042 - For The Love of Food with Claire Ratinon

Today we're really excited to bring you an episode with Claire Ratinon, commissioned in conjunction with Northumberland National Park Authority's Future Landscapes Festival. 

Your host, Dr. Sheree Mack, really enjoyed finally getting to talk with Claire after following her work around organic gardening and decolonising horticulture for a while now.

In this episode, they talk about:

• Situating ourselves in the country
• Chickens and ruffled feathers!
• Change of career direction
• Getting closer to nature
• Black and brown people growing food and plants
• Finding our way back to the earth
• Decolonizing horticulture
• Thinking about the term 'decolonisation' and it's uses
• Colonisation is still happening 
• The history of plants have to be addressed
• Working with institutions to being about change
• Power
• Childhood and upbringing 
• The food system is broken but can be fixed
• The writing process
• Exclusive information about Claire's future endeavours!
• Writing our stories is necessary
• Checking our privileges 

Bio:

 

Claire Ratinon is an organic food grower and writer based in East Sussex. She has worked in a range of roles from growing produce for the Ottolenghi restaurant, Rovi to delivering growing workshops and talks to audiences including East London primary schools, community centres and educational institutions - both in person and online. Claire is passionate about the act of growing plants - especially edible ones - and the potential for it to be nourishing, connecting and healing. Her work seeks to engage in dialogues that interrogate the colonial legacy that is embedded in the practices of horticulture and agriculture. The stories we’ve been told and language that is used around these practices influences who feels able to do the work of growing plants which is why reclaiming a relationship to land is a radical and revolutionary act for many people of colour.

 

Bio

Claire Ratinon is an organic food grower and writer based in East Sussex. Claire has grown edible plants in a variety of roles from growing organic vegetables for the Ottolenghi restaurant, Rovi to delivering growing workshops throughout London to audiences including primary schools, community centres and corporate clients. She has been invited to share her growing journey and experiences in talks and workshops for organisations including The Garden Museum, the Royal College of Art and West Dean College as well as having presented features for Radio 4’s Gardeners’ Question Time. Her writing has been featured in The New Statesman, Bloom Magazine and Waitrose Magazine. She co-wrote a pamphlet entitled ‘Horticultural Appropriation’ for Rough Trade with artist, Sam Ayre and her first book, ‘How To Grow Your Dinner Without Leaving The House’ is out now.

 

Website: https://www.claireratinon.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/claireratinon/

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