Leading People Series: Growing Food, Growing Community: ab banks on Leadership, Listening, and Food Justice

In this episode, we speak with ab banks, a leader at Oxford Tract Farms. ab works with the Berkeley Food Institute and on the ground with Berkeley Student Farms. An Oakland native, ab banks serves as garden lead for People’s Programs in West Oakland, grows food and ensures produce goes from the urban garden into the hands of under-resourced community members. ab was the first member to join People’s Programs. The People’s Garden was created to advance food autonomy for Black people in ab’s hometown and increase access to healthy food – including hot-meal deliveries for unhoused neighbors every Sunday and family grocery deliveries twice a month. With ab serving as garden lead, stewarding the land and harvesting crops, in 2022, the program distributed more than 800 pounds of produce to families and unhoused neighbors in West Oakland.

ab’s farming work is intertwined with wellness for people and the planet. In addition to leading the People’s Garden, ab started the (Free) Community Health Clinic, which opened in 2021 to address needs identified during weekly food delivery. ab is also the Agroecology and Wellness Coordinator at the Berkeley Food Institute (BFI). Here ab conducts participatory research on agroecology practices rooted in soil care and healing communities that have been generationally underestimated and silenced. BFI supports outreach, events, and academic opportunities at more than 10 urban gardens producing food and preserving native ecosystems. ab continues to learn, grow, and share their work in healing and meditation.

In 2022-2023, ab was a Just Leader Fellow with the Cooperative Food Empowerment Collective. Their work is aimed at a cooperative food economy powered by the visionary leadership of Queer, Trans, Black, Indigenous People of Color.

Episode Quotes:

Power of Listening

When you’re interacting with a lot of different people with a lot of different backgrounds, especially backgrounds that you aren’t familiar with, there will be a lot of listening involved. That is a key part of being a leader.

Community Resource 

In the beginning of me coming to Oxford Tract and Berkeley Food Institute I had numerous conversations with different stakeholders like students, community members, and people we serve. All of the ideas that I have about the future are definitely linked to those initial conversations I had and ongoing conversations. So again listening to what people need from Oxford Tract. It boils down to my goal of being a resource for community members and the students. 

Show Links:

• From the Field: The Vibrant Student Community at UC Berkeley’s Oxford Tract Farm
• BFI News: BFI’s ab banks Wins 2023 Maxwell/Hanrahan Award in Food