Slow Food Portland October Convivium: Indigenous Foodways

What can food teach us about our relationships to land, culture, community, and history?

Join Slow Food Portland for our October Convivium featuring Chef Alexa Numkena-Anderson of Javelina Indigenous Dining and Michelle Week of x̌ast sq̓it (Good Rain) Farm for a conversation about Indigenous foodways and food sovereignty, from growing and stewarding food to preparing and sharing it.

Alexa draws on her Hopi, Yakama, Cree, and Skokomish heritage through her cooking at Javelina Indigenous Dining. Her work brings Indigenous ingredients and food traditions to the table while creating a welcoming and representative gathering space for Portland’s Indigenous community.

Michelle, who is of Sinixt, Arrow Lakes lineage by way of the Colville Confederated Tribes, approaches farming as a way to steward the land, reconnect with cultural traditions, and strengthen community food sovereignty. At Good Rain Farm, she grows traditional Native foods alongside a diverse range of crops while farming with future generations in mind.

Together, Alexa and Michelle will share how their relationships with food, land, and culture shape their work as a chef and farmer. The conversation will explore Indigenous food traditions, the connections between growing and cooking, and what it means to strengthen food sovereignty within our region today.

This evening will offer an opportunity to hear directly from two Indigenous food leaders whose work connects what happens on the land with what ultimately reaches our tables.

6:00–6:30 PM — Social hour with snacks from Javelina
6:30–7:30 PM — Presentation and discussion

Location: Cookshop Portland (2625 SE 26th Ave, Portland, OR 97202)
Date: Wednesday, October 21