Pavelski Family Foundation

Ask a 9 year old child the question, “Where do carrots come from?” and you may be surprised by their response.  What in past generations would garner an answer such as, “our garden” or “uncle Rob’s Farm,” is now met with a look of “I should know this, so just give me a minute to figure it out” or even worse, “the grocery store”.

The fact of the matter is that most children today are one generation removed from agriculture and their connection to agriculture is through their grandparents, if at all.  Therefore, the question above truly perplexes many children; and it is not just inner city kids that don’t know about farms. Rural kids, despite the possibility that they drive right past a farm on the way to school, no longer have a first hand knowledge of farms and where their food comes from.

Why does this matter and why should we care?

There’s a quote that sums this up quite nicely –

What people do not understand, they do not value; what they do not value, they will not protect, and what they do not protect, they will lose [Charles Jordan].

From an agricultural standpoint, we are committed to helping people of all ages to better understand the interrelationships between agriculture, the environment, and the people of the world.  To ensure the sustainability of these three areas, our hope is that with increased understanding, people will more highly appreciate agriculture, educate themselves further about it, and want to preserve it – perhaps even choose to pursue it as a career.

On a broader scale, without the proper understanding of the intricacies of food production, society as a whole can not have intelligent conversations about what it will take to support the people, preserve the resources, and improve the processes needed to feed the world sustainably.  By partnering with our communities to embrace the responsibility of increased awareness and education toward this life-sustaining issue, we can work together to maintain a high quality of life for all.