Rootstock Radio

Dr. Molly Jahn is professor of genetics at University of Wisconsin - Madison. Her work in traditional plant breeding has contributed to crop varieties that are grown on six continents, and she has worked extensively in developing countries to link crop breeding with improved human nutrition and welfare.

REAP Food Group is a food and farming advocacy group and was instrumental in bringing Farm to School to Madison, WI. REAP Food Group executive director Miriam Grunes speaks with us about Farm to School as well as growing strong communities through food.

Margaret Krome, public policy program director for Michael Fields Agricultural Institute, speaks with us about sustainable agriculture initiatives and MFAI's fascinating corn breeding program.

Severine von Tscharner Fleming is a serial entrepreneur, farmer and activist. She is possibly best known for the film Greenhorns and the National Young Farmers Coalition. This woman is a force of nature for the Millennial generation.

Chef Mary Cleaver was one of the first people to bring local foods into Manhattan in the 1970s and has been working behind the scenes influencing New York City's local food movement in quiet but profound ways.

His degree may be in geology and climatology, but Jake Schmitz has spent most of his life working with farmers and has helped hundreds of farmers transition tens of thousands of acres to organic. He speaks with us about how climate change is impacting farmers nationwide.

The Portland (OR) Fruit Tree Project cares for urban fruit trees, then shares the harvest with community members who need it the most. Enjoy this interview with founder and executive director, Katy Kolker.

Today's guest is Deborah Kane, who was appointed the USDA's National Director of Farm to School in January 2012. She oversees a new farm to school grant program and continues to look for creative ways to increase access to healthy, local foods for schools.

Sisters of the Road is a collectively-run organization that's been working to alleviate hunger, homelessness and poverty in Portland, OR since 1979. We speak with the Sisters of the Road Cafe co-manager, Kris Soebroto, about the issues of poverty and homelessness and how the cafe is a bright spot in their community.

Chef Luke Zahm has been called a sort of "Prodigal Chef." The Driftless Cafe had been a farm-to-table fixture in the Viroqua community for years, and when it came up for sale, Luke and his wife, Ruthie, didn't simply take ownership of the restaurant - they revitalized it.

Today we speak with culinary pioneer, Chef Monique Hooker, about her intriguing path to becoming a chef in the 60s and 70s, from France to rural Wisconsin. Chef Monique is an author, has hosted a TV show, and operated a cooking school, catering company and restaurant.

Co-founder and CEO of the non-profit Bioneers, Kenny Ausubel speaks about his path to entrepreneurship, film-making and becoming an author.

Today we hear from brothers Ernest and Mark Martin, both organic farmers in Richland County, Ohio, about how farming organically helped them feel good about their farming practices and see a brighter future for their children.

First organized by Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp back in 1985, Farm Aid is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to keep family farmers on their land. Glenda and Carolyn direct the organization, which is perhaps best known for it's long-running annual benefit concert of the same name.

We were honored to speak with author Wendell Berry, author of more than 40 works of fiction, non-fiction and poetry, including the famous "The Unsettling of America," written in 1977.