The 2022 Franklin Birthday Celebration took place on-line on
Friday, January 14, 2022 • 9:00 - 11:00 AM ET.

The theme was:

ON FOOD:  History, Access,
Sustainability, and the Future 

Benjamin Franklin helped create one of the first agricultural societies in the American colonies--The Philadelphia Society for Promoting Agriculture is still in operation today.

For decades, agricultural knowledge and systems have evolved to produce more food.  Even with our new awareness of climate change and new understanding of genetics, we are just beginning to find effective ways to increase production safely and to change the eating habits of the world.  How will the nations and farmers of the earth change to meet this enormous challenge?

The 2022 Franklin Celebration will explore multiple aspects of this topic:  Sustainable Agriculture and Agrarian Values, the Politics of Food, Food Availability for Those in Need, and Creating Alternative Foods.  It will provide an overview of food trends back to Franklin’s time.

 Honoree:  Wendell Berry

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Wendell Berry is a farmer, political activist, essayist, and poet.  He has farmed in Henry County, Kentucky for more than 50 years (his parents were farmers as well).  He is both a big thinker and a traditionalist.  One could compare Berry’s values with Franklin’s virtues.  Berry received the National Humanities Medal in 2010.

 Speakers:  Dr. Marion Nestle

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Marion Nestle is a national leader in exploring and uncovering the politics of food.  She is the Paulette Goddard Professor of Nutrition, Food Studies, and Public Health at New York University.  She is the author of numerous articles and books and writes the blog, FoodPolitics.com.

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Chef Oberholtzer is a social entrepreneur, food activist and farmer.  He is a co-founder of LA-based Tender Greens, and founder of the Sustainable Life Project and the Spice of Life Project.  He lives on a farm in New Jersey.

Loree D. Jones is CEO of Philabundance, a nonprofit dedicated to ending hunger in the Philadelphia area.  She has held executive positions with Rutgers University, the School District of Philadelphia, and served as Managing Director of the City of Philadelphia.