Carla Campanella - Slow Food
On a clear late October morning, more than 5,000 people milled about the Lingotto exhibition hall in Turin, Italy. Traditional costumes from every continent mixed to form a colorful patchwork, and the air filled with the murmur of languages from over 160 countries. The Terra Madre community had returned to Turin.
Terra Madre was created by Slow Food in 2004. After Slow Food's more than 15 years of supporting small producers and preserving sustainable food production and local traditions, the need for the organization to unite producers and decision-makers of all kinds became obvious. And so began a biannual gathering of producers, consumers, academics, chefs, and other food-involved entities. It is a unique network that allows producers to be more visible to decision-makers, and which both raises awareness about the value of their work and challenges the systems threatening local foods.
The three days of workshops, conferences, and meals revealed a mosaic of individual actions, and an endless collection of human stories. Vandana Shiva, Carlo Petrini, Serge Lattouche, and Fuschia Dunlop stood alongside lesser-known figures from all over the world. Adi Kharisma is one of those. He travels the island of Bali developing sustainable agriculture and safeguarding traditions. With his light purple Balinese hat and costume, and his round, smiling, peaceful face, he seems to be the personification of Tri Hita Karana, the Balinese philosophy of living that advocates for harmony with nature, humanity, and spirit.