Ableman has started food gardens at the Santa Barbara AIDS Hospice, an 11-acre farm at the Midland School, and a market garden at the Jordan Downs housing project in Watts. Working with low-income communities from LA and NYC to organizations as diverse as the Esalen Institute and the International Association of Culinary Professionals, Ableman’s work as an educator and consultant has helped to inspire numerous projects and initiatives throughout the world.  

He has traveled around the world documenting other cultures culminating in the internationally acclaimed publication of   From the Good Earth:  A Celebration of Growing Food Around the World (Abrams, 1993). 

His second book, On Good Land:  The Autobiography of an Urban Farm (Chronicle Books, 1998), is the story of his fight to preserve a piece of what was once some of the richest farmland in the world. 

His third book “Fields of Plenty; A farmer’s journey in search of real food and the people who grow it” was released in 2005.   

Ableman’s photographs have appeared in publications throughout the world and in solo exhibitions at the Oakland Museum, the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, and the Field Museum in Chicago.  

He lectures extensively throughout the U.S. and in Europe.  His work has been featured in National Geographic, on National Public Radio's All Things Considered, in the Utne Reader, Gourmet Magazine, and in the Los Angeles and New York Times. An award-winning film about Ableman’s work, Beyond Organic, narrated by Meryl Streep aired nationally on PBS in 2001.     

Ableman currently lives and farms on an island in British Columbia with his wife and two sons. 

Michael Ableman will present the keynote lecture at the Friday Night Forum where he will be joined on a panel by Chef Monique Jamet-Hooker and Farmer Kay Jensen.

Monique Jamet Hooker is best described as a culinary pioneer. As a girl of fifteen she set forth into the traditionally male-dominated world of the French restaurant kitchen. It was the beginning of a distinguished career in the culinary arts, spanning four decades and two continents.

During her years of apprenticeship in France, Hooker also worked as a photography food stylist, 

honing not only her skills in the kitchen but her eye for color and food presentation. After coming to the US in the sixties she took a position in her brother’s restaurant in New York state before moving to Chicago where she made a name for herself as a food stylist and caterer. She also began teaching classes for people eager to recreate her art in their own kitchens.

In 1983 Hooker opened Monique’s Café in Chicago’s River North district which has since become the premier dining area in the city, with many restaurants copying Monique’s Café bistro style seasonal menu.

Fans of Chef Hooker enjoy her award-winning book, Cooking with the Seasons, which introduces readers to over 200 recipes that emphasize seasonal distinctions of taste, texture, and color.

Now “retired” to the hills of southwest Wisconsin, Hooker is working harder than ever. She continues to teach, lecture and demonstrate her true love – the art of seasonal cooking.

Monique will join Michael Ableman on the panel at the Friday Night Forum and conduct a cooking demonstration at the Festival on Saturday.

The Food for Thought Festival is free and open to the public. 
Events at the Festival will include:            

Informational and interactive displays by over 60 local organizations and businesses.

The Food for Thought Recipe Contest.

Speakers and Presentations.

Cooking Demonstrations by guest chefs.

Live Music, Kid's Activities, Great Food, and More!

     Food for Thought Festival 2008