GE (genetically engineered) foods. Last<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tRead More \u00bb\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t

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\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tTeach In Antibiotics\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t
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Don Hoenig, V.M.D., (far left) said, \u201cThis idea that there is rampant resistant bacteria moving from livestock and poultry into the human population and resulting in treatment failures and disease in the human population is just not true.\u201d He is optimistic about FDA’s voluntary guidelines regarding antibiotic use in livestock. Photos by Jean English. 2014<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tRead More \u00bb\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t

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Climate change panelists, from left to right: Stephen Mulkey, John Jemison, Sharon Tisher (moderator), Lou McNally, Dylan Voorhees and Andy Burt. English photo. Maine gardener Beedy Parker notes that we are experiencing generally longer growing seasons, but they are unpredictable and undependable due to extremes of temperature, moisture and storm intensity. Parker was the moving<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tRead More \u00bb\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t

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Tokar and Lawn on Tape What You Can Do About Genetic Engineering in Our Food System \u201cNever before have the results of new scientific discoveries been so heavily promoted and so rapidly rushed to market. Never before has the course of basic scientific research been so thoroughly and single-minded\u00adly driven by commer\u00adcial considerations.\u201d \u2013 Brian<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tRead More \u00bb\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t

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A panel of beekeepers (Theresa Gaffney and David Hackenberg, left) and scientists (Kim Stoner and Frank Drummond, right) discussed Colony Collapse Disorder at a Common Ground Country Fair teach-in, moderated by Sharon Tisher, center. English photo. Common Ground Country Fair Teach-In 2012 Ten years ago an average of 15 to 20 percent of commercially managed<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\tRead More \u00bb\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t

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