Community Partnership Combines Generations, Food Sovereignty and Holistic Wellness
Austin, Texas: From February to June 2019, the Alliance for African American Health in Central Texas (AAAHCT) piloted Soul to Soul, an intergenerational gardening and financial literacy program. Naya Jones, PhD partnered with the Alliance to offer workshops on food sovereignty.
“The Soul to Soul pilot exceeded my expectations. From the beginning, increasing interactions between different generations was a major goal, but to see it in action and was very gratifying. There were reconnections to past relationships, new relationships formed, and the sharing of knowledge and experiences. I don’t think it’s an overstatement to say that some lives were transformed. “ - Marva Overton, Executive Director, AAAHCT
For Soul to Soul, youth installed gardens in seniors’ yards throughout Austin. Youth and seniors also participated in workshops. For the food sovereignty workshops, Jones built upon the work of Food for Black Thought and previous research with Black youth. [Define food sovereignty here]. She and her partner Kevin Thomas co-founded Food for Black Thought, a food justice education initiative, in 2012. As a healing arts practitioner, Jones also incorporated restorative practices like circle work and breathwork into the workshops. Community facilitators co-led the workshops. They had opportunities to share and grow their skills as facilitators.
“The idea is for AACHT and facilitators to use the food sovereignty workshops moving forward, tweaking and changing it for their needs” Jones commented. “The curriculum is like a recipe they can follow and change up.”
Adult team lead and workshop facilitator, Shemiaka Bunton, had the following to say about the program, "The Soul to Soul program has bought me growth on so many levels, including my relationship with my son, gardening knowledge, and fresh vegetables. I was able to meet many awesome people, youth, seniors, and program organizers. I also got a chance to facilitate group discussions on food sovereignty. Soul to Soul is an awesome program."
Jones added, “We grounded food sovereignty in healing arts, because food is something we experience with our whole selves, and Black food histories involve ancestors, trauma, and resilience.”
The Soul to Soul pilot was funded by [the Community Driven Initiative Division of the Department of Population Health, at the University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School.
AAAHCT and Jones look forward to partnering moving forward. Learn more about Naya’s work at www.nayajones.com. For more information about Soul to Soul, contact Robbie Ringer, Program Manager, rcringer7@gmail.com or Marva Overton, AAAHCT Executive Director, marva.overton@aaahct.org.