Cardiff – first impressions

Probably you don’t know exactly what to imagine under this title, which is no surprise. It is an entirely new degree which focuses on food from geographical, political and sociological perspectives. This semester we have three modules which are: Worlds of Food, where we study the food system and its actors, especially a current issue is local food production; Food Securit and Justice, where we focus on different approaches to food security and justice; and Spaces of Food Consumption, where we discussed, for example, psychology of shopping or our last class was about breastfeeding.

I have to say that every class is very interesting! Overall, there are only 8 students in this MSc (to be honest, I had not expected such a small number), which is great because we know each other very well and have established very good relationships with our teachers. I have also found out that master’s degree is not only about what you learn in classes or self-study, but it is mainly about sharing ideas and experiences with your fellow students. All my classmates have a lot of experience in the field, thus it is always very inspiring to interact with them!

Apart from studying, I work in a coffee shop (which was always my dream!). The coffee shop buys ethically sourced coffee from Colombia and Guatemala for which farmers receive adequate wages. In addition, I have decided to learn salsa properly and go to weekly classes. I would also like to teach yoga and am looking for an internship that would be related to my field of study.

Three weeks ago my two friends and I went to the UK Food Sovereignty Gathering, where many organizations and individuals supporting the food sovereignty concept met. Food sovereignty advocates the rights of producers to choose what they want to produce, usually by ecological methods. This movement also supports direct contact between producers and consumers (e.g. via farmers’ markets), right to food and storage of seeds. Overall, the food sovereignty movement points to the negative impact of the current industrialized agriculture. To take part in such event was an amazing experience, since I have got an insight into how social movements work, how concepts and frameworks are formulated, and learned a lot about food politics.

Coast of Barry Island

Alexanda Gardens

In Hebdon Bridge with Raychel ( venue of Food Sovereignty Gathering)