Of Seed and Soil
Hosted by Sommer Sibilly-Brown, founder of the Virgin Islands Good Food Coalition, “Of Seed and Soil” seeks to digitize the often untold and uncelebrated stories of farmers, fishers, producers, and food advocates from across the Virgin Islands and wider Caribbean. Through heartfelt interviews and candid conversations, the series invites listeners to reflect on the deep relationship between food, memory, identity, and resistance.
Episodes
13 episodes
Episode 13: “Youth Growing the Future”
In Episode 13 Of Seed and Soil: Unincorporated Voices of Food, Farming, and Freedom, host Sommer Sibilly-Brown sits down with Zavira Wilson, a student at the University of the Virgin Islands and an emerging voice advocating for youth engagement...
Episode 12: “It Takes a Village to Feed a Village”
In this special installment of Of Seed and Soil: Unincorporated Voices of Food, Farming, and Freedom, host Sommer Sibilly‑Brown sits down with Tarik and Tamara McMillan, co‑founders of Greater Changes LLC, a liberation‑focused behavioral health...
Episode 11: Inheriting Land, Carrying Responsibility
In Episode 11 of Of Seed and Soil: Unincorporated Voices of Food, Farming, and Freedom, we speak with daughter of the soil, Emmanuella Perez-Cassius, a generational landowner, consumer advocate in St. Croix, who shares a deeply personal and pra...
Episode 10: Cultivating the Future of Agriculture in the Virgin Islands
In this episode of Of Seed and Soil: Unincorporated Voices of Food, Farming, and Freedom, we speak with Louis Emanuel Petersen, Jr., Commissioner of the Virgin Islands Department of Agriculture, about the bold path forward for food and farming ...
Episode 9: Collaboration Is the Soil
In Episode 9 of Of Seed and Soil: Unincorporated Voices of Food, Farming, and Freedom, we hear from Dara Monifa Cooper, a long-time food system advocate, connector, and visionary based in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands.For decades, Dar...
Episode 8 | Land Is Memory, Land Is Power
In Episode 8 of Of Seed and Soil: Unincorporated Voices of Food, Farming, and Freedom, we are joined by Tarik McMillan—a son of St. Croix, a licensed trauma clinician, and a powerful voice in the movement for land stewardship and justice ...
Episode 7: A Chef’s Perspective on Food, Culture, and Community
In Episode 7 of Of Seed and Soil: Unincorporated Voices of Food, Farming, and Freedom, we sit down with Chef Ralph Motta—a St. Croix native whose deep love for the Virgin Islands and fresh, local ingredients has shaped his culinary journey....
Episode 6: “Mama Benita: Roots, Rights, and Revolution”
In Episode 6 of Of Seed and Soil: Unincorporated Voices of Food, Farming, and Freedom, we’re honored to spotlight one of the enduring pillars of food justice and cultural stewardship in the Virgin Islands: Mama Benita Martin of We Grow Food, In...
Episode 5: “A Family That Farms Together”
In this heartwarming episode of “Of Seed and Soil: Unincorporated Voices of Food, Farming, and Freedom”, we sit down with the owners of Mystical Farms VI in St. Croix, Randall and Lindsey Simmonds, who have spent over two decades growing food, ...
Episode 4: Land, Legacy, Liberation
In this deeply insightful episode of Of Seed and Soil: Unincorporated Voices of Food, Farming, and Freedom, host Sommer Sibilly‑Brown sits down with Dr. Hadiya Sewer, philosopher, environmental justice advocate, and Co‑Founder & President o...
Episode 3: Que Sera Roots
On this episode of “Of Seed & Soil”, host Sommer Sibilly‑Brown speaks with Shelli Brin, founder of Que Sera Farms, a woman-owned regenerative farm based in St. Thomas with extended projects across St. Croix and Tortola.Shelli ...
Episode 2: What the Land Remembers
In this powerful second episode of Of Seed and Soil: Unincorporated Voices of Food, Farming, and Freedom, host Sommer Sibilly-Brown sits down with Luca Gasperi of ARTfarm—one of St. Croix’s most beloved and resilient farms.A second-gene...
Episode 1: “Towards the Revolution”
Emancipation Day in the Virgin IslandsWelcome to the very first episode Of Seed and Soil: Unincorporated Voices of Food, Farming, and Freedom—a podcast amplifying the lived experiences, wisdom, and resistance of farmers in the Virgin ...