Scorched wheat crop in Delhi, India

What would this mean for rural America?

Brown Mills Grocery -- Arthurdale WV

Sorghum Harvesting in Preston County

To address rural communities located in food deserts whose outsourcing systems rely heavily on family-owned farms and personal gardens, it is essential to not only understand the pressing climate crises impact, but the group of peoples cultural and physical environment. Through interactive maps and informative land studies accompanied by the oral histories of people from West Virginia, this project aims to begin theorizing 'how can we manipulate the land to preserve the land practices and continue to sustain communities both through food access and cultural heritage.' 

Outstanding in the Field

Danny Wills

Oral Histories + Folklorists

Forces at

play

Manipulation of land

Preservation of land

Sound box 1

Sound box 2

Sound box 3

Key Design Elements:

Balance -- creating a space that puts value on each medium

Movement -- each space feels like entering a portal

Contrast -- make maps with both technical and cultural information

Exhibition:

Thank you to my advisors, Nada and Ammar, the support of Chris, Amro, Tessa, and the whole NuVu team. Thank you to my family for allowing me to pursue such unique learning experiences -- I will carry this work with me for the rest of my life.

While the mountain state is rich with biodiversity and lush agriculture, many people in the state of West Virginia are unable to incorporate nutrient-dense whole foods into their diet. Large disparities in localized fresh foods are a significant problem that threatens the health of over 27% of residents living in what the USDA has deemed a “food desert.” So-called “food deserts'', focus on the lack of grocery stores in a given community. A binary logic of presence or absence fails to take into account the agency of vulnerable households and their complex food sourcing strategies including cultural and social practices that affect food consumption patterns. As outsiders to the region, it is important to form personal connections with the land and people to better understand solutions to the ever-evolving food crisis in Appalachia. The overall price of food has fallen along with the relative value of wages, yet the industrial production systems processing and delivering this food have contributed to nutrient deficiencies and health problems, specifically among poorer communities. Rising rates of obesity, diabetes, and hypertension are alarming, and most policy interventions continue to seek to reform the consumptive habits and behaviors of individual consumers rather than address the food and economic policies that produce markets awash in low-cost unhealthy food options.

Regenerative Agriculture

Native American

 land-honoring practices

Rural community

"urban" planning

How can sacred cultivation be innovated --> It can't, and shouldn't

Addressing food-inequity with localized agriculture

Appalachia!

Topic Journey

Precedents

The Bittersweet Southerner

Outstanding in the Field

The Soft White Underbelly

Nalini Malani

Geography + Socio-economics

Reading the Landscape

The Food Industry

• Understanding various socio-economic dynamics aiding to food inequity
• Labor intensive work
• Poverty
• Substance and drug crisis
• Car dependant

• Surveying soil and till in the region
• Easiest vegetation to cultivate in specific soil
• Already existing localized agriculture

• Car-mobility
• Dining culture + how the community organizes around food
• Restaurants in rural communities 
• Fast food chain competition

Competencies

Film + Photography

Crafting a Space

Arduino Programming

• Capturing portraits
• Intimate interview camera setup
• Lighting, backdrop, sound, etc.

• Large scale installation
• Immersivity -- how to incorporate all the senses
• Isolate sounds, visuals, experiences!

• Interactive space
• Motion and touch sensors to cue experiences
• Connecting speakers and video clips to code

Design Objectives

Incorporate all the senses:

• Utilize visuals, sound, touch, and possibly even smell to create an intimate environment

How are these stories heard?

• Interactive components! Touchable portraits, motion detectors, physical objects?

Lean into the meal:

• Dinner conversation
• Let the nature of the meal dictate the set up

Individual experience:

• Set max people in space at a time
• Space is subtle-y shifting over time
• Hone in on peoples abilities to interact with the space

Milestone 1: April 14th

Project proposal presentation

Milestone 2: April 19th

Methodology testing week commences

Milestone 3: May 2nd - 7th

Proposed dates of travel to Morgantown, West Virginia

Milestone 4: May 15th - 20th

Second proposed travel date

Milestone 5: May 23rd

Interview editing, construction faze begins

Milestone 6: June 3rd

Pencils down

Timeline

Collaborators & Advisors

Joshua Loans, Erica Stratton, & Carolina Rascon

Appalachian Food Justice Lab at West Virginia University

Amro Arida

NuVu Art Director, Photographer, Documentarian

Chris Perry

NuVu Coach, Fabrication Skills

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