Start Date
2022 12:00 AM
End Date
2022 12:00 AM
Abstract
The deep connections between agriculture and democracy are rooted in American political thought since the time of the nation’s founding, particularly in the writings of Thomas Jefferson. More recent efforts to connect agriculture and democracy are expressed in the ideas of civic agriculture and food democracy. These 21st Century concepts renew interest in agriculture’s contributions to the classic dilemmas of the individual’s relationship to the community and the role of power in the American political system. This paper examines key elements of Thomas Lyson’s model of civic agriculture and how the work of the late 19th and early 20th century social and political theorist, Mary Parker Follett, provides a foundation for Lyson’s work. The objective is to build upon civic agriculture theory by exploring the model’s connections to Follett’s theories on the group process, community, power, and expertise, and how her concepts apply to food system examples. Follett’s theories provide support for civic agriculture’s potential to build community, develop civic capacity, and recast power. The paper also examines links among Lyson, Follett, and Neva Hassanein’s 2008 description of food democracy. An underlying theme is that civic agriculture neighborhoods may coalesce within larger communities, and these neighborhoods may help participants acquire the skills of civic association and collective problem-solving. The skills learned by participants in civic agriculture neighborhood groups may yield benefits for food democracy at regional, national, and global levels, as well as democracy more generally. This paper is intended to enhance current efforts in food system policy and advocacy.
Keywords
Civic agriculture, food democracy
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Stuteville, Rebekkah (2022). "Civic Agriculture Through the Lens of Mary Parker Follett’s Writings: Pulling at the Civic Roots of Civic Agriculture," Urban Food Systems Symposium. https://newprairiepress.org/ufss/2022/proceedings/3
Civic Agriculture Through the Lens of Mary Parker Follett’s Writings: Pulling at the Civic Roots of Civic Agriculture
The deep connections between agriculture and democracy are rooted in American political thought since the time of the nation’s founding, particularly in the writings of Thomas Jefferson. More recent efforts to connect agriculture and democracy are expressed in the ideas of civic agriculture and food democracy. These 21st Century concepts renew interest in agriculture’s contributions to the classic dilemmas of the individual’s relationship to the community and the role of power in the American political system. This paper examines key elements of Thomas Lyson’s model of civic agriculture and how the work of the late 19th and early 20th century social and political theorist, Mary Parker Follett, provides a foundation for Lyson’s work. The objective is to build upon civic agriculture theory by exploring the model’s connections to Follett’s theories on the group process, community, power, and expertise, and how her concepts apply to food system examples. Follett’s theories provide support for civic agriculture’s potential to build community, develop civic capacity, and recast power. The paper also examines links among Lyson, Follett, and Neva Hassanein’s 2008 description of food democracy. An underlying theme is that civic agriculture neighborhoods may coalesce within larger communities, and these neighborhoods may help participants acquire the skills of civic association and collective problem-solving. The skills learned by participants in civic agriculture neighborhood groups may yield benefits for food democracy at regional, national, and global levels, as well as democracy more generally. This paper is intended to enhance current efforts in food system policy and advocacy.
