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ABOUT
JEWISH FARMER NETWORK
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Modern Farmers
Ancient Wisdom
OUR MISSION
To cultivate the social, cultural and spiritual well-being of Jewish farmers.
OUR VISION
A world where every Jewish farmer has what they need to grow in soil, spirit, and community; farmers are honored as an essential part of the Jewish story; and our ancestral agrarian wisdom helps shape a more just and nourishing food system for all.
Jewish Farmer Network began with a conversation...
At the 2016 Hazon Food Conference, thirteen Jewish farmers sat in a spontaneous circle. Most were the only farmer in their Jewish community — or the only Jew in their farming community.
We spoke about the beauty of our vocation, the deep resonance between our traditions and our work with the land, and the isolation that often comes with bridging those worlds.
On New Year’s Day 2017, co-founders Shani Mink and SJ Seldin created the Jewish Farmer Network Facebook group. Within two days, more than 200 Jewish farmers had joined — all eager to connect with Jewish farmers near and far.
Since then, JFN has grown into a thriving organization serving 1,800 Jewish farmers.
The conversation that began in that first circle is still unfolding — and we hope you’ll add your voice.
Our Farmers
Jewish farmers, orchardists, ranchers, homesteaders, and growers of all kinds! If you’re Jewish and farm-based, we’re for you.
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Where to find us
We’re wherever our farmers are! Across 47 states and 9 countries, our team travels to meet farmers, share resources, and strengthen community connections. Want us to visit your farm? Invite us to your neck of the woods!
Are you a Jewish farmer? Find your future friends and unknown neighbors here:
What We Do
We help Jewish farmers connect to each other and to the agrarian roots of Jewish tradition through:
Dive into our curated learning library, snag exclusive discounts, and use the “near me” feature to find future friends and unknown neighbors
Print, digital, and audio materials made for the real-life experience of modern Jewish farmers
Our flagship 7-part Torah of Farming course, plus offerings like Jewish Herbalism and a Shepherd’s Torah
Meet up with farmers — reserve your seat at our table through our Farmer-to-Table Shabbat programs!
Explore “What is a Jewish Seed”
Biennial network-wide conference: A big, joyful gathering of Jewish farmers from across the country.
Our People
STAFF
BOARD
Community Guidelines
In Jewish Farmer Network programs and community spaces you will invariably interact with others who hold ideas and values that are quite different from your own and that’s okay! By engaging with this community you commit to engaging respectfully across our diversity of identities, opinions, and experiences. Be mindful of how you show up in this space so that we might transcend our differences and celebrate our shared identity as Jewish farmers!
Jewish Farmer Network encourages open and constructive participation in our programming. We uplift the Jewish value of holy disagreement and are grateful for this community of curious question askers. While we don’t expect you to agree with everything that is said and shared, we ask that while you are in this space you commit to uphold and honor the following.
Community Standards:
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Respect opinions and experiences that diverge from our own
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Our relationships come first, let’s strive to create authentic interactions and connections based in community care, love, genuine desire, and trust.
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Practice nuance: seek to understand ideas, rather than to judge individuals
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Move back when we make a contribution so other participants can make theirs
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Be aware of the privilege and power your identities hold
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Assume good intentions // be accountable to your impact
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Speak for ourselves and from our own experiences using “I” Statements
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Disagree without making it personal // refrain from personal attacks
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Create a space free from harassment of any kind
Jewish Agriculture and Israel/Palestine
Jewish agricultural wisdom is rooted in the biblical and ancestral lands of Judea and Israel. Today, these lands are referred to by many different names – often depending on the identity, beliefs, and communal belonging of the person speaking – including Israel and Palestine. While Jewish Farmer Network is primarily focused on Jewish people farming in Diaspora, Israel/Palestine comes up because of the relationship between Jewish agriculture and the land of Israel/ Palestine.
JFN is neither a Zionist nor an anti-Zionist organization. We serve a diverse community of Jewish farmers, including those who fall along and outside spectrums of Zionism and anti-Zionism. As a community of question-askers, we aim to respectfully wrestle with the ways that this ancient relationship shapes agriculture, multiple histories of displacement, land access, and the livelihoods of farmers in modern day Israel/Palestine.