Leah Penniman

Leah Penniman has over 20 years of experience as a soil steward and food sovereignty activist, and with farmers internationally in Ghana, Haiti, and Mexico. Li co-founded Soul Fire Farm in 2010 with the mission to reclaim our inherent right to belong to the earth and have agency in the food system as Black and Brown people. Her areas of leadership at Soul Fire include farmer training, international solidarity, perennials, writing, speaking, “making it rain,” and anything that involves heavy lifting, sweat, and soil originally focused on a farm share for low-income people.

As Soul Fire Farm has grown, its mission is to end racism and injustice in the food system and by reclaiming the inherent right to belong to the earth and to have agency in the food system as Black and Brown people. The farm’s flagship program is the Black Latinx Farmers Immersion, a 50-hour course to train beginner farmers. By 2018, 500 individuals had taken the course.

In 2018, Penniman published Farming While Black, a book designed to create sustainable, equitable, profitable, and dignified relationships with food that historically disenfranchised communities eat, and the land it comes from.  a low cost fresh food delivery service for people living under food apartheid, training programs for Black, Latinx, and Indigenous aspiring farmer-activists, Uprooting Racism training for food justice leaders, and regional-national-international coalition building between farmers of color advocating for policy shifts and reparations.

 “Stewarding our own land, growing our own food, educating our own youth, participating in our own healthcare and justice systems,this is the source of real power and dignity.”

Organization: Soul Fire Farm

Location: Grafton, NY, USA

Book:  “Farming While Black” is a love song for the earth and her people. – Amazon

Website: 1) https://www.farmingwhileblack.org/team 2) Soul Fire Farm 3) Vogue Article

Video 1: Keynote 2020

Video 2: Food Tank Summit