UPCOMING EVENTS
UPCOMING EVENTS
Tompkins Fall Food System Forum
Wednesday November 11th 2026
11am - 2pm at Foundation of Light in Ithaca
We look forward to gathering together!
This Forum is free, lunch is provided, and registration is required. Stipends are available to support attendance. Childcare and youth programming are provided in partnership with Wellspring Forest Farm Youth Program.
2026 Tompkins Fall Food System Forum At A Glance:
11:00 am: Arrivals, Conversations, and Connections
11: 20 am: Welcome and Opening
11:30 am: Keynote: Local Veteran Farmer Perspectives w/ Joey Diana Gates and Kiersten Downs
12:00 pm: Local Harvest Lunch and Conversations
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Soup and salad showcasing local harvest by Chef Lechandre Mix
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Bahn mi sandwiches by STYX Southeast Asian Street Food
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Focaccia by Ithaca Breadworks and Little Ram Bakery (gf)
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Jamaican Jerk Chicken by Island Taste
12:50 pm: Full Group Working Session
Exploring the Opportunity: What Could a Local Food Fund Make Possible?
Tompkins Food Future has been exploring the concept of a community-led participatory Food Fund to address persistent gaps and equity concerns in local food system funding.
In this facilitated working session, we’ll discuss the needs a Food Fund could address, share opportunities and concerns, and identify key questions to explore as the concept evolves.
Together, we'll explore how we can better resource our shared food system goals through collective action and whether and how this concept could advance our shared food system goals.
1:40 pm: Integration and Reflection
We'll come together to reflect on the day's ideas, connections, and possibilities, and collectively imagine what it could look and feel like to bring them to life. Through a simple, participatory storytelling activity, we'll build a shared vision of a thriving, equitable, and resilient food system—celebrating the work already underway and the possibilities ahead.
Logistics:
Register here.
The Foundation of Light is located at 391 Turkey Hill Rd. Ithaca, NY 14850
For transportation support email: katie.hallas@foodbankst.org
This event is free thanks to generous support from the Food Bank of the Southern Tier.
The Tompkins Food System Forum is an ongoing series focused on:
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Bringing people together so that the whole system becomes more connected
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Building and strengthening trusting relationships
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Identifying common ground
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Sharing experiences, information, and resources to support each other's work
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Strengthening our capacity to collaborate
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Turning ideas into actions
PAST EVENTS
Spring Food System Forum, April 27, 2026
The Tompkins Food System Forum is an ongoing series focused on:
-
Bringing people together so that the whole system becomes more connected
-
Building and strengthening trusting relationships
-
Identifying common ground
-
Sharing experiences, information, and resources to support each other's work
-
Strengthening our capacity to collaborate
-
Turning ideas into actions
Registration is required. Stipends are available to support attendance. See further details below.
The Spring Forum program will begin at 4:45pm and will include:
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Connect with others and share a nourishing meal
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Build relationships to sustain ourselves, our connections, and our work
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Engage in facilitated action planning through community conversation
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Learn together, explore shared challenges, and envision Tompkins County’s food future while building mutual support and generating actionable steps to strengthen our food system.
Register here.
For transportation support email: katie.hallas@foodbankst.org
This event is free thanks to generous support from the Food Bank of the Southern Tier.
Previous Events
Food System Summit: Moving Forward Together, Sept. 2022
A celebratory learning and networking event was held on Tuesday, September 27th at 5pm at the Stewart Park large pavilion. Following a brief overview of the Tompkins County food system plan: a roadmap for our food future, speakers from the following organizations shared a 5-minute presentation on their work in the food system:
Cayuga Health Partners
Cornell Cooperative Extension Tompkins County
Cornell Small Farms
Food Policy Council
Food Bank of the Southern Tier
Food Policy Council of Tompkins County
Groundswell
Headwater
Harvest NY
Ithaca Farmers Market
Shelterbelt Farm
The Learning Farm
Tompkins County Legislature
Tompkins County Recycling and Materials Management
Youth Farm Project
Fall Food System Gathering, September 2021
A free community event was held at the Ithaca Farmers Market on September 29, 2021 where we shared what we learned over the past year of listening, learning, and working to better understand our local food system. We shared results of the Tompkins County Food System Baseline Assessment, gathering input for ideas for the future, and shared a meal together.
Kick Off Gathering, February 2020
A free community event was held at the Tompkins County Public Library in February, 2020 with over 100 attendees. Ideas were collected to inform the planning process. A summary of feedback from community members can be read here.