ENHANCING FOOD SECURITY BY CULTIVATING RESILIENT FOOD SYSTEMS AND COMMUNITIES: PLACE-BASED FOODSHED ANALYSIS RESEARCH TO COMMUNITY PRACTICE

• Sponsoring Institution: National Institute of Food and Agriculture
• Project Status: TERMINATED
• Funding Source: AFRI COMPETITIVE GRANT
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 0224382
• Grant No.: 2011-68004-30079
• Project No.: VAR-2010-03934
• Proposal No.: 2015-02269
• Program Code: A5141
• Project Start Date: Mar 1, 2011
• Project End Date: Feb 28, 2017
• Grant Year: 2015

Project Director
Clark, S. F.

Recipient Organization
VIRGINIA POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE
(N/A)
BLACKSBURG,VA 24061

Performing Department
Human Nutrition, Foods and Exercise

Non Technical Summary
Emerging trends in the market suggest we are ready to entertain more local-regional food systems from nutritional, public health, community-food, and sustainable agricultural perspectives, yet significant food access issues remain that impact the reach and success of local food systems. The popularity of local food systems and sustainable farming is on the rise among Americans, and in particular, among Virginians, North Carolinians, and West Virginians. A thriving local food system can improve children's health, reconnect us to the land, allow farmers to prosper, and attract new farmers to agriculture. While the word local implies geographic proximity, there is little consensus on its meaning. Local can refer to an area within a radius of 50 or 100 miles from the place where food is consumed, or it can be defined using a foodshed framework which describes the flow of food from areas where it is grown to where it is consumed. This framework allows us to better identify and map value chain relationships based on place-based indicators, measures, and networks; thus, it opens new possibilities for strengthening the local food system. Yet the current food system still presents barriers to those with limited financial resources regarding access to sufficient food, much less high quality locally grown food. We need to connect impoverished communities to healthier, locally grown food. Insights learned from both farmers' and consumers' needs have raised awareness of ways to get locally produced, healthy food into everyone's household. The South Atlantic Appalachian Region (SAAR) has historically struggled with high levels of food insecurity and economic instability. A network of university and non-governmental organizations are addressing these issues in several disadvantaged communities across the region through local food system research, education, and extension programs. Drawing upon a holistic "foodshed" framework, the goal of this project is to strengthen, sustain, and expand the SAAR foodshed of Virginia, West Virginia and North Carolina with the aim of improving food security and local-regional food economies. The project objectives center on developing, implementing, and evaluating a "Foodshed Security" strategy to enhance the resiliency of the regional foodshed, with special focus on local food access and affordability using place-based measures and community-based practices. This innovative capacity-building strategy specifically comprises a participatory system dynamics framework for regional foodshed modeling; a community-based participatory research process for food system situational analysis and evaluation; and collaborative program design and implementation framework for proposed foodshed security intervention programs and transdisciplinary graduate curriculum with university, extension, non-governmental, and community stakeholders at the local-regional level. Project activities and outcomes will improve food security and food economies within the target region, and advance knowledge of the vulnerabilities, barriers, and opportunities related to food system research, education, and extension-based best practices.

Animal Health Component

(N/A)

Research Effort Categories

Basic

10%

Applied

45%

Developmental

45%

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
704	5010	2060	10%
704	5010	3020	10%
704	5010	3080	15%
704	6050	2060	10%
704	6050	3020	10%
704	6050	3080	15%
704	6099	2060	10%
704	6099	3020	10%
704	6099	3080	10%

Knowledge Area
704 - Nutrition and Hunger in the Population;

Subject Of Investigation
6050 - Communities, areas, and regions; 6099 - People and communities, general/other; 5010 - Food;

Field Of Science
2060 - Geography; 3020 - Education; 3080 - Sociology;

Keywords

south atlantic appalachian region

foodshed

food security

economic viability

disadvantaged communities

land grant university

cbp research

systems thinking

place based

farm to table

capacity building

community food systems

extension

graduate education

food system modeling

community organizations

transdisciplinary knowledge

Goals / Objectives
The long-term goal of the grant project is to strengthen, sustain, and expand the South-Atlantic Appalachian Region foodshed of Virginia (VA), West Virginia (WV), and North Carolina (NC) with the dual aim of increasing food security and economic viability within historically disadvantaged communities of cultural Appalachia. Our multi-state and multi-institutional project team will achieve this by developing, implementing, and evaluating a "Foodshed Security" strategy that will build the resiliency of the regional foodshed with special attention to local food access and affordability using place-based measures and community-based practices. This innovative and capacity-building strategy uniquely comprises a regional foodshed modeling approach, a Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR) process, and collaborative programming and curricular activity at the local and regional level. To reach our long-term goal, this Standard Integrated project will address all three functions of the agricultural knowledge system (i.e. research, extension, and education). Because food security assessments are measures of vulnerability in the current system, the research function of the project will focus on systems thinking and food system modeling to identify current drivers, processes, linkages, and constraints within the regional foodshed. The extension function will employ collaboration among extension agents, university faculty, non-governmental organizations, and community stakeholders to identify, assess, and expand local food system infrastructure and related food security activity by connecting stakeholders with capacity building processes and outcomes. The education function will focus on the development of a graduate curriculum that produces well-trained individuals who can transfer transdisciplinary knowledge about local and regional food systems (e.g., foodsheds) into professional and academic practice. These integrated functions are further exemplified by our objectives: Research (1) Create a place-based foodshed model for direct application within the target region to enhance knowledge of barriers and opportunities for improving food security and economic viability with special emphasis on food accessibility and affordability in disadvantaged communities; Extension and Research (2) Design and implement a participatory-based, regional foodshed situational analysis using the USDA Community Food Security Assessment Toolkit as a foundational model; Extension and Education (3) Develop, implement, and expand food system/ food security programs and curriculum using participatory approaches and place-based indicators with extension, university, non-governmental, and community stakeholders; and Extension and Education (4) Implement a comprehensive, community-based evaluation of Foodshed Security whereby results will be disseminated and applied within the target region for transferability to other locales. It is our intent that project activities and outcomes not only improve food security and food economies, but further our understanding of the constraints, barriers, and opportunities related to food system research and best practices.

Project Methods
Research (Overall budget estimate 42 percent): Formalize a transdisciplinary and community-based coalition; analyze foodshed models to establish a place-based model; conduct a region-wide community food security assessment targeting limited resource and low income stakeholders; examine farm crop diversification (e.g., aquaculture); identify conceptual and physical indicators that define a resilient foodshed; inventory the region's food system to identify gaps in the infrastructure and possible solutions; and develop ecological systems monitoring via spatial analysis and mapping. Specific research methods include: Integrated assessment, Participatory modeling, Meta-analysis of functions, processes, flows from literature, Systems Dynamic software, Search Conference, and Adaptive management. Extension (Overall budget estimate 30 percent: Formalize a transdisciplinary and community-based coalition; Conduct foodshed focus groups with extension participants; implement new Foodshed Security Enhancement Projects; increase program and training opportunities for extension faculty and community-partners using experiential learning and web-based curriculum through eXtension CoP; establish a network of resources for nutrition and resource management education programs targeting low-income and underserved populations. Specific scenarios include: Conducing CFSA using focus group sessions, mixed method survey instrument, and semi-structured interviews with direct involvement of extension and community-based program educators and recipients to determine: a) what programs currently exist that connect household food security to community food security or the food system; b) capacity of these programs and resources areas; c) capacity of educators in these programming and target regions to address food accessibility from producer and consumer perspectives. Follow up interviews with existing curricula/program stakeholders to determine changes to effectively address food insecurity while building on programming. For example, FCS can help foster partnerships with school divisions, departments of health, restaurants, and other businesses and agencies to increase access to local foods. 4-H can reach children and families through current programs such as cooking and shopping for local foods on a budget. Education (Overall budget estimate 28 percent): Development of new transdisciplinary graduate curriculum in Sustainable Community Food Systems that specifically aims to address the National Academies of Science's request for educational transformation in agriculture. The curriculum will be developed and implemented by a diverse, cross-disciplinary team of VT's CALS and constituents from the project's institutions (NC State University, WV University). Following a similar process to create the undergraduate minor in Civic Agriculture and Food Systems at VT, a values-based participatory approach will be utilized that includes the tenets of building human capacity and a curriculum that produces graduates who are knowledgeable and competent in systems thinking and community action leadership related to community food security, specifically through CBPR.

Progress 03/01/11 to 02/28/17

Outputs
Target Audience:AFP activities targeted low income and vulnerable communities in western North Carolina, southwest Virginia, and West Virginia, including WIC/SNAP-Ed recipients and children in the region. Our efforts include engaging service providers, NGO's and state agencies who work with these populations in dialogue and action to create systems level change. The project is also developing a curriculum that targets graduate students at the three land grant institutions. AFP continues to develop its CoP through eXtension, but has shifted efforts to collaborate with Community, Local, and Regional Food Systems CoP, which is targeting a national audience of academics, professionals, and community practitioners. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Each year the AFP provided various opportunities for either training or professional development focused on that expanded our understanding of community-based participatory research methodologies to project team members, community stakeholders and students associated with the project. Events such as the Capacity Building Forum (2011) that brought together over 45 nutritionists, producers, academics, extension agents, community organizers, activists, and emergency food providers from across the central Appalachian region to learn from one another through structured dialogue, share stories of their successes and opportunities that shaped AFP work. Later, the Search Conference (2012) built on those relationships and that dialogue to identify specific action in each of the three states and across the region. We used Whole Measures for Community Food Systems framework for understanding community food security as a means of explore what and who should be included in work moving forward. A loose network began to form across the three state region, though it became clear that each state had its own momentum, based on their own assets and the degree to which statewide or local networks were already in place. With a grant from the Virginia Cooperative Extension Community Viability endowment fund, the AFP hosted a Community Food Security Assessment Workshop in 2013 to frame the each state's assessment process. Also that year the AFP management team (five project directors, deputy director, graduate students, and two community representatives from each state) were trained in collaborative decision-making, which is a consent-based governance system. This new structure was a pivotal turning point in the AFP. Circle Forward enabled the project to be more transparent and fulfill its commitment to participatory processes. Student Training: 9 graduate (5 MS; 4 PhD) students were trained in community participatory research, community organizing and collaborative decision-making methodologies, food system modeling, and diverse data collection practices for the community profiles (3 undergraduates), CFSA, and practitioner profiles. Student theses and dissertations were all intertwined to project work (listed in publications section) and served to deepened their knowledge and understanding of the complexities inherent within community food security. These project-based experiential graduate opportunities provided them with concrete skills, knowledge, and ways of engaging community and left them with marketable skills for the ever-growing emergent job opportunities within the public and private sector related to food security. Several students in tandem with project team members shared the learning at numerous professional meetings (local, state & national). John Beck, North Carolina State University, Crop Science. Curriculum scan of sustainable community-based food systems courses. Phil D'Adamo-Damery, Virginia Tech, Agricultural Leadership and Community Education. Helped develop the new Community, Local, and Regional Food Systems eXtension Community of Practice; supported efforts to develop food council in southwest Virginia, contributed to CFSA methodology and analysis. Successfully defended dissertation in December 2014, and continued to work with the project as a research associate. Rebecca Landis, Virginia Tech, Agricultural Leadership and Community Education. Collected the stories of practitioners in our region included in thesis work. Garland Mason, Virginia Tech, Agricultural Leadership and Community Education. Joined as a Graduate Research Assistant; worked on the VA CFSA, graduate curriculum, and with communication and outreach. Margaret Smith, Virginia Tech, Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences. Research on the system dynamics foodshed model; worked to develop the Community Food Security Assessments in Virginia, and connected the assessments to the model for her thesis. Margaret successfully completed her Masters of Science in September 2014. Jessica Crum, West Virginia University, Agricultural & Resource Economics. Jessica is supporting the work with West Virginia stakeholders and the CFSA. Amanda McWhirt, North Carolina State University, Crop Science. Amanda has been working on the AFP graduate curriculum development. Angel Cruz, North Carolina State University, Crop Science. Coordinated coalition efforts communicate with stakeholders from North Carolina; contributed to the regional assessment conversation. Elizabeth Dodson, VA Tech, Horticulture. Worked with the VA community enhancement project, Food for All. Successfully defend her Masters of Science. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Project results have been disseminated through the Appalachian Foodshed Project (AFP) listserv and on the project website (www.appalachianfoodshedproject.org). The results have also been shared at state project meetings, through project handouts, and an ongoing webinar series (now available on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCubYM7psXidwrgo-AHdH5iw). The project has a weekly blog, a Facebook page, and a LocalWiki page for disseminating information and emergent results. The AFP also hosted the Appalachian Foodshed Partnership convening (Dublin, VA, June 2016) where the project was able to share results with stakeholders and practitioners in the region. Drawing upon the AFP's shared inquiry, analysis, and relationship-building, colleagues in the Appalachian Foodshed Project are carrying the work forward through a re-envisioned Appalachian Foodshed Partnership. The AFP also convened the Appalachian Foodshed Partnership (June 2016) to share results with stakeholders and practitioners across the broader Central Appalachian region. New community stakeholders interested in food systems change work were linked to this emergent Appalachian Foodshed Partnership. This "network of networks" is a social networking online platform designed to enhance the communications and relationships of those working in community food security. We are connecting in new ways through this "network of networks" by developing a social networking platform that will enhance communications and relationships: peer-to-peer, in-person andonline communication portals, so we know what others are doing. This continues to build trust and nurturecollaborative relationships, and advance diversity and equity through ongoing power analyses and practices of inclusion and community leadership; and accelerate learning about the substantive issues and strategies that affect community food systems, and about network governance. The eXtension community of practice, Community, Local and Regional Food Systems continues to disseminate the collective food systems work across the nation. A few other manuscripts are anticipated related to the AFP. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? GOAL 1: The system dynamic model shifted to a concept map based on stakeholder input related to limited technology. The 'concept map' was more 'user-friendly', & revealed barriers to improving community food security (CFS): low incomes, unemployment, & poor public transportation to access grocery stores with locally sourced foods.The map helped AFP partners better understand the complex interconnections around CFS, & created new collaborations. GOAL 2: Western North Carolina's (WNC) CFSA: Need backbone organization focused on CFS to align partners for collaboration, communication, & collective impact. Food insecurity rates are higher than national average & food assistance demand grows. Poverty challenges justice & fairness in the food system. Affordability, cultural barriers, race/class, higher prices of healthy food & transportation limitations to food outlets are barriers to healthy food access. Demand for healthy food by food insecure was high. Questioned if the local food system meet the demand by the emergency food system. Practitioners wanted education about healthy food; food insecure wanted hormones, antibiotics, synthetic-free food, & valued spending money locally. Recommend:Strengthen relationships with local government on transportation; connect more folks to healthy food venues; create dialogue to overcome race & class barriers at food venues; prioritize food-based education; expand healthy food assistance programs; increase EBT machines at food venues; & expand promotional programs in food insecure communities.Southwest Virginia (SWVA-CFSA): Synergy A: Financial Capital-Value of Vibrant Farms & Thriving Local Economies. Agriculture as economic development was the dominant synergy. Many organizations/individuals wanted better ways to connect or access financial capital with the agricultural supply chain. Partners involved in the CFSA were successful in securing funds to support vibrant farms & local economies.Synergy B: Vibrant Farms-Social Capital. Abundant social capital connects to the value of vibrant farms. Many individuals/organizations are directly connected to building vibrancy of local farms & social capital; a need exists to redirect existing social capital around farming towards justice & fairness, healthy people, & strong communities. Synergy C: Cultural Capital-Justice & Fairness & Strong Communities plays a critical role holding together community food work in SW VA, & impacts the way regional practitioners imagine a desirable food system. Cultural capital can connect other non-food/agriculture partners who hold similar values (affordable housing, drinking water quality, mountaintop removal, livable wages, & equitable access to education). Synergy D: Human Capital across the Whole Measures. Vast wealth of human capital related to food systems & WM exists though disconnected & underutilized; effective collaboration needs facilitation & strategy, & financial & human resources. Recommend: 1) Strengthen Existing Synergies-Connecting Regional Human Capital. Create opportunities to connect human capital; fund opportunities for regional convening's for learning & relation building; & support open-access platforms for information sharing & transparency; 2) Develop & Strengthen Relationships with Organizations that Share Similar Cultural Commitments to Strong Communities, Justice & Fairness. Develop "unlikely" partnerships (housing; antiracism; fair wage; safe drinking water) to systemically address food insecurity; 3) Monitor & Evaluate Recommendations Synergies. West Virginia's (WV) CFSA: Analyzed community strategies to improve food access for low-income communities. Market Access: Low-income WV residents face barriers to healthy food access; 42% have access to grocery stores. Communities with few food choices created alternatives (farmers markets, mobile markets, CSAs & food cooperatives). Food costs at these outlets are higher than traditional outlets. Farmers markets are just starting to accept SNAP & WIC, & only 1% of WV's population shopped at farmers market. State Interventions: $26 million SNAP were redeemed; $87 mill subsidized school meals for 60% of eligible students; & $1.5 mill were allocated to emergency food assistance programs. Analysis of such programs relationships to food markets, household & community based food-provisioning strategies found rules & regulations for food assistance programs limit access to nutritional assistance, particularly those with flexible income & criminal records. Emergency Food Networks (EFN):650 agencies distribute free food. Monetary & food donations are in constant flux & conditions to access services vary. Food charities supplement food for 300,000 West Virginians/month & raised $9 mill to run programs, pay staff, & purchase food to supplement food drives & federal or food bank donations. Food banks cost share with food pantries to distribute food; & volunteers contribute 1000+ hours/yearly to keep EFN operating. Alternative Food Networks:Many work with volunteers subsidized by foundations, public grants, & private donors. Some rely more heavily on market logics, others by charitable impulse. Some are broadening stakeholder's base, linking local agricultural production w/new markets to improve food access via a 'hybrid food economy'; lobbing for more novel forms of public assistance; & mobilizing volunteer base EFN & local food advocacy groups. Recommend: Funders of alternative food movements reimagine the role of EFN; encourage large food consortiums to take a larger role to mitigate food waste & donate excess food without fees. GOAL 3: Graduate Curriculum & Practitioner Narratives: Food Security & Resilient Communities: Food Systems Theory & Praxis was developed & concurrently taught at VA Tech & NC State University; 33 students have taken it. It critically explores food security via discussion, narrative research & storytelling, & engagement with food-farming-community practitioners. Students & AFP partners co-created stories giving their work voice. VA Tech colleagues in Theater & Appalachian Studies have plans for community readings & a book is slated for publication. The course prepared them for careers in community food systems. County Profiles: County level CFS data organized by WM in a searchable portal requested by stakeholders. Community Enhancement Projects: 19 mini-projects were awards totaling $238,602 to enhance CFS across the tri-state region; some later leveraged the pilots for more funds, human resources, or launched new partnerships/projects. eXtension "Community, Local, Regional Food Systems" continues to flourish with content, resources & webinars. GOAL 4: Regional Appalachian Report on Community Food Security (WV-Appalachian NC-VA) is a summary of project activities, CFSA methodologies, outcomes, learnings, & implications for future work. Learnings: In food security work, complexity is certain, food systems changes are multidirectional, not linear, & we must create conditions & spaces for emergent transformations; distinct networks emerged. CFSA processes reflected different methodologies & created new directions that include the Appalachian Virginia Food Systems Network, WNC Food Security Advisory Council, Nourishing Networks of WV, & the Appalachian Foodshed "Partnership". CFSA reports: shaping AVFSN's & VA Governor's, Narrowing the Nutritional Divide Committee agendas; WNC Vitality Index includes "food security" as indicator; & the WV FoodLink.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2016 Citation: Clark, S. F. The Appalachian Foodshed Project Engages Community to Enhance Community Food Security in Appalachia West Virginia, Virginia and North Carolina. (2016) Extreme Appalachian! Appalachian Studies Association 40th Annual Conference Proceedings; Blacksburg, VA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2016 Citation: D'Adamo-Damery, N. & D'Adamo-Damery, P. Propositions for Organizing with Complexity: Learnings from the Appalachian Foodshed Project (2016) Extreme Appalachian! Appalachian Studies Association 40th Annual Conference Proceedings; Blacksburg, VA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2016 Citation: Niewolny, K. L. (2016). Opening Spaces through Stories of Community Food Work in Central Appalachia; Extreme Appalachian! Appalachian Studies Association 40th Annual Conference Proceedings; Blacksburg, VA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2016 Citation: Bass, R. T. (2016). Justice Narratives: The Appalachian Foodshed Project and Co-Creating Stories of Community Food Work. Extreme Appalachian! Appalachian Studies Association 40th Annual Conference Proceedings; Blacksburg, VA.
• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Dobson, E. R., Clark, S., ORourke, M. & Puckett, A. (2016). Case Study on a Container Gardening Program: Can Home Food Production Impact Community Food Security in Rural Appalachia?
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2016 Citation: Dobson, E. R., Clark, S. Home Gardening as Part of the Food Security Safety Net in Rural Appalachia. Extreme Appalachian! Appalachian Studies Association 40th Annual Conference Proceedings; Blacksburg, VA.
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Niewolny, K. (2016). Stories of community food work in Appalachia: Opening space for storytelling and learning. Blacksburg, VA: Virginia Tech. Retrieved at: http://blogs.lt.vt.edu/niewolny/.
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Niewolny, K. & D'Adamo-Damery, P. (2016). Learning through story as political praxis: The role of narratives in community food work. In Sumner, J. (Ed.), Learning, food, and sustainability: Sites for resistance and change. Palgrave/Macmillan: New York.
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Submitted Year Published: 2017 Citation: Niewolny, K., Schroeder-Moreno, M. S., Mason, G., McWhirt, A. & Clark, S. (2017). Participatory praxis for community food security education. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems and Community Development, (submitted).
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Wilson, B., Lohnes, J., Brown, C., Crum, J., and Gross, T. (2016). Nourishing Networks:West Virginia Community Food Security Assessment. http://www.appalachianfoodshedproject.org/documents/NOURISHING_NETWORKS_REPORT_FINAL_2016.pdf
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: D'Adamo-Damery, P. Appalachian Virginia Community Food Security Assessment, Final Report (2016). http://www.appalachianfoodshedproject.org/documents/VACFSAReportprint3-21-16.pdf
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Eshleman, J.,Schroeder-Moreno, M., Cruz, A. The Western North Carolina Appalachian Foodshed Project: Community Food Security Assessment, Final Report (2016).
• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: McWhirt, A. The Use of Sustainable Soil Management Practices in Fumigated and Non-fumigated Plasticulture Strawberry Production in the Southeastern United States
• Type: Journal Articles Status: Submitted Year Published: 2017 Citation: Eshleman, J., Schroeder-Moreno, M., and Cruz, A. Lessons learned from a researcher-initiated community-based participatory research project on food security. Progress in Community Health Partnerships (PCHP) Journal

Progress 03/01/15 to 02/29/16

Outputs
Target Audience:AFP activities targeted low income and vulnerable communities in western North Carolina, southwest Virginia, and West Virginia, including WIC/SNAP-Ed recipients and children in the region. Our efforts include engaging service providers, NGO's and state agencies who work with these populations in dialogue and action to create systems level change. The project is also developing a curriculum that targets graduate students at the three land grant institutions. AFP continues to develop its CoP through eXtension, but has shifted efforts to collaborate with Community, Local, and Regional Food Systems CoP, which is targeting a national audience of academics, professionals, and community practitioners. Changes/Problems:While the larger scope of the project did not change, the iterative nature of the participatory process did result in some changes to the timeline of the work. We are now moving into our 6th year of the project, in order to wrap up and analyze this complex project. CFSA and coalition-building: As stated in previous reports, the initial grant proposal did not account for the emergent need for coalition building in the region--especially in western North Carolina and southwest Virginia. We have shifted resources and energy to support these efforts, pushing back the timeline for the actualization of the community food security assessments in favor of supporting the coalition process. Utilizing adaptive management, we have allowed these processes to drive our assessment efforts. As a result, we continue to support a new backbone organization in western North Carolina (the WNC Food Security Advisory Committee) and the development of a new food policy network in southwest Virginia (the Appalachian Virginia Food Systems Network). The assessment process is currently complete in each state, and being prepared for local dissemination. Regional analysis is ongoing. State and Regional CFSA: Though the AFP is working to support a regional food system, the project has seen different needs emerge in each state. Our community partners have a strong desire to network across state lines and learn from one another, however, the CFSA has developed differently in each state, based on the input, assets, and needs of community stakeholders. The project team has identified synergies across the three state region, and are in the process of analyzing for regional learning and future research. Practitioner Profiles: The project was able to leverage resources to provide an additional graduate student researcher. This student was able to focus on a narrative project, collecting stories from practitioners across the region. These interviews have been used to create several media outputs that will roll out in Y6. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The project has worked to build capacity with its community partners and project collaborators by sponsoring participation in conferences and workshops. In addtion, the AFP has trained 10 graduate students: Sarah Misyak, Virginia Tech, (PhD 2014) Human Nutritution Foods and Exercise. Sarah worked to support the Virginia coalition and CFSA efforts, and is now working as an research scientist with Virginia Cooperative Extension on their Virginia Food Security Project. Mary Oldham, West Virginia University, (MS 2014) Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics. Mary supported the work of the WV CFSA and coalition, and now works with the Value Chain Cluster Inititative in West Virginia. She also runs a CSA with her husband and partner. Phil D'Adamo-Damery, Virginia Tech, (PhD 2014) Agricultural Leadership and Community Education. Phil has been working to develop the new Community, Local, and Regional Food Systems eXtension Community of Practice with Kim Niewolny and a team of academics and practitioners from across the project's region. He has also worked to support the developing food network in southwest Virginia. Since graduating, he had continued to work with the project as a post-doc research associate. Rebecca Landis, Virginia Tech, (MS 2015) Agricultural Leadership and Community Education. Rebecca worked to collect the stories of practitioners in our region. Garland Mason, Virginia Tech, (MS 2016) Agricultural Leadership and Community Education. She has been working on the VA CFSA, the graduate curriculum, and also with communication and outreach. Margaret Smith, Virginia Tech (MS 2014), Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences. Her research was on the system dynamics foodshed model. She has also worked to develop the Community Food Security Assessments in Virginia, and connect the assessments to the model. Jessica Crum, West Virginia University, (MS 2015) Agricultural & Resource Economics. Jessica supported the work with West Virginia stakeholders and the CFSA. Amanda McWhirt, North Carolina State University, (current PhD) Crop Science. Amanda has been working on the AFP graduate curriculum development. Angel Cruz, North Carolina State University, (MS 2014 and current PhD) Crop Science. Angel has been working to coordinate coalition efforts and communicate with stakeholders from North Carolina. She contributes to the regional assessment conversation. John Eshleman, Pennsylvania State University, (PhD 2016) Sociology. John was hired as a research associate to lead the WNC CFSA analysis in June 2015. The AFP also created and piloted a graduate course at Virginia Tech (ALCE 5984 Food Security and Resilient Communities: Food Systems Theory and Praxis), which was taught in Spring 2013 (n=7) and 2015 (n=12). The course has been requested by other graduate students, and will be taught again in Spring 2017. It is going through the process of university approval for permanent offering. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Project results have been disseminated through the AFP listserv and on the project website (www.appalachianfoodshedproject.org). The results have also been shared at state project meetings and through project handouts. The project has a weekly blog, a Facebook page, and a LocalWiki page for disseminating information and emergent results. Project management also made presentations at the 2015 Agriculture, Food, and Human Values Conference (Pittsburgh, PA, June 2015) and the West Virginia Small Farm Conference (Charleston, WV, February 2015), The AFP also hosted the Central Appalachian Foodshed Conference (Marion, VA, September 2015) and the Western North Carolina Foodshed Summit (Asheville, NC, January 2016), where the project was able to share results with stakeholders, practitioners, funders, and policy makers in the region. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?As the AFP approaches the close of USDA funding, community partners and stakeholders have asked for next steps and methods for continuing the work and the relationships that the AFP has facilitated. The AFP plans to use the results of state-based Community Food Security Assessments, Community Enhancement Grants, Practitioner Profiles, system dynamics foodshed model, and regional network development to serve as the seed for future work through the collaborative development of a regional food systems roadmap. The proposed roadmap will expand on the work of the AFP, and build capacity for next steps by building the network of organizations working to increase community viability and resilience through food systems work. The process of developing the roadmap will also develop capacity for collective impact and effective partnerships with schools, industry and communities by identifying leverage points for interventions. This builds on the idea that networks are a leverage point for creating food systems change, and food systems are a major access point for increasing community viability. Partnering with new and existing regional (Central Appalachian Network, Appalachia Funders Network) and national networks (North America Food Systems Network), will connect our region to both national and regional efforts on food systems and food security. The project will also continue to develop a regional information sharing platform (using LocalWiki) and will work to dessiminate the results of the state CFSA's, model, and regional roadmap. Several academic, Cooperative Extension, and non-academic publications are also slated for development over the next few months.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The Appalachian Foodshed Project (AFP) continues to work to enhance community partner relationships, better understand the regional food system, and find ways to address the root causes of food insecurity for vulnerable populations in West Virginia, southwest Virginia, and western North Carolina. To do this, our main efforts have been to support network-building in each state and across the three-state region for the purpose of aligning ongoing efforts towards collective impact. The AFP is using a participatory approach to develop community food security assessments (CFSA) in each state, in response to local needs and assets. The AFP's efforts to connect people and organizations working on issues of community food security in the region has created pockets of opportunity for collaborative projects at the local, state, and regional levels. We have seen new gardening opportunities for people in low-income communities, new collaborations around food aggregation and distribution, and new, creative programs that connect farmers and low-income consumers in mutually beneficial ways. Through AFP meetings, trainings, and communications, our community partners are connecting to new ideas, new ways of thinking, and ultimately, new solutions that will help address the root causes of food security in Appalachia, leading to greater health, social, and economic benefits for communities in the region. Facilitated change in the way that stakeholders address community food security. By creating and facilitating a culture of regional collaboration, the AFP has connected stakeholders and broadened the scope of work in the region. Shifted the dialogue to embrace the concept of community food security, a more systems approach that goes beyond the traditional concepts of "household food security" and "local food economy." Highlighted examples of projects and organizations that are creatively addressing the needs of our most vulnerable populations, while also creating opportunities for sustainable economic development. Built a foundation for collective impact by connecting actors across sectors and geography, bringing policy makers, academics, planners, non-profits, service providers, producers, and entrepreneurs into dialogue and relationship. This has resulted in new, creative partnerships and innovative projects in our region. Facilitated the development of regional and state networks and coalitions focused on community food security. These networks have become effective leverage points for engaging local communities, creating opportunities for action, and enhancing community viability in the Appalachian region. Connected our partners to national networks (North America Food Systems Network, eXtension Community, Local, and Regional Food Systems CoP), increasing their access to resources and expanding the range of options for addressing food security and economic development in our region. Prepared a new generation of students trained to engage communities and create change in the food system, through the development and implementation of a graduate course that is grounded in local examples. Leveraged findings from state and regional assessments to support future work and secure additional resources for partner organizations and networks to support food security action and efforts. Awarded $184,602 to innovative projects in southwest VA, western NC and WV. These mini-grants were used to leverage additional funding ($264,500) and human resources, and launched effective new partnerships and initiatives across the region. Facilitated the development of a regional information sharing platform, using LocalWiki, to help build local and regional food systems knowledge. Goal 1: The food systems model showed that access points to food, the % population relying on local foods, diet, and the ability to store or process local foods, are the key interacting factors in developing more robust community and regionalized food systems. A foodshed analysis based on a complete diet approach revealed the total amount of land required to produce the annual diet increased from 0.16 (vegan) to 0.73 hectare/person as the proportion of animal products and fat increased, and that the foodshed could support 60% of the current population if diets consumed were rich in animal products. The absence of food storage and processing will reduce the proportion of local foods in the annual diet (plus health and economic impacts), while land demands decrease slightly. Goal 2: Each state completed its own community food security assessment (CFSA) based on local needs: North Carolina's CFSA addressed the emerging need to form a backbone organization focused on community food security to strategically align community partners for future collaboration, communication, and achievement of collective impact. Community food security assessments have been completed in two rural counties and one urban county. This consisted of indepth interviews with practitioners in each county, as well as 5 focus groups with individuals who experience food insecurity. NC has also partnering with the National Environmental Modeling and Analysis Center to add metrics to their database that will contribute to the understanding of food security in the region.The report document was launched on January 29th at a conference hosted by the AFP and Community Food Strategies. Virginia's assessment work is focused on how southwest VA can collaborate regionally to enhance access and availability of locally produced and distributed foods. The VA coalition has initiated the formation of a regional food systems network, and the assessment process supports the development of the food systems newtork agenda. CFSA Phase 1 updated the list of organizations or agencies working on issues of food security in our region (n=139). During CFSA Phase 2, 26 key informant interviews were conducted to better understand how organizations in our region are addressing community food security. CFSA Phase 3 included 3 regional community work sessions to better understand the opportunities of food systems work in southwest VA, and shape the type of network structure that would best serve local needs while building on the synergy of food systems work across the region. West Virginia's (WV) CFSA identifies the various community strategies to improve food access for low-income communities in West Virginia. Over the course of the project we interviewed more than two hundred key informants and surveyed thousands of commercial food retailers, public food assistance programs, anti-hunger charities and emergent alternative food networks. Our objective is to use social science research to foster a more expansive discussion of the opportunities for enhancing community food security, to communicate various forms of knowledge about disparities in the food system, and to create user friendly tools like interactive maps and county-level profiles to consolidate different data and analysis about barriers to food access and strategies to improve access in West Virginia. The analysis explores market access, state interventions, the emergency food network, and the alternative food network. Results from the CFSA also supported the development of the WVFoodlink: http://mapwv.gov/frank/foodlink/index.html. Goal 3: Content from the pilot graduate course at VA Tech and student focus groups were used to develop a graduate-level course ALCE 5984 Food Security and Resilient Communities: Food Systems Theory and Praxis with both universities. 19 students participated in the course, and the course has been requested for spring 2017. Goal 4: In summer 2015, the management team (n=18), including community representatives, met to review results from the CFSA's, model, enhancement grants, and practitioner profiles to consider implications for the region. The AFP is using those results to create a document summarizing our learning from across the three-state region (spring 2016).

Publications

• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Eshleman, J., Schroeder-Moreno, M., and Cruz, A. (2016). The Western North Carolina Appalachian Foodshed Project Community Food Security Assessment. http://www.appalachianfoodshedproject.org/documents/AFP_WNC%20CFSA_Final.pdf
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Stories of Community Food Work in Appalachia: Opening Space for Storytelling and Learning. (February 2016). http://blogs.lt.vt.edu/niewolny
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Clark. S., Mason, G., Niewolny, K, DAdamo-Damery, P., Scott, K., Gabbard, G., Moles, J., Kunkler, T. (2015). Southwest Virginias Community Food Security Assessment: A Collaborative Effort with Community Stakeholders to Develop a Regional Food System Roadmap. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract), Agriculture, Food and Human Values Society, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. June 2015.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Crum, J. and Brown, C. (2015). How Your Farmers Market can Help Reduce Hunger in Your Community. West Virginia Small Farm Conference (presentation), Charleston, West Virginia, February 2015.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: DAdamo-Damery, N., DAdamo-Damery, P., Ziegler, P., Kunkler, T. (2015). Re-imagining the Commons: Creating the conditions for regional network. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract), Agriculture, Food and Human Values Society, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. June 2015.
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2016 Citation: Niewolny,K. and DAdamo-Damery, P. (In Press). Learning through story as political praxis: The role of narratives in community food work. In Sumner, J. (Ed.), Learning, Food, and Sustainability: Sites for Resistance and Change. New York: Palgrave/Macmillan.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Niewolny, N., DAdamo-Damery, N., DAdamo-Damery, P., Landis, R. (2015). Narratives of community food work in Central Appalachia: A generative process of networking and storytelling. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract), Agriculture, Food and Human Values Society, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. June 2015.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Rodriguez, A., Eddins, D. (2015). A participatory evaluation of community food security in Western North Carolina. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract), Agriculture, Food and Human Values Society, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. June 2015.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Wilson, B., Brown, C. Lohnes, J., Crum, J. (2015). Co-producing community food security: Rethinking alternative and emergency food networks in West Virginia. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract), Agriculture, Food and Human Values Society, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. June 2015.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: DAdamo-Damery, N., Crosson, A., Kunkler, T. (2015). Executive Summary, Findings, and Next Steps from the Central Appalachian Foodshed Conference. Summary of conference process and findings. http://www.appalachianfoodshedproject.org/documents/CentralAppalachianFoodshedConferenceexecutivesummary.pdf
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: DAdamo-Damery, P., Niewolny, K., Scott, K., and Moles, J. (2015). Southwest Virginia Community Food Security Assessment Executive SummaryDecember 2015 version. https://localwiki.org/bburg/Community_Food_Security_Assessment_-_Executive_Summary%2C_Southwest_Virginia?&redirected_from=southwest%20virginia%20-%20community%20food%20security%20assessment

Progress 03/01/14 to 02/28/15

Outputs
Target Audience: AFP activities targeted low income and vulnerable communities in western North Carolina, southwest Virginia, and West Virginia, including WIC/SNAP-Ed recipients and children in the region. Our efforts include engaging service providers, NGO's and state agencies who work with these populations in dialogue and action to create systems level change. Working with these partners, we have collaboratively begun to identify a common agenda around community food security. The project is also developing a curriculum that targets graduate students at the three land grant institutions. AFP continues to develop its CoP through eXtension, but has shifted efforts to collaborate with Community, Local, and Regional Food Systems CoP, which is targeting a national audience of academics, professionals, and community practitioners. Changes/Problems: CFSA and coalition-building: As stated in previous reports, the initial grant proposal did not account for the emergent need for coalition building in the region--especially in western North Carolina and southwest Virginia. We have shifted resources and energy to support these efforts, pushing back the timeline for the actualization of the community food security assessments in favor of supporting the coalition process. Utilizing adaptive management, we have allowed these processes to drive our assessment efforts. As a result, we are supporting a new backbone organization in western North Carolina (the WNC Food Security Advisory Committee) and the development of a new food policy council in southwest Virginia (the Appalachian Virginia Food Systems Council). The assessments began in Y4 and will conclude in early spring 2015. State and Regional CFSA: Though the AFP is working to support a regional food system, the project has seen different needs emerge in each state. Our community partners have a strong desire to network across state lines and learn from one another, however, the CFSA is developing differently in each state, based on the input and needs of community stakeholders. There is still a desire to identify common areas for regional learning, and the project is looking for ways to utilize the Food Systems Model as a means of accessing appropriate regional indicators. Regional Roadmap: The project received a small grant ($22K) to facilitate the development of a regional roadmap, bringing together key stakeholders from across the region to network and develop a plan for addressing community food security in the Foodshed. This grant will allow the AFP to expand the scope of our regional assessment, and will build on the learning from state assessments, community enhancement projects, and the system dynamics model. Practitioner Profiles: The project was able to leverage resources to provide an additional graduate student researcher. This student has been able to focus on a narrative project, collecting stories from practitioners across the region. These interviews will be used to create multiple media outputs in Y5. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? The project has worked to build capacity with its community partners and project collaborators by sponsoring participation in conferences and workshops. The AFP sent 1 project director, 2 graduate students, and 2 community partners to the eXtension Community, Local, Regional Food Systems "Food Security" Conference (Sept-Oct. 2014). In Year 4, 7 graduate students worked on the project, two of whom graduated: Phil D'Adamo-Damery, Virginia Tech, Agricultural Leadership and Community Education. Phil has been working to develop the new Community, Local, and Regional Food Systems eXtension Community of Practice with Kim Niewolny and a team of academics and practitioners from across the project's region. He has also worked to support the developing food council in southwest Virginia and continues to contribute to methodology for the CFSA. He successfully defended his dissertation in December 2014, and will continue to work with the project as a research associate. Rebecca Landis, Virginia Tech, Agricultural Leadership and Community Education. Rebecca is working to collect the stories of practitioners in our region. She began her work with the project in July 2014. Garland Mason, Virginia Tech, Agricultural Leadership and Community Education. Garland joined the project in January 2014. She has been working on the VA CFSA with Susan Clark, the graduate curriculum, and also with communication and outreach with Nikki D'Adamo-Damery. Margaret Smith, Virginia Tech, Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences. Her research was on the system dynamics foodshed model. She has also worked to develop the Community Food Security Assessments in Virginia, and connect the assessments to the model. Margaret successfully completed her Masters of Science in September 2014. Jessica Crum, West Virginia University, Agricultural & Resource Economics. Jessica is supporting the work with West Virginia stakeholders and the CFSA. Amanda McWhirt, North Carolina State University, Crop Science. Amanda has been working on the AFP graduate curriculum development. Angel Cruz, North Carolina State University, Crop Science. Angel has been working to coordinate coalition efforts and communicate with stakeholders from North Carolina. She contributes to the regional assessment conversation. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Project results have been disseminated through the AFP listserv and on the project website. The results have also been shared at state project meetings and through project handouts. The project has a weekly blog and a Facebook page for disseminating information and emergent results. Project management also made presentations at the 2014 Agriculture, Food, and Human Values Conference (Burlington, Vermont, June 2014), the Agronomy Society of America (Long Beach, California, November 2014), and the Sustainable Agriculture Education Association conference (Raleigh, North Carolina, August, 2014). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? In Year 5, the AFP will build upon work begun in Years 1, 2, 3, and 4, continuing to strengthen the regional knowledge base and disseminating information regarding best practices to stakeholders and professionals. To this end, the project will focus on continuing to develop content for the eXtension Community of Practice (CoP), the AFP website, webinar series, Facebook page, and blog. The project will complete the Community Food Security Assessments (CFSA). This includes supporting the development of coalitions and connecting regional work to the larger state and tri-state work. The AFP will utilize emergent CFSA results to further refine foodshed model dynamics and monitor performance indicators. As part of an ongoing adaptive management approach, the foodshed model will continue to be improved in scope and quality, based on reflection, stakeholder input, and CFSA findings. The AFP will modify the CFSA instruments based on field experience and stakeholder input. The project will disseminate results from the CFSA to stakeholders and use these results to create a regional roadmap with key stakeholders and partners in the region. The project will also begin to develop and compile "Foodshed Security" best practice training resources and outreach materials for community partners and Extension staff. The AFP will also facilitate a graduate course at Virginia Tech. The project will then develop inter-institutional graduate course materials and implement some form of distance education course with an experiential learning format. Utilizing criteria developed collaboratively with project partners, the AFP will implement a second round of Community Foodshed Security Enhancement Projects (CFSEP), and evaluate the impact of the first round of Community Enhancement grants.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The Appalachian Foodshed Project (AFP) continues to work to enhance community partner relationships, better understand the regional food system, and find ways to address the root causes of food insecurity for vulnerable populations in West Virginia, southwest Virginia, and western North Carolina. To do this, our main efforts have been to support network-building in each state and across the three-state region for the purpose of aligning ongoing efforts towards collective impact. We are working to address the specific, place-based needs of each state, while connecting the larger, three-state region for shared learning and long-term, systems-level impact. The AFP is using a participatory approach to developing community food assessments in each state, in response to local needs and assets. Goal 1: An annualized exploratory model showed that access points to food, the % population relying on local foods, diet, and the ability to store or process local foods are the key interacting factors in developing more robust community and regionalized food systems. A foodshed analysis based on a complete diet approach revealed the total amount of land required to produce the annual diet increased from 0.16 (vegan) to 0.73 hectare/person as the proportion of animal products& fat increased, and that the foodshed could support 60% of the current population if diets consumed were rich in animal products. Runs at a weekly time scale indicate that the absence of food storage and processing will reduce the proportion of local foods in the annual diet (plus health and economic impacts), while land demands decrease slightly. Goal 2: Each state is launching its own community food security assessment (CFSA) process based on local needs. West Virginia's assessment is focused on the emergency food system, and where it intersects with the local food system. Virginia's assessment process has emerged to support the development of a regional food council in SW VA, and is focused on developing the conditions necessary for a healthy network. In western NC, the coalition is working to identify gaps in current assessments around food security. North Carolina is also partnering with the National Environmental Modeling and Analysis Center to add metrics to their database that will contribute to the understanding of food security in the region. These initial assessments will conclude in spring 2015; some additional phases may continue until the project's end (2/ 2016). Goal 3: After a pilot graduate course at VA Tech (spring 2013), student focus groups (FG) (spring 2014) were conducted at NC State and VA Tech. The FG results will be used to develop the course content, and then teach it at both universities (spring 2015). Students wanted course content that provided diverse perspectives on the food system through various integrated learning experiences (e.g., Food security definitions and frameworks, case studies of practice, interdisciplinary perspectives and applications at a different scales; other topics: human rights, power and control of food system, national and international perspectives; and food policy). Specific integrated learning examples: creating a literature library, research interview methodology with community members; databases application; political advocacy; grant writing experience; guest speakers (anthropologists, economists, farmers/producers/people in the industry, politicians). In addition, each state launched and implemented the first round of Community Enhancement Grants, funding 9 community food security projects across the region. Goal 4: In Summer 2015, the management team (including community partners) will come together to review results from the CFSA's, model, enhancement grants, and practitioner profiles and consider implications for the region. The AFP will workshop the results and create a roadmap document for the region. Goal 5: State coalitions and networks have formed in response to local needs. At the regional level, the project has been responsive to community partners and their desire to connect in such a way that allows them to learn from one another. As a result, the AFP has been hosting webinars and highlighting best practices in the region. The project has also taken on a narrative project, collecting stories of practitioners in the region. To date, 48 interviews have been completed and transcribed. Plans are underway to use multiple mediums to share these stories and engage other community partners. The AFP continues to use dynamic governance as a means of bringing community partners into the decision making process, and as a mechanism for linking to other networks and coalitions in the region. Through the AFP work and ongoing efforts to connect people and organizations working on issues of community food security in the region, it has created pockets of opportunity for collaborative projects at the local, state, and regional levels. We've seen new gardening opportunities for people in low-income communities, new collaborations around food aggregation and distribution, and new, creative programs that connect farmers and low-income consumers in mutually beneficial ways. Through AFP meetings, trainings, and communications, our community partners are connecting to new ideas, new ways of thinking, and, ultimately, new solutions that will help address the root causes of food security in Appalachia, leading to greater health, social, and economic benefits for communities in the region.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Cruz, A., Schroeder-Moreno, M., DAdamo-Damery, N., Clark, S., Niewolny, K.L. (2014). A Participatory Evaluation of Community Food Security in Western North Carolina. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract and poster), Agronomy Society of America, Long Beach, CA (Nov 2014).
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Raison, B., Lezberg, S., Niewolny, K., Wright, K., Feenstra, G., Pirog, R., Hoy, C., Clark, J., Edgar, C., & Anderson, M. (2014). Conference committee and facilitation for the Community, Local, and Regional Food Systems eXtension Community of Practices Food Security Conference, Sept 28-Octover. The Ohio State University: Cleveland, Ohio.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Anderson, M., & Niewolny (2014). Fostering understanding of the connections between local and regional food systems and community food security. Presentation at the Community, Local, and Regional Food Systems eXtension Community of Practices Food Security Conference, Sept 28-Octover. The Ohio State University: Cleveland, Ohio.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Clark, S., Niewolny, K.L., McWhirt, A., Schroeder-Moreno, M. (2014). Developing a Graduate-Level Community Food Systems Course from the Bottom up: A Focus Group Study of Two Universities. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract/presentation), Sustainable Agriculture Education Association (SAEA), Raleigh, NC, August, 2014.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Scott, K., Ziegler, P., Clark, S. et al. (2014). The Evolution of a Regional Food System Council: Success and challenges with the development of a food system council. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract/presentation), SAEA, Raleigh, NC, August, 2014.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Niewolny, K.L, Bendfeldt, E., DAdamo-Damery, N., DAdamo-Damery P. (2014). Negotiating for a more equitable food system from Foodshed to Watershed: Collective Processes and Action in Appalachia Virginia, Shenandoah Valley, and the Chesapeake Bay. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract and presentation), Agriculture, Food and Human Values Society, Burlington, Vermont. June, 2014.
• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2014 Citation: Sarah Misyak, Farmers Market Access by Snap-eligible Mothers of Young Children: Barriers and Impact on Nutrition Education Programming for Cooperative Extension; Department of Human Nutrition, Foods and Exercise, VA Tech; May 2014
• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Phil DAdamo-Damery, Possibilities for Transformations: Rhizomatic Explorations of Community Food Practice in Central Appalachia; Department of Agriculture Leadership and Community Education; VA Tech, December 2014
• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Margaret Smith, Regional food security in south-central Appalachia: Connecting diet, land requirement, and agricultural carrying capacity; Department of Crops Soils and Environmental Science; VA Tech, December 2014.

Progress 02/28/13 to 02/27/14

Outputs
Target Audience: AFP activities targeted low income and vulnerable communities in western North Carolina, southwest Virginia, and West Virginia, including WIC/SNAP-Ed recipients and children in the region. Our efforts include engaging service providers, NGO's and state agencies who work with these populations in dialogue and action to create systems level change. Working with these partners, we have collaboratively begun to identify a common agenda around community food security. The project is also developing a curriculum that targets graduate students at the three land grant institutions. AFP continues to develop its CoP through eXtension, but has shifted efforts to collaborate with Community, Local, and Regional Food Systems CoP, which is targeting a national audience of academics, professionals, and community practitioners. Changes/Problems: While the larger scope of the project did not change, the iterative nature of the participatory process did result in some changes to the timeline of the work. 1) eXtension Community of Practice (CoP): The project initially began with its own “Foodshed” CoP. However, the opportunity arose to combine our project efforts with those of the other AFRI-funded projects to support the development of the Community, Local, and Regional Food Systems CoP. The result has been a more robust iteration that has facilitated learning across the country and enhanced the internal capacity of our project. 2) CFSA and coalition-building: As stated in previous reports, the initial grant proposal did not account for the emergent need for coalition building in the region—especially in western North Carolina and southwest Virginia. We have shifted resources and energy to support these efforts, pushing back the timeline for the actualization of the community food security assessments in favor of supporting the coalition process. Utilizing adaptive management, we have allowed these processes to drive our assessment efforts. As a result, we are supporting a new backbone organization in western North Carolina (the WNC Food Security Advisory Committee) and the development of a new food policy council in southwest Virginia (the Appalachian Virginia Food Systems Council). The assessments are now scheduled for phase one of implementation in spring 2014. 3) State and Regional CFSA: Though the AFP is working to support a regional food system, the project has seen different needs emerge in each state. Our community partners have a strong desire to network across state lines and learn from one another, however, the CFSA is developing differently in each state, based on the input and needs of community stakeholders. There is still a desire to identify common areas for regional learning, and the project is looking for ways to utilize the Food Systems Model as a means of accessing appropriate regional indicators. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? The project has worked to build capacity with its community partners and project collaborators by sponsoring participation in conferences and workshops. One graduate student participated in a Whole Measures fo Community Food Systems: Intensive Training (August 2013). The AFP also sent 7 key stakeholders and two project management team members to participate in a Dynamic Self-Governance training (March 2013 and October 2013), as a means of building capacity in the region, and working toward collective action. In addition, two project management team members (the Project Deputy-Director and a graduate student research assistant) were trained in advanced facilitation skills to increase the project team's ability to utilize Dynamic Governance and manage team interactions. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Project results have been disseminated through the AFP listserv and on the project website. The results have also been shared at state project meetings (April/May 2013, North Carolina and Virginia in Fall 2013) and through project handouts (CFSA Workshop Summary and previous briefs). The project also has a monthly email newsletter, a weekly blog, and a Facebook page for dissemintating information and emergent results. Project management also made presentations at the 2013 Agriculture, Food, and Human Values Conference (Lansing, Michigan, June 2013) and the 2013 National Association Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture Conference (Blacksburg, Virginia, June 2013). Project Directors also gave an overview of the project in an eXtension Community of Practice webinar presentation (March 2013) and to other NIFA grantees in a National Institute of Food and Agriculture meeting (Washington, D.C., March 2013). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? In Year 4, the AFP will build upon work begun in Years 1, 2, and 3, continuing to strengthen the regional knowledge base and disseminating information regarding best practices to stakeholders and professionals. To this end, the project will focus on continuing to develop content for the eXtension Community of Practice (CoP), the AFP website, webinar series, Facebook page, and blog. The project will also continue to implement the Community Food Security Assessments (CFSA), based on emergent stakeholder needs. This includes supporting the development of coalitions and connecting regional work to the larger state and tri-state work. The AFP will utilize emergent CFSA results to further refine foodshed model dynamics and monitor performance indicators. As part of an ongoing adaptive management approach, the foodshed model will continue to be improved in scope and quality, based on reflection, stakeholder input, and CFSA findings. The project will disseminate results from the CFSA to stakeholders and, based on findings will develop a summative foodshed evaluation mechanism with community stakeholders in each state that emphasizes capacity building. The AFP will modify the CFSA instruments based on field experience and stakeholder input. The project will also begin to develop and compile “Foodshed Security” best practice training resources and outreach materials for community partners and Extension staff. Based on results from student focus groups and a review of community food system curriculums, the AFP will formalize collaborative graduate course pedagogy, goals and outcomes through shared institutional courses. The project will then develop inter-institutional graduate course materials and implement some form of distance education course with an experiential learning format. Utilizing criteria developed collaboratively with project partners, the AFP will implement Community Foodshed Security Enhancement Projects (CFSEP) and select CFSEP from across the tri-state region. Together with project leadership and community participants, the AFP will launch and facilitate the CFSEP.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? The Appalachian Foodshed Project (AFP) continues to work with community partners to better understand the regional food system, and find ways to address the root causes of food insecurity for vulnerable populations in West Virginia, southwest Virginia, and western North Carolina. To do this, our main efforts have been to support coalition-building in each state and across the three-state region for the purpose of aligning ongoing efforts and achieving collective impact. We are working to address the specific, place-based needs of each state, while connecting the larger, three-state region for shared learning and long-term, systems-level impact. The AFP is using a participatory approach to developing community food assessments in each state, in response to local needs and assets. In North Carolina, the emerging need is the formation of a backbone organization focused on community food security to strategically align community partners for future collaboration, communication, and achievement of collective impact. The North Carolina assessment will focus on how to develop the backbone organization for the region. Key leaders have already come together to form the WNC Food Security Advisory Committee and have created a proposal for a common agenda to “Cut number of food insecure people in WNC in half by increasing availability and accessibility of safe, local, nutritious, and culturally appropriate foods for people in WNC.” The Virginia work is focused on how southwest Virginia can collaborate regionally to enhance access and availability of locally produced and distributed foods. To this end, the Virginia coalition initiated the formation of a regional food systems council, and is designing the assessment to support the development of the food systems council agenda. The West Virginia assessment will undertake community food security sssessments in Barbour, Randolph, Upshur and Kanawha counties, targeting low-income consumers and seniors. Their focus will be on barriers to transportation for people who experience food insecurity, especially seniors and other vulnerable populations. In conjunction with coalition building and the emerging community food security assessments, the AFP also continues to develop a system-dynamics model of the food system, based on the Whole Measures for Community Food Systems. This model, fed by data from the assessments, will help identify key leverage points for enhancing the regional food system. The project is also piloting a graduate course, designed to engage students in the real-world considerations necessary to work effectively with communities around food systems issues. In partnership with other AFRI projects and practicioners, the AFP is providing leadership for the Community, Local, and Regional Food Systmes eXtension Community of Practice. Finally, in 2014, the AFP will initiate enhancement grants across the three-state region. These small grants will provide opportunities for community organizations to build capacity for food systems work through collaboration and projects specific to regional needs. Goal 1: The AFP continues to develop the system dynamics model of the food system, based on the Whole Measures for Community Food Security. A preliminary model has been shared with key stakeholders, and the modeling group continues to refine the model based on participant feedback. The model will continue to evolve with the implementation of community food security assessments, so that it will more accurately reflect key leverage points for impacting food systems change, especially for targeted, vulnerable populations in the region. Goal 2, 3: The project continues to engage stakeholders in dialogue around community food security. In Year 3 of the project, building on the Capacity Building Forum (Y1) and the Search Conference (Y2), the AFP brought key stakeholders and university partners (n=30) for a 2-day workshop to develop the community food security assessments. Nutritionists, producers, academics, extension agents, community organizers, and emergency food analyzed the scope of assessments already taking place in the 3 state region. More than just an assessment tool, the CFSA continues to a means of generating transformative dialogue within the region.experiences. West Virginia, Virginia and North Carolina each came up with their own purpose for the assessments, which, in turn, determined the scale and scope of the CFSA’s proposed for the region. North Carolina: The emerging need for western NC is the formation of a backbone organization focused on community food security to strategically align community partners for future collaboration, communication, and achievement of collective impact. The North Carolina assessment will focus on how to develop the backbone organization for the region. Key leaders have already come together to form the WNC Food Security Advisory Committee and have created a proposal for a common agenda to “Cut number of food insecure people in WNC in half by increasing availability and accessibility of safe, local, nutritious, and culturally appropriate foods for people in WNC.” Virginia: The CFSA will focus on how southwest Virginia can collaborate regionally to enhance access and availability of locally produced and distributed foods. The Virginia group formed a taskforce that initiated the formation of a regional food systems council. The assessment is being designed to support the development of the food systems council agenda. West Virginia: The West Virginia contingent plans to initially undertake Community Food Security Assessments in Barbour, Randolph, Upshur and Kanawha counties, targeting low- income consumers and seniors. They will work with local partners such as Manna Meal in Charleston, Heart and Hand in Philippi, Elkins Farmers Market and WVU Families and Health Extension agents. Their focus will be on barriers to transportation for people who experience food insecurity, especially seniors and other vulnerable populations. Goal 3: Virginia Tech successfully piloted an "Advanced Community Food Systems" course (spring 2013) for graduate students (n=7). The course will serve as the basis for developing a course across the three partner institutions. Students were able to directly engage with community partners through the creation of practicioner profiles, which served to shape their understanding of work happening on the ground, and increased capacity for university-community partnerships. The AFP is also taking leadership in developing the new Community, Local, and Regional Food Systems eXtension CoP. This will provide a national platform for sharing best practices in food systems work, and enhancing knowledge about how to effect food systems change.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: DAdamo-Damery, P., Niewolny, K.L., DAdamo-Damery, N., Ziegler, P. (2013) Negotiating Complexity and Community Food Security in Central Appalachia. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract and presentation), Agriculture, Food and Human Values Society, Lansing, Michigan. June, 2013.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: DAdamo-Damery, N. (2013) Appalachian Foodshed Project Community Food Security Assessment Workshop. Summary of workshop proceedings and findings, Claytor Lake, Virginia. May 20-21, 2013.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: DAdamo-Damery, N., Gugercin S. (2013) Appalachian Foodshed Project; Cultivation Community Food Security. Project brochure.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Kennedy, R., Niewolny, K., Ciamillo, S., DAdamo-Damery, P., Jonson, S., MacAuley, L., Savran Al-Haik, H., Trutko, A. Co-learning in a Graduate-Level Food Systems Course: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Course-Based Action Research (abstract), National Association Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture Conference, VA Tech, Blacksburg, VA. June 25-29, 2013.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Misyak, S., Oldham, M., Cruz, A., Dobson, B. (2013) Foodscape Directory. Online directory of participating organizations. April 2013.
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Niewolny, K. L., DAdamo-Damery, N. (2013) Cultivating Appalachian Community Food Security through Participatory Action Research. Online webinar presentation, Community,Local, and Regional Food Systems eXtension Community of Practice. March 20, 2013.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2014 Citation: Niewolny, K.L., DAdamo-Damery, P. (2013) Learning from Practice stories & Reflective Practice: A Narrative Analysis of Community-based Activism by Community Food System Practitioners. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract), 55th Annual Adult Education Research Conference (AERC), Penn State University-Harrisonburg, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. June 5-7, 2014.

Progress 02/29/12 to 02/27/13

Outputs
Target Audience: Appalachian Foodshed Project (AFP) activities targeted low income and vulnerable communities in western North Carolina, southwest Virginia, and West Virginia, including WIC/SNAP-Ed recipients and children in the region. Our efforts include engaging service providers, NGO's and state agencies who work with these populations in dialogue and action to create systems level change. Working with these partners, we have collaboratively begun to identify a common agenda around community food security. The project is also developing a curriculum that targets graduate students at the three land grant institutions. AFP continues to develop its CoP through eXtension, but has shifted efforts to collaborate with Community, Local, and Regional Food Systems CoP, which is targeting a national audience of academics, professionals, and community practitioners. Changes/Problems: While the original grant narrative cited coalition-building as both a means and an end, no formal process was established for developing a coalition. After much discussion, and in an attempt to align the work across three states, the project implemented Dynamic Self-Governance as a means of bringing stakeholders into the decision-making process. The Appalachian Foodshed Project (AFP) has also established a coalition-building working group, comprised of project faculty, staff, and students, as well as community partners. The project is working to establish a steering committee to help guide the work moving forward. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? The project has worked to build capacity with its community partners and project collaborators by sponsoring participation in conferences and workshops. The Project Coordinator participated in a Whole Measures fo Community Food Systems: Intensive Training (April 2012). The Appalachian Foodshed Project (AFP) also sent 5 key stakeholders and two project management team members to participate in a Dynamic Self-Governance training (Aug. 2012), as a means of building capacity in the region, and working toward collective action. As a result, two participants have mobilized community coalitions around preventing childhood obesity, and a new food-systems coalition is forming in western North Carolina. In addition, four project partners were awarded scholarships to attend Growing Power's conference in September, 2012. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Project results have been disseminated through the AFP listserv and on the project website. The results have also been shared at state project meetings (North Carolina in May 2012 and November 2012, Virginia in January 2013) and through project handouts (CFSA brief and Search Conference Summaries). The project also began a semi-monthly e-newsletter (Febraury 2013) to share project updates. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? The next phase of the project is to implement Community Food Security Assessments in the three state region. A two day workshop is scheduled for May of 2013, during which university and community partners will develop goals for the assessment and identify the scope and scale of the assessments. The Appalachian Foodshed Project is also working to develop a steering committee of committed stakeholders to guide AFP efforts and enhance coalition building in each state and across the region. The place-based model will continue to be developed, and is currently awaiting data and feedback from the CFSA process. The project also plans to develop and utilize a communications plan to enhance learning in the region and facilitate dissemination of project results.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Goal 1, 2, 3: The project has made progress engaging stakeholders in dialogue around community food security. In Year 2 of the project, the Appalachian Foodshed Project (AFP) brought 47 key stakeholders together for a search conference (March 2012). Nutritionists, producers, academics, extension agents, community organizers, and emergency food providers dialogued about the importance of their work, and the idea of “community food security” in our regional context. Building on the Capacity Building Forum (Year 1), participants used the values-based Whole Measures for Community Food Systems as a basis for establishing shared values, vision, and understanding around community food security. According to participants, community food security involves: Ensuring that healthy food is accessible and available to all community members, Empowering local communities to determine where and how to focus work for food system change, Cultivating ecologically and financially sustainable agriculture, Balancing food security and farm security, Engaging youth and young people, Fostering a healthier community, and Working for justice and equity. This dialogue created the foundation for the main work of the conference: identifying assets and actions to address food security in the region. Working in state teams, participants revisited the provocative propositions from the Capacity Building Forum, and developed action groups for moving the work forward. The action groups have continued to meet in each state, working towards goals that will enhance the region’s food system. Goal 2: Based on the results from the two conferences, the AFP management team has begun to develop a framework for community food security assessments (CFSA). The process will continue to involve stakeholders in the development of the tool, through state meetings and an upcoming research forum. More than just an assessment tool, the CFSA will also be a means of generating transformative dialogue within pilot communities. The methodology is intended to be transferrable to other Appalachian communities in the region. Goal 3: Virginia Tech piloted an ‘Advanced Community Food Systems’ course (spring 2013) for graduate students that will inform how the AFP transfers the course across our academic institutions. This course is a comprehensive and interdisciplinary examination of current issues related to the emerging study and development of community food systems. Topics include, but are not limited to: local and regional food system development agendas, discourses, and policy; conceptual and programmatic approaches to addressing community food security, and the role of agricultural and community development practitioners/scholars as agents of social change in the food system. The AFP provided course participants with a theoretical and practical backdrop through class discussion and coursework, including site visits to the community partners in region. To this end, community-based participatory research and educational strategies are relevant course themes. Current enrollment = 7 graduate students. In addition, three project directors and one graduate student traveled to Honduras to explore potential international opportunities for the shared curriculum course slated for Year 5 of the project. The trip laid the groundwork for the course by identifying and developing community contacts, community partners, lodging and meal arrangements.

Publications

• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2012 Citation: D'Adamo-Damery, N. (2012) Cultivating Appalachian Food Security. Summary of Search Conference process and findings.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2013 Citation: D'Adamo-Damery, P., Niewolny, K. L., D'Adamo-Damery, N., Ziegler, P.(2013) Negotiating Complexity and Community Food Security in Central Appalachia. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract), Agriculture, Food and Human Values Society, Lansing, Michigan. June, 2013
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2013 Citation: D'Adamo-Damery, P., Niewolny, K. L., D'Adamo-Damery, N.(2013) Enhancing Community Food Security in Rural Appalachia: From the Bottom up. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract), Southern Rural Sociology Association Conference, Orlando, Florida. February, 2013
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2012 Citation: Schroeder-Moreno, M., Cruz, A., Clark, S., and Beck, J. (2012)Preliminary Analyses of Food System Courses Nationwide. Electronic conference proceedings (poster), Sustainable Agriculture Education Association, Corvallis, Oregon. September, 2012
• Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Appalachian Foodshed Project (2013) Community Food Security Assessment Brief. http://www.appalachianfoodshedproject.org/documents/CFSA%20Brief_March%202013.pdf

Progress 03/01/11 to 02/28/12

Outputs
OUTPUTS: A project coordinator was hired in June, and 5 graduate students joined the project in August. Together with the 5 co-PD's, the graduate students and project coordinator formed the project management team. In August, the project management team had one on-site meeting and began semi-monthly project phone conferences. In order to better coordinate work across sites, the project began a Basecamp subscription to facilitate project management. The Capacity Building Forum was set for October, and the project coalition team began planning and identifying stakeholder participants. In NC, VA, and WV, graduate research assistants began researching their respective "foodscape"--identifying the scope of community-based organizations or non-profits dealing with food security in the Appalachian Region. The project also initiated the development of the Foodshed Community of Practice (CoP) with eXtension. A formative part of the project coalition team's work was to formalize the name Appalachian Foodshed Project (AFP). The project was featured on the Virginia Tech website and in several regional newspapers, prompting the development of a series of talking points. The team also established a vision statement: A place-based food system that is resilient, accessible, affordable, and healthy for Appalachian communities. October 2011, 45 participants gathered in Blacksburg, VA to dialogue about food security in Appalachia at the Capacity Building Forum. Participants learned from one another through structured dialogue, sharing stories of their successes and opportunities for future work. Participants also explored ways to work together, and identified the keys for effective collaboration. Participants also worked together to create visual diagrams, or "maps" of the food system. The maps identified key components in the food system, and then used visual elements to show how those components linked together. The group maps were then put together into a larger map- the first draft of a "foodshed" model. Parallel to the work on developing a regional coalition and foodshed model, researchers gathered syllabuses from food systems courses, and the project coalition team began discussing ideas for creating a shared graduate course on food systems at NC State, Virginia Tech, and West Virginia universities. After the October Forum, each state hosted a meeting of coalition members, including stakeholders who had not been able to attend the Forum. These meetings were used to continue the dialogue from the Capacity Building Forum, and gather feedback from stakeholders regarding the future direction of project work. In addition to the work with stakeholders, a project website and listserv were established. A summary of the Capacity Building Forum was published on the website and distributed to stakeholders at various events. The website was also used to disseminate general information about the project, and provide a reference point for potential partners (www.appalachianfoodshedproject.org). A February meeting formalized project management team responsibilities and working groups to develop the CoP, curriculum, community food security model, and community food assessments. PARTICIPANTS: The AFP project management team consists of five project directors, the project coordinator, and five graduate research assistants. The project management team has met twice a month via phone conference, plus on-site meetings in August 2011, October 2011 (in conjunction with the Capacity Building Forum), and February 2012. Susan Clark is the Project Director (Virginia Tech), and is responsible for the project budget and finances, the Virginia state advisory group, and the development of the community food assessments. Kim Niewolny (Co-PD, Virginia Tech) is responsible for leading the Foodshed Community of Practice. Steve Hodges (Co-PD, Virginia Tech) is heading up the working group focused on the development of a foodshed model. Michelle Schroeder-Moreno (Co-PD, NC State) is responsible for the North Carolina state advisory group (including the NCSU budget and finances) and the curriculum working group. Cheryl Brown (Co-PD, West Virginia University) is responsible for the West Virginia advisory group, the WVU budget and finances, and is also a major contributor to the modeling work. Nikki D'Adamo-Damery (project coordinator, Virginia Tech) handles internal communication, outreach, general project coordination, and evaluation. Graduate research assistants Sarah Misyak (Virginia Tech), Mary Oldham (West Virginia University), and Angel Cruz (NC State) work on general projects within their respective states, and have been responsible for gathering information on the region's "foodscape". John Beck (graduate assistant, NC State) has focused on gathering information on curriculum, and Phil D'Adamo-Damery (graduate assistant, Virginia Tech) was brought on board to work with the model. Collaborators include Elena Serrano (Virginia Tech), Pete Ziegler (Virginia Tech) and Dan Taylor (Virginia Tech). Mary Emery (South Dakota State University) also worked to help plan and facilitate the Capacity Building Forum. Organizations that participants in the capacity building forum and subsequent state meetings included NGO's/CBO's, Cooperative Extension, health boards, and government agencies. NGO's/CBO's: Be Active--Appalachian Partnership, MANNA Food Bank, Virginia Food Systems Council, Grayson Landcare, SustainFloyd, PLENTY!, Appalachian Sustainable Development, Feeding America Southwest Virginia, Briarcliff Garden Club, WVFMA, Heart and Hand Ministries, WV Food and Farm Coalition, WesMonTy RC&D, Manna Meal, Center for Economic Options, Bountiful Cities, Organic Growers School, The Community Table, and the Watauga County Farmers Market. Government organizations: Virginia Cooperative Extension, Virginia Department of Health, WV Small Farm Center, Region VII Planning and Development Council in Upshur Co., WVU Extension Service, NC Cooperative Extension, NC Choices, Yancey County Health Department, North Carolina Center for Health and Wellness, and the NC Center for Environmental Farming Systems. The project also built regional capacity by sending representatives from each state to the Community Food Security Coalition conference (11/12), including the project coordinator, a graduate student from NC State, and a project partner from West Virginia. TARGET AUDIENCES: AFP activities targeted low income and vulnerable communities in western North Carolina, southwest Virginia, and West Virginia, including WIC/SNAP-Ed recipients and children in the region. Our efforts include engaging service providers, NGO's and state agencies who work with these populations in dialogue and action to create systems level change. Working with these partners, we have collaboratively begun to identify key leverage points for community food systems change, and ways to work together. The project coalition specifically looked at potential policy changes, opportunities to create and utilize shared infrastructure, and requested a directory of organizations working in the region to help facilitate future collaboration specific to community food systems. The project is also developing project materials for distribution and outreach, as well as curriculum, including experiential learning, to train graduate students in the specific context of the region's community food security or systems. To date, the curriculum working group has collected sample curriculum to help shape the course. The project has also developed a website for public engagement and outreach, and has begun development of a CoP through eXtension. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: While the larger scope of the project did not change, the iterative nature of the participatory process did result in some changes to the timeline of the work. The project had initially planned to have a post-doc position to work on developing a Foodshed Model (years 1-3). However, the project decided to turn this position into a graduate assistantship, due to a lack of eligible candidates. A PhD-level student was brought on board in August at Virginia Tech to work on the modeling aspects of the project. The project management team also changed the name of the project to the Appalachian Foodshed Project (AFP), replacing the former "South-Atlantic Appalachian Foodshed Coalition (SAAFC)." The new name was simpler, and more reflective of the region (since West Virginia did not identify with the southern region). Originally, the project had also intended to formalize an advisory council by the end of year one. However, the project management team felt that it was necessary to continue to build the coalition, and in the interest of inclusivity, felt that it was too early to formalized councils at this point. The foodshed model has also morphed, from an instrument that drives the community food assessments and other project work, to an instrument that is shaped by the ongoing work of the project. The Search Conference (originally scheduled for FY1) was postponed to March 2012, to accommodate concerns regarding winter weather and travel conditions in the region. This change effected the development of the Community Food Assessment tool, which is to be informed by the Capacity Building Forum, regional stakeholder meetings, and results from the Search Conference. Because the project is employing a community participatory methodology, the studysheds have yet to be identified. Criteria will be identified in FY2, with more information from stakeholders and based on additional regional analysis. The original timeline for curriculum development included focus groups in year 1. However, the project management team decided to identify existing curriculum before proceeding, and are currently developing focus group questions. Focus groups will be conducted in FY2.

Impacts
The work at the capacity building forum created the beginnings of a regional coalition, and brought together 45 stakeholders working to address different aspects of the food system. As a result of this gathering, one hunger organization in Virginia partnered with the regional health department and developed a WIC garden for their clients. In sharing experiences and successes, many participants took new ideas and practices back to their own communities. In a post-forum survey, 88.9% of respondents indicated that they "[could) see [themselves] developing new partnerships" and that they "learned more about organizations and/or programs that would be useful to my work" as a direct result of their participation in the Capacity Building Forum. Seventy-one percent of survey participants also indicated that they would like to be actively involved in the Appalachian Foodshed Project. The participatory process in the capacity building forum created new, shared understanding of the foodsystem, resulting in the first draft of a foodshed model, as well as long term goals for collective action. These goals were framed using an appreciative inquiry approach, and engaged participants in creating visions of what they would like for their food system to look like ("provocative propositions"). Participants in each state selected the propositions that were most relevant to them. The results were as follows: West Virginia: Policy makes actively engaged in local food policy, Every farmer makes enough for health insurance, Every farmer has access to scale appropriate processing, No one has to choose between food and other basic necessities, Increased community based ownership and entrepreneurship, and Every farmer has the tools to flourish in an unstable climate. Virginia: Schools, state institutions, hospitals purchase 20% from local sources, Every school has a garden, kitchen, infused curriculum, Every school has farm to school and summer feeding, Policy makes actively engaged in local food policy, and Community engaged in wellness dialogue/discourse. North Carolina: Policy makes actively engaged in local food policy, Schools, state institutions, hospitals purchase 20% from local sources, Every school has a garden, kitchen, infused curriculum, Appalachian food wisdom is valued nationally, and Every community provides opportunities for everyone to be involved. Participants then went to work on the proposition that resonated most with them, identifying actions that could actually bring those propositions to life. The conversation created lots of energy, and began to open up the possibilities for collaborative food systems work in Appalachia. Through the Capacity Building Forum and state meetings, the project engaged over 58 key food system stakeholders in the region, representing 32 different organizations or agencies.

Publications

• D'Adamo-Damery, N. (2011) Capacity Building Forum. Summary of Capacity Building Forum process and findings.
• D'Adamo-Damery, N. (2011) North Carolina Regional Meeting. Summary of North Carolina Regional Meeting (December 5, 2012), based on Fountainworks report.
• D'Adamo-Damery, N., Clark, S., Niewolny, K. L., Schroder-Moreno, M., Brown, C., Hodges, S., and Zeigler, P. (2012) Community food security in Appalachia: A collective impact approach to address community health and viability. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract), American Public Health Association, San Francisco, California. October, 2012 (pending)
• Misyak, S., Niewolny, K. L., D'Adamo-Damery, N., Clark, S. (2012) Cultivating Appalachian Community Food Security through Participatory Action Research. Electronic conference proceedings (abstract), Agriculture, Food and Human Values Society, New York, New York. June, 2012 (accepted)