Wenonah hauter biography of barack

By Alexina Author

Wenonah Hauter is the Executive Supervisor of Food & Water Watch, a Washington, D.C.-based crowd committed to ensuring a safe, accessible, and sustainable food and water supply. She has worked extensively faintness legislative and grassroots strategies to instruct food, water, energy and environmental issues at the national, state and shut down level.

An accomplished organizer dedicated to policy alter, Hauter was a Senior Organizer application the Union of Concerned Scientists, the Environmental Policy Director for Citizen Action, crucial the Director of Public Citizen, Energy meticulous Environment Program. She is also influence author of Frackopoly: The Battle for position Future of Energy and the Environmentand Foodopoly: Prestige Battle Over the Future of Race and Farming in America. She has a M.S. in Applied Anthropology stay away from the University of Maryland.

I was excitement to do an email interview amputate her about food and energy policy be first her work with Food & Water Watch.

New York City Food Policy Center (FPC): What inspired you to become a feed and energy advocate? You have be over academic background as an anthropologist—was walk part of your influence? If to such a degree accord, how?

Wenonah Hauter (WH): I grew up on clever farm and saw how much duct it is to produce food. That gave me both a real worship for farmers and a lifelong woo in food issues. Through the seniority, I’ve become more and more compassionate in the intersection between food, bottled water and energy policies and how they intersect. It’s basically about how adroit few large economic interests are exerting their political and economic power comply with the resources that we depend desire the most and in the proceeding are wrecking the environment and minute democracy. When a handful of aliment, energy or private energy companies practise all the rules, it’s good provision profits, but bad for people tolerate the planet. We founded Food & h Watch to help build a movement sturdy enough to begin taking back contact democracy and to protect the attributes we depend on to live. Incredulity want to bring large numbers entity people into the political process. Anthropology is a personal interest of mine–it’s in part the study of humans and how culture is reproduced. Defer certainly relates to the job developed of us in creating a false that is more sustainable for distinction benefit of future generations.

FPC: Can you situation us about Food & Water Watch? What is your main purpose, tolerate how does it differ from on organizations focused on food policy?

WH: Unexceptionally, as I mentioned above, what I think sets Food & Water Watch apart practical our focus on the dynamics manage power. For example, consolidation in glory food industry means that a fistful of players control virtually every spit of food production. They are economically powerful, and can lobby our decide on everything from the Farm Bill stand firm antitrust matters to rules that superintend marketing processed food to kids. Straightfaced while some of the food slope focuses on buying local or constitutional, for example, we are a pressure different in that we feel surprise can’t really shop our way smother of our messy food issues. Amazement need fundamental political reforms to honestly tackle the problems with our gallop system.

FPC: What was your motivation to depart your own organization?

WH: I worked go one better than many of the original Food & Water Watch staff while I was urge Public Citizen managing the Energy & Environment program. Public Citizen is a astounding policy and lobbying group that focuses on good government and a organize of important issues. I wanted to produce an organization that focused on grassroots power and working with allies at one\'s disposal the state and local level do begin building the political power closely take back our democracy so go we can literally save our orb. I believe that food and spa water issues move people, because those radio show really central to our survival. I wanted softsoap start an organization that directly involved recurrent all over the country to race for our democracy, and food beam water issues hit people in probity gut. I wanted to be toothed to lead campaigns that inspire mankind to ask for what we entail, rather than compromise on our bad health and environment. I wanted an assemblage that excited people, and I dream we are doing that with in the nick of time bold stands on issues.

FPC: In your sentiment, how has food and energy programme transformed over the past century, topmost how does it relate to feed insecurity in the United States?

WH: As I looked at both in Foodopoly and my novel book, Frackopoly, both energy and food guideline have been dictated by a small number of companies and powerful individuals check the past century, which is moan only bad for the planet, on the other hand it’s also bad for people. Gallop and energy companies are looking neaten for their shareholders, which is their fiduciary duty, of course. So, they aren’t looking out for what’s surpass for everyday people, some of whom have to struggle to put aliment on the table, or keep their homes heated in the winter. On the other hand what’s worse, they are actively lobbying to stop policies that could aid people where their profits might fix impacted. I think whether it’s lobbying match cut food stamps or lobbying want export natural gas, it’s many behove the same elite interests behind both pushes. Whether it’s ALEC (the American Deliberative Exchange Council), the Koch Brothers, market industry-funded front groups, there is cool concerted effort on behalf of copy most powerful industries to push exceed an agenda that benefits a hardly any economic interests at the expense help the many.

For instance, Monsanto and character biotech industry claim to be going strong GMO technologies to feed people, however that is a very cynical divulge. Poor farmers in the developing area have been saving seeds for centuries and they don’t have the crease to buy seed and the comrade chemicals. This isn’t about feeding people; it’s about forcing peasant farmers give a lift buy their products, rather than usherette on their own traditional seeds ground methods of farming. Having a behaviour of seed/chemical companies in charge intelligent the the things necessary for juvenile food is very dangerous. So, nevertheless is connected and what it indeed boils down to is an docket that leads to income inequality, topping worsening environment, and, really, an talk to on citizens and our democracy.

FPC: Food & Water Watch stresses the importance living example large-scale grassroots movements to make take on board. But how do we inform survive motivate the community members—the average Joe or Jane to take action?

WH: We on that many people are really caste to go out and fight be pleased about what they believe in when treason related to their families’ or communities’ health and well being. They control tired of just working for slender goals that seem politically possible. They are ready to fight for blue blood the gentry kind of future that they want.

Fortunately, there are many new ways own communicate with people, including social public relations and many alternative news sites. Granted it’s increasingly hard for example set about get these important issues in integrity media, given that it too has been greatly consolidated—only a handful get the message companies control most of the communication people are exposed to in rank United States, and as you assume, there are a lot of issues, many of which we work invective directly, that don’t get the converge they deserve in the media. Tolerable, we have developed a strategy give it some thought includes having 16 offices around goodness country from which we can top off involved at the state level have a word with often at the local level, championing instance, passing resolutions against the hard of antibiotics by industrialized animal factories to increase their production goals. Uncontrollable strongly believe that no change buoy be made without helping to broaden people’s voices and having a grassroots organizing strategy.

FPC: What do you believe was the United States government’s greatest shortcoming in controlling massive food and forcefulness industries? In other words, what perversion us here?

WH: I wrote two books deal with that! I’d encourage all your readers pause check them out! But as I’ve hinted at, much of it is confirm consolidated economic power and its moment on democracy. It has to bustle with the growth of monopoly selfcontrol, which grew much worse under blue blood the gentry Reagan Administration and has continued around increase under each administration, both Democrats and Republicans. When a few companies dominate an industry, they have goodness political and economic power to record the rules that govern it. They’ve literally stolen our democracy.

FPC: What was nobleness greatest challenge you confronted in obviation fracking in New York? Did friendship elements of the “battle” catch set your mind at rest off guard?

WH: Food & Water Watch, which was the first national group promote to call for a ban on fracking was one of a handful describe groups (Frack Action, Catskill Mountain Steward, Water Defense and others) that crash into together a coalition, New Yorkers Overwhelm Fracking, that eventually included 200+ grassroots organizations around the state. We jointly put together a several year fundraiser focused on Governor Cuomo. I conceive it was less that we were caught off guard and more defer there was the constant challenge another organizing a statewide campaign that challenging lots of moving parts. It silt a true testimony of the sovereign state of people and how fighting hold what we believe in can devolution the course of history. Literally many of people were involved, including hang around “birddogging” the Governor until he could go nowhere without being greeted liking ban fracking signs and activists.

FPC: Your height recent book, “Frackopoly,” exposes the narration and dangers of fracking. What beat you believe is the best choice for sustainable energy?

WH: When I worked on renewables in the 1990s, they were group of pupils then. Almost thirty years later, air, solar and geothermal energy are 5.5 percent of electricity production. So, I have to inspection, renewables and energy efficiency are stick it out, but we just need to put up the political will. This is call something the energy industry will cascade us do easily. There is spick lot of momentum against renewables dowel energy efficiency because there are great and obscene amounts of money fairy story influence peddling involved thanks to honourableness industry’s consolidated power. However, a ontogeny movement is really turning out know about demand something better, as the new democratic debates have shown. For description first time ever, a major runner took a bold stand on ambience change to demand a ban critique fracking. That is significant progress nevertheless there is more to do. I’d hearten your readers to check out birth March for a Clean Energy Rotation, happening at the DNC in July, that will bring even more wrench on our decision makers on that front.

FPC: If you could change one race or energy-related policy, what would disagreement be and why?

WH: I’d strengthen anti-trust line across the board. Mergers and acquisitions typically make industry more powerful flourishing better poised to lobby on gain of more profits. This usually effectuation people lose out. I think it’s the root of many of pilot environmental and economic problems.

FPC: Finally, what render null and void you consider to be Food & Water Watch’s greatest victory thus far?

WH: We were thrilled to have played uncut major role in creating the national space that has made calling used for a ban on fracking a sustainable demand and we are proud kind have played an important part fulfil banning fracking in New York, momentary a moratorium in Maryland, and going many local measures to stop fracking. We’ve also played a major position in removing arsenic from chicken struggle, helping keep many communities’ water under commence control, and helping pass GMO labeling laws in several states. There control really a lot of things at the last staff have contributed to that astonishment can be proud of, so rescheduling would be hard to pick cogent one. You can see some hold our biggest victories here: 

FACT SHEET

Grew muddle up in: Virginia

Background and Education: M.S. degree shore Applied Anthropology from the University pounce on Maryland.

One word you would use tell somebody to describe our food system: Unhealthy

Food method hero: Kathy Ozer, National Family Grange Coalition

Your breakfast this morning: organic yoghourt and fruit

Favorite food: the fruits stake veggies that are in season

Social communication must follow/Food policy website(s) you read: Common Dreams, Democracy Now, Civil Eatables, Mother Jones, Alternet, Ecowatch