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Handpicked: Stories from the Field

Presented by the Laurier Centre for Sustainable Food Systems, Handpicked: Stories from the Field is a podcast series that showcases research that drives positive change in our food systems—ways we produce, gather, eat, understand and dispose of our food. Produced and hosted by Amanda Di Battista and Laine Young, the series presents compelling, real-life stories of food practitioners, such as farmers, policymakers and activists. Episodes follow researchers and community partners in their efforts to make their food systems more economically, environmentally and socially sustainable.

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  2. Season 5, Episode 1 - “Food as Fertile Ground for Change” Cultivating Community: Food Justice in the Bow Valley and Beyond

Season 5, Episode 1 - “Food as Fertile Ground for Change” Cultivating Community: Food Justice in the Bow Valley and Beyond

Dec 2, 2025

Season 5, Episode 1 - “Food as Fertile Ground for Change” Cultivating Community: Food Justice in the Bow Valley and Beyond

Featuring: Dr. Lauren Kepkiewicz, Avni Soma, Syma Habib, Jun Cacayuran, Melissa West Morrison, & Dr. Tatenda Mambo 

In this episode of Handpicked: Stories from the Field, our conversation comes from the Bow Valley in Alberta, where a group of organizers, researchers, and community leaders gathered in 2024 to talk about food justice and the everyday work of reshaping food systems. In this episode, Charlie Spring sits down with the event’s co-organizers, Dr. Lauren Kepkiewicz and Avni Soma, to look back on what unfolded at their “Cultivating Community” gathering. 

The episode brings together stories about community-led food aid, Indigenous food relationships, regenerative agriculture, migrant community organizing, and the emotional power of food to connect and transform. Alongside Lauren and Avni’s reflections, listeners hear short excerpts from the event’s panellists, Syma Habib, Jun Cacayuran, Melissa West Morrison, and Dr. Tatenda Mambo, whose perspectives and insights bring important nuance to the conversation. 

Rather than framing food systems as problems to “fix,” the episode leans into questions of relationship, responsibility, and the slow, often messy work of imagining something better together. It’s a thoughtful, grounded start to the season, and an invitation to consider what food justice looks like in our own communities. 

 

Contributors

Co-Producers & Hosts: Dr. Laine Young & Dr. Charlie Spring  

Sound Design & Editing: Laine Young 

 

Guests 

Dr. Lauren Kepkiewicz 

Avni Soma 

Syma Habib 

Jun Cacayuran 

Melissa West Morrison 

Dr. Tatenda Mambo 

 

Support & Funding 

SSHRC Partnership Engage Grant (Lauren Kepkiewicz, Marit Rosol, Elizabeth Vibert, Eric Holt-Gimenez, and Charlie Spring) 

Wilfrid Laurier University 

The Laurier Centre for Sustainable Food Systems 

Balsillie School for International Affairs  

 

Music Credits 

Keenan Reimer-Watts 

 

Resources 

 

Filipino Organization in the Rocky Mountains (FORM) 

Kepkiewicz, L. & Cacayuran, J. (2022). Bringing ayuda and bayanihan to the Rockies. Mountain Life, Rocky Mountain, pp. 30. 

Moving Beyond Acknowledgments- LSPIRG 

Whose Land 

 

Connect with Us: 

Email: Handpickedpodcast@wlu.ca 

LinkedIn: Handpicked: Stories from the Field Podcast

Facebook: Handpicked Podcast