November 1, 2018

On October 27th, we hosted a dinner event, Shared Conversations, at AKA as part of a larger initiative that aimed to draw together conversations from across the country. Partnering with friends at Open Space, Untitled Arts Society, Hamilton Artists Inc., Modern Fuel, and this town is small, we shared tables across time zones and geographies to branch out some of the questions and ideas we’ve explored throughout Locals Only thus far. At AKA, it was an evening with new and old friends, filled with stories and conversations that flowed from legends to planting tips to calls to action for greater justice and access to the means to produce food. We were grateful to host so many important contributors to the project and to break bread with folks from across Riversdale and Saskatoon.

We enjoyed a delicious meal prepared by the team at The Hollows and the results of Holly Schmidt‘s collaboration with Sylvia Biron in the form of A-Y Bread in four variations. Our conversations were framed by illustrations from Cate Francis and our tables were warmed by youth artists, Meagan Hong, Brianna Painchaud, and Lisa Lam, and we were pleased to host an installation by David Lariviere. Our guests contributed their own recipes for justice, for caring for the neighbourhood, and for a powerful story, along with delicious staples. You can see some of the examples below.

As an event meant to both gather and help to distribute a multifaceted dialogue around issues related to gentrification, intergenerational reciprocity, and food security, we were so happy to see the wide range of concerns and ideas that crop up by simply bringing people together around a meal. Finding a way to ‘common’ these ideas across different communities only made it that much richer. Thank you to everyone who participated!