Lunch Money: A New Marshall Plan for Rural America is a short film by Richard McCarthy that investigates if school-supported agriculture can be a Marshall Plan for rural America. The film synopsis is below:
Who remembers the 1948 Marshall Plan that distributed over $12 billion in economic assistance to rebuild European economies after World War II? The brainchild of Secretary of State George Marshall, the investments helped to stabilize war-torn Europe. What if we were to adapt its five-point plan to rural America? It, too, is in great need of financial investment. For many policymakers in cities, it might as well be as far away as another country. Think Like Pirates, e/Prime Media, Market Umbrella and Slow Food join forces to explore the direct relationships between farmers and schools, as found in New Orleans, can reshape school lunch and rural communities in a short documentary that examines innovative practices that provide a bite-size glimpse into the solutions that can grow to transform our lives. We are looking for the solutionaries who build the road as they travel, rather than wait for instructions from afar. It is here, on the ground, that everyday climate solutionaries are defending the future. In this short film, we will meet the Indian Springs Farmers’ Association and the students of the Edible School Yard New Orleans. Through imaginative curricula, they are enriching each others’ lives.
A 2019 grant from the Cultures of Resistance Network helped produce the film.
Website: www.thinklikepirates.com
