“Once in awhile, I think I’ve had an original thought, and then I look around and realize Joan said it first.” This is what Michael Pollan said about Joan Gussow, Professor Emeritus of Nutrition and Education at the Teachers College of Columbia University and one of the founders of Just Food.
She has been teaching a renowned class entitled “Nutritional Ecology” at Columbia for the last forty-plus years, and the New York Times has called her the “matriarch of the eat-locally-think-globally food movement.” She published a book in 1978 that called for a relocalization of the food supply, setting the stage for the national conversation around food that would take awhile to catch up. “Cultivation,” a documentary by Gioacchino Taliercio about Gussow’s work and continuing influence is being premiered on Monday, November 17 at 6 p.m. at Columbia University, and tickets are free.
We recommend you take the time to admire the work of one of the lesser-celebrated heroes of the food movement complete with a heavy dose of college-shaped lecture-room nostalgia and a little inspiration for your home gardening efforts.
