Western Connecticut State University is hosting a farm-to-table dinner featuring locally produced foods and wines on Saturday, Sept. 13 to benefit the Permaculture Garden Project sponsored by the Jane Goodall Center for Excellence in Environmental Studies at WCSU.
The dinner will be prepared from foods harvested at local farms, complemented by a selection of vintages from local wineries. Among the local farms and businesses offering up their wares for the evening are Taylor Farm, Zelda’s Vegetables, Chamomile’s, Anderson Acre Farm, and Whole Foods.
The event kicks off at 6 pm in the garden outside the Atrium of the Science Building on the university’s Midtown campus, 181 White St. in Danbury.
Reservations are required. The cost is $100 per person. For info and to reserve your spot email: JaneGoodallCenterWCSU@wcsu.edu
This isn’t just a dinner. Proceeds from the event will go towards work, slated to begin this fall, in designing the university’s first permaculture garden behind the Science Building Atrium. WCSU students will participate from the outset in planning the garden as part of class work this Fall in a course taught by biology faculty member Dr. Andrew Oguma. This permaculture garden design will lay the groundwork for engaging many more Western students in the project next year through course work, club activities and other opportunities.
“Permaculture is based upon planting species that work well together in given environments,” explained Dr. Laurie Weinstein, professor of anthropology and chair of the Jane Goodall Center at Western. “The gardens are designed to be people-friendly places that pull folks of all ages and backgrounds together to work with each other for a common purpose.”
It’s all about connecting people to the land. “Many of our students, and indeed the rest of us as well, are so naïve about where our food comes from and how it gets to our plates. We want our students to learn about healthy and humane eating. We want to give them skills that they can take with them.” Dr. Weinstein added that, “Something magical happens when the students are in the garden: They disconnect from their electronic devices and start reconnecting with the earth and with each other.”
The Goodall Center’s Permaculture Garden Project also will be the beneficiary of ticket proceeds from the public lecture at WCSU on Tuesday, Sept. 30, by environmental attorney Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an internationally renowned advocate for conservation of clean water resources in the Hudson River watershed and worldwide. Kennedy will discuss “Our Environmental Destiny” in a talk at 7 pm in Ives Concert Hall in White Hall on the university’s Midtown campus in Danbury. Tickets may be purchased online at www.wcsu.edu/tickets or by calling (203) 837-TIXX.