The Wheat from the Chat

Jo Poulton, Dot Tiwari, and Hamish Evans from "ubi4farmers" (@ubi4farmers) are in the studio to talk about Universal Basic Income -- what it is, what it might look like, and how it may be a useful lever to support the food and farming movement; be a lifeblood for people facing crises on many fronts; bolster and reinvigorate rural economies and communities; and free people to follow their own passions. ubi4farmers is a grassroots movement, in its nascent stages, advocating for the implementation of a Universal Basic Income for farmers, farmworkers, and food producers in the United Kingdom. Dave and Mike explore where this, and other campaigns like it, have got so far, and what they are seeking, and where people can join this movement. To highlight a quote that Jo shared during the podcast, from Scott Santens, “a Universal Basic Income does not solve everything, but it does make everything a little bit more solveable.”

With Mike back from France, we return to the studio where Mike and Dave are joined by Basil and Matteo to hear about their new project at Higher Farm in Somerset. Higher Farm is a 55-acre farm with a vision to answer questions around access to food and education whilst championing agroecological growing techniques, building soils, and enhancing biodiversity. This episode covers an introduction to the farm and its attempt to implement resilience through complexity -- echoing "natural" systems. Join Mike and Dave as they are walked through the vision of this nascent project, covering system design, land use and access, enterprise stacking, and securing private funding.

In this episode, Dave and Mike speak with Robyn Minogue of 'Outside' and the Gaia Foundation. They talk to Robyn about the strength we find in community, as well as the power growers can derive from saving seed, not only politically, but also in the resilience of our growing systems in a changing climate. The role of the Gaia Foundation, and Robyn's, centres on seed and seed sovereignty. This episode delves into various aspects of seed saving: learning how to start, incorporating growing and saving seed into growing systems, and why it is important for both people and planet. As always, Dave and Mike also found themselves talking about our connection to land, and to each other -- as well as hearing a bit about what can drive us all to change, to activism, and how we may be helped along the way.

Join Dave and Mike this month without a guest as they take stock on the first few months of the podcast, seeing where they've come from, what they've learned so far, and where they may (with support from you all) go next. This episode presents a summary of the previous few months and acts as a springboard for the future journey of the podcast.

Richard Lewis joins Mike and Dave in the studio to talk about our connection to each other, and to place — speaking to how we need always need to be aware of context, of nuance, and the importance of local relationships. Richard Lewis, an ecologist by training, runs The Mother Tree, a fruit and nut tree nursery based at Schumacher College; teaches on various courses across the Dartington educational programmes; and is a keen craftsperson.

Dave and Mike are joined in the studio by Sima Cutting to talk about food and food provision. Sima co-started The Kitchen Table, based in Totnes, a 'locavore' catering company; whilst Sima has now wound down the company, she talks to us about how she is using this new found time to follow direct activism within food-, land- and environmental justice.

A warm welcome to the inaugural episode of our new podcast: "The Wheat from the Chat." Join Mike and Dave introduce the team, and discuss the themes of what will hope to be an in-depth and wide ranging conversation around food, and the food system. The Wheat from the Chat is a live radio show on Soundart Radio, this episode is a recording of the live show.