I always fashioned myself an environmentalist. Growing up in Minnesota, I more or less lived in the woods. During my teenage years in Ohio, I kept my punk friends from drive-by littering while we carpooled. In New York City, I rode my bike everywhere, painted rooftops white to keep buildings cooler in the summer, and petitioned for the electric Taxi of Tomorrow. Our day-to-day lives, as I saw it, were trashing this planet, and it only made sense that I should do my best to preserve it.
Of the many interactions humans have with their environment, I came to realize, farming and eating are by far the most intimate. Our dear Earth provides us with the optimal circumstances to selectively grow the organisms that both fuel our bodies and taste incredible. What an awesome gift! Yet, as with many other human enterprises, farming and food production have become more industrial, more obscure, and more damaging to environmental and human health.
And so my environmental mission has been narrowed: Keep farms and food real. The more genuine our experience with growing and eating food, the healthier our bodies and planet will be. The best tool to accomplish this goal, by my logic, is the law. Law is the body of ideas by which our society operates, so the law should support real farming and real food. This can be accomplished either by discouraging destructive farm/food practices or by supporting healthy farm/food businesses. Though I plan to do both, I prefer the latter. The people are more interesting, their stories are more inspiring, and it leaves a better taste in the mouth.
I recently completed my second year at Vermont Law School, a student of the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems, and I am very excited to be interning with Foscolo & Handel PLLC this summer! Their knowledge of and passion for agricultural and food law is truly motivating. Keep an eye out for my blog posts on a wide range of topics; I can be reached at jackhornickel@vermontlaw.edu.
