FoFF Democracy School 

The Oregon Voter Registration Deadline is October 13th! Make sure to register to vote, or update your existing voter registration, so you can cast your vote on November 3rd. Voting is important, not only in federal elections but in state and local elections as well. For more information about voter registration in Oregon and some helpful resources to help you research a candidate's positions/actions on the issues you care about, check out our blog post.

In case you missed the first email in our Democracy School series which is a FoFF-style civics lesson on how our legislative process works, you can read it here.

Attend the DEQ Town Halls  

In March 2020, Governor Brown signed Executive Order 20-04, the Oregon Climate Action Plan (OCAP), to address the climate emergency. EO 20-04 makes general directives to several state agencies and commissions to help facilitate greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals, as well as to consider and integrate climate change impacts into their planning, budgets, investments, and policy making decisions. 

This month, DEQ is hosting the last of the Town Hall public meetings via webinar to share policy design input received during the technical workshops, explain what to expect during the rule-making phase, and to receive input and comments on program design and priorities. 

The remaining Town Halls are TONIGHT Thursday October 8 from 5pm to 8pm and Wednesday October 14 from 1pm to 4pm. Get a link to the meeting and more info here.

OPN Pasture Class with Dr. Woody Lane

The Oregon Pasture Network, a program of Friends of Family Farmers, is excited to announce that our annual pasture classes have moved online! Dr. Woody Lane, renowned livestock nutritionist and pasture management expert will be teaching Grazing, Soils, & Pastures: An Intensive 3-night Online Workshop on October 26-28 from 6:00pm to 8:30pm each evening. You'll learn how to set up a grazing system, how forages grow, what makes a good pasture, when to open the gate to move animals, and how to test, fertilize, and lime your pastures. Dr. Lane will also touch on recovering from wildfire.

Discounted registration is available for BIPOC farmers and OPN members, and a scholarship fund generously provided by our friends at the Oregon Climate and Agriculture Network. For more information and to apply for a scholarship, visit the OPN website.

InFARMation: Racial and Food Justice  

FoFF and Small Farm School are collaborating to present a virtual Racial and Food Justice series. This portion of Small Farm School is free and open to the public. 

October 22nd - Equitable Food Access: How to Contribute to Oregon’s Food Sovereignty Network - RSVP here 

November 5th - White Farmers and Food System Members Forming an Anti-Racist Affinity Group: Experiences from a Portland Farmer Development Group - RSVP here

November 17th - Gather, a Documentary Film Watch Party and Discussion - more details to come 

Monthly Farmer Chats

Join us Monday, October 19th at 7pm for a continuation of the conversations we've been having at our virtual Farmer Chats: Food and Racial Justice. We will explore some of the emergent themes from previous talks including land access, equitable treatment in government programs and services to help farmers, building your local community, and the possibility of a statewide farmer-ally directory. This is also a space for the agricultural  community to discuss current events as they relate to this topic, and how folks can get involved. We welcome farmers, farm workers and agricultural producers of all kinds to this conversation. 

Action Alert: Phase Out Chlorpyrifos

FoFF has supported the efforts led by PCUN and Beyond Toxics for the full phase-out of the neurotoxic pesticide Chlorpyrifos in Oregon. 

Chlorpyrifos is a dangerous insecticide, widely used on a variety of crops, including strawberries, apples, wheat, and Christmas trees. Chlorpyrifos can damage the brains and nervous systems of those who are exposed. Farmworkers, rural communities, children, pregnant mothers and endangered wildlife are especially at risk. The Oregon Department of Agriculture(ODA) has proposed new rules to strengthen protections for Oregonians from pesticides containing chlorpyrifos. 

You can still submit comments on the chlorpyrifos rule-making, as the deadline has been extended until October 22, 2020 at 5PM! Please help our farmworkers and agricultural lands phase out this toxic pesticide.

How To Submit Comments: Email your comments (in any language) during the open comment period to: chlorpyrifos-comments@oda.state.or.us.  

Visit Beyond Toxics for templates and talking points in English to craft written and oral testimony. 

You can also share your story with PCUN in English or Spanish HERE. 

Thank you for your advocacy on this important topic. If you have any questions or need assistance, please contact our Policy Director, Amy Wong or call 503-581-7124.

Direct Relief for Small Farms Affected by the Wildfires

Many of Oregon's small farms are facing devastating losses due to wildfire and windstorms.  Rapid evacuations forced farmers to leave livestock behind, crops and infrastructure were decimated, and power outages and roadblocks  prevented crop delivery.  

Please join PACSAC (Portland Area CSA Coalition) and FoFF in helping these farmers rebuild their infrastructure, as they helped us rebuild our food supply earlier this year. Your donations will go directly to farmers who have suffered fire and wind-based losses.

If you are interested in serving on the committee to help distribute the funds, contact Shari.

Fill Your Pantry Events

Due to COVID-19 we had to re-imagine this years' PDX Fill Your Pantry. In our pivot, we are collaborating with Slow Food Portland and several Portland-area Farmers Markets to put on a PDX Fill Your Pantry Week! We are behind the scenes making sure our Portland community has ample opportunity to purchase large quantities of staple and storage crops directly from local farms. This is a valuable opportunity for customers to stock up and a great way to support your farmers as they head into winter. We will have dates, participating markets, and more details very soon.

For those outside the Portland area, be sure to participate in other Fill Your Pantries through out the state. Click on the links to find information, dates and locations.

Central Oregon FYP  /  Eugene FYP  /  Hood River FYP  /  Corvallis FYP 

Legislative Days Recap

FoFF visited Salem virtually during the September Legislative Days. In the lead up to Legislative Days, a dire $4 billion budget shortfall was anticipated. The big surprise was that Oregon revenue is up significantly, but still lower than pre-COVID-19 forecasts. Get an update on revenue forecasts and what they mean from our Policy Director here.