Commonwealth Club Panels

San Francisco is fortunate to be home to the Commonwealth Club, one of the oldest and largest public affairs forums in the country. With members of all ages and backgrounds, the Commonwealth Club has set the stage for civic engagement across the Bay Area since 1903. Slow Food Nation was thrilled to partner with them for an outstanding series of panels and conversations that led up to the main event over Labor Day weekend.

  • Eat the Right Way

    August 6 | 5:30pm reception, 6:00pm program | Location: The Blue Room at the Commonwealth Club | 595 Market St., 2nd Floor San Francisco, CA, 94105

    Terms like “organic,” “local” and “sustainable” are pasted all over our food. As they turn into buzzwords, many of us wonder about the differences between these terms and about how our food choices affect our bodies, our families and our planet. Panelists shed light on what it means to eat the right way.

    Panelists:

    Kevin Lunny, Owner, Drakes Bay Oyster Company

    Helene York, Director, Bon Appétit Management Company Foundation

    Jessica Prentice, Author and Director of Education for Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture

  • The Centralization of Our Food System

    August 14 | 5:30pm reception, 6:00pm program | Location: The Blue Room at the Commonwealth Club, 595 Market St., 2nd Floor San Francisco, CA, 94105

    Centralization impacts every level of the American food system, from the small number of crops we grow to the smaller number of corporations that process them to the difficulties neighborhood-based groups face in trying to support healthy communities. This panel explored how centralization affects production, consumption and economic cycles in our food system.

    Panelists:

    Don Shaffer, President and CEO, Rudolph Steiner Foundation

    Paul Frankel, Managing Director, Ecosa Capital

    Michael Dimock, President, Roots of Change

  • Building a Slow Food Nation

    August 21 | 5:30pm reception, 6:00pm program | The Blue Room at the Commonwealth Club, 595 Market St., 2nd Floor San Francisco, CA, 94105

    Some of the world’s most pressing questions about health, culture, the environment, education, social justice and the global economy are all deeply connected to the food we eat and how it is produced. These panelists explored ideas and beliefs about how to build a food system that is good, clean and fair.

    Bill Fujimoto, Owner, Monterey Market

    Sam Mogannam, Managing Partner, BiRite Market

    Anya Fernald, Executive Director, Slow Food Nation

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