Youth, food justice and the practice of everyday politics: a case study of agricultural resistance in the Spring Ridge Commons
Date
2013-01-17
Authors
Mallett, April
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Abstract
This study uses the concepts of everyday politics and cultural resistance to explore how young people are experimenting with ‘free spaces’ in which to develop alternative ideas and practices within the food justice movement. Through a case study of the Spring Ridge Commons – a youth-generated free space – this research describes how youth are redefining relationships to place and to people by practicing alternative foodways like urban foraging; creating decommodified food sources; sharing skills and knowledge through peer-to-peer networks; building community through relationships of mutual support; and experimenting with non-hierarchical governance. Such practices have potential implications for child and youth care such as: reconnecting youth and adults through shared practice and meaningful work in “real life” politics and community building, reconceptualizing 'youth' and 'adult' such that both have greater access to acts of cultural production, and creating experiences of democracy in everyday life.
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Keywords
free space, urban agriculture, permaculture, cultural resistance, everyday politics, youth activism, food justice, youth political participation, Community Building, Participatory Democracy