In today's episode, Dr. Akilah Martin shares about her journey with soil and agriculture. She also reflects on her experiences attending an an HBCU (Historically Black College & University) vs. a PWI (Predominately White Institution), her work with DePaul University, and her current projects in Chicago. Dr. Akilah Martin is a soil enthusiast, soil scientist and the author of 'Miseducation of a Farmer.'

Miseducation of a Farmer: https://www.humansandnature.org/miseducation-of-a-farmer

In today’s episode, Maryan Abdinur shares childhood memories from growing up in Somalia. Maryan works with Hope Communities Inc as Food, Land and Community Program Lead, aka "the weird person that carries around plants and seeds."

https://hope-community.org/

In today's episode, Tiffany chats with KaZoua about her role with Minnesota Food Association, nonprofit farming, and the exclusivity of organic farming. KaZoua discusses her memories as a Hmong refugee and her life as the mother of mixed races (Black & Hmong) children. After the killings of George Floyd and Daunte Wright, KaZoua bravely used her voice to challenge white-led organizations to act against systemic racism and police brutality.

Big River Farms: https://bigriverfarms.thefoodgroupmn.org/

In part II of Tiffany's conversation with Dani Pieratos, Dani talks about her connection to the earth and discusses the goals and challenges of the food, agriculture, and land access projects she's working on.

Dani Pieratos is a mother, water protector, and advocate for Indigenous communal sufficiency, food sovereignty, and sustainable agriculture. She works with organizations such as Harvest Nation, The Land Access Alliance, Bois Forte Food Sovereignty, and the Sustainable Agriculture Community Advocacy Group.

Dani Pieratos is a mother, water protector, and advocate for Indigenous communal sufficiency, food sovereignty, and sustainable agriculture. She works with organizations such as Harvest Nation, The Land Access Alliance, Bois Forte Food Sovereignty, and the Sustainable Agriculture Community Advocacy Group.

In this episode, Dani describes the harmful impacts of intergenerational trauma endured by the Indigenous Community, some of which she's seen manifest in her own life.

Blog: White farmers blocked a much-needed federal relief program for Black farmers. 

We are pleased to present to you the new season of the In Her Boots podcast. The theme of this season, and the new direction of the show, is "Bootless." This shift is explained in this sneak peak of the first three episodes with new host Tiffany LaShae. Through Tiffany's conversations with her guests, the podcast shares and highlights the stories of Black and Brown women who traditionally have not had a platform to use their voice. 

Tiffany is a farmer, researcher, educator, and activist with a diverse background in food justice, regenerative agriculture, afroecology, agroecology, ‘permaculture’ & more.

In Her Boots on the MOSES website

Today, we talk to Dr. JohnElla Holmes, executive director of the Kansas Black Farmers Association and part of the wheat farming community in Kansas. She shares a deep-rooted story of resilience from her family’s farming history and building the African American agricultural community in Nicodemus, Kansas. Hear how being proactive, asking questions, and cultivating community add up to strength to stay in farming for the long haul. JohnElla retired from Kansas State University in 2015 to come "home" to historic Nicodemus, Kansas, which is the oldest all-African-American town west of the Mississippi River and now a National Historic Site. She is a 5th generation descendant of these original settlers in a community that today raised wheat, milo, and cattle. This episode wraps up our Resilience series and our In Her Boots podcast for this season. Thanks for listening and subscribing so you'll know when we're back with more episodes focused on inspiring women farmers, educators, and organizers committed to sustainable and organic agriculture.

Today for our "Resilience Boot Camp" series, Kelsey Ducheneaux shares how her Indigenous roots drive her work, building on the themes she talked about in her MOSES Conference workshop this past February. It’s all about connections for Kelsey, from observing and appreciating the diversity on our land to building awareness to know when soil is depleted. Kelsey Ducheneaux is a member of the Lakota Sioux Nation. She is the fourth generation at the DX Ranch on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation, offering locally raised beef for direct sale. Kelsey also works as the Natural Resources Director and Youth Programs Coordinator for the Intertribal Agriculture Council, which presents her with the unique opportunity to support the improvement of Indian lands for Indian people across the nation.

Mariann Holm of Holm Boys Dairy talks about the turning points in her life that cultivated grit—the courage and resolve to be a farmer. From taking the risk to leave a cushy corporate gig in California to start their organic dairy in Wisconsin to successfully battling thyroid cancer when the odds were not in her favor, Mariann inspires us all to change life’s curveballs into opportunities to make us stronger farmers and women. Mariann and her husband, Doran, own a grass-based organic farm in Dunn County, Wisconsin, where they raise organic dairy heifers. Mariann is an organic crop and livestock inspector and serves on the Wisconsin Organic Advisory Council and the Menomonie Market Food Co-op Board of Directors.

For our Resilience series, today we connect with Molly Rockamann of EarthDance Farm to explore how she overcame burnout by taking a year sabbatical from the farm to travel, experience new things, and prioritize the in-person people connections in her life. Most importantly, she returned to her farming career recommitted and renewed—just in time to lead her organization through the COVID-19 pandemic. Molly is the Founding Director of EarthDance Organic Farm School in Ferguson, Missouri, and the visionary who saved the oldest organic farm west of the Mississippi from development, transforming it into an educational platform for organic agriculture and community empowerment. A native of St. Louis, she resides in Ferguson near the farm. Her passion for good food includes social justice and equity; she believes that the most regenerative agriculture is inclusive of people from all backgrounds.

Today's episode in our Resilience series focuses on how to take care of the most important tool on our farms: our own bodies. Clinical massage therapist Laura Gosewisch shares her clinical knowledge alongside her own first-hand farming knowledge to help us "calibrate the compass of life" for holistic well-being. In her practice, Laura supports people recovering from complex injuries. She and a partner run Vital Ground Farm, growing and selling vegetables, fruit, and herbs along with preserved foods at the Twin Cities Farmers Market under Minnesota's cottage food law.