eaters

from soil health to supply chains, big-ag to first nations stewardship, seed sovereignty to carbon farming, “eaters” aims to place the concerns of farmers’ front and centre, as we consider how society will move from an extractive mentality to one that nurtures and respects our natural world.

eaters features the voices of some very special guests including political journalist gabrielle chan, physicist vandana shiva, the noongar land enterprise group, former greens senator, now writer scott ludlam and boorloo’s very own odette mercy and gina williams.

what is eaters?

eaters is a rowdy participatory quiz night hosted by pvi collective that seeks some common ground for the future of food.  from the people who grow it, to the ones that consume it, along with the powers that control its production and future survival, we all have skin in the game.
eaters draws input from farmers working on the front lines, first nations experts, authors, physicists, conservationists, eco-activists and the world of agronomy to question if a change of diet can ensure the future of the planet.
eaters asks players to come to grips with some of the greatest threats facing agriculture that have implications for us all. through an artfully mashed up quiz night, pvi will playfully sow the seeds of personal responsibility vs political will in order to flesh out a way forward.

why make a work about food?

our need for food poses one of the biggest dangers on the planet. rapid population growth combined with an increasingly unstable climate means we need to radically rethink our relationship with consumption. we are all eaters, so what lies ahead?

australia is projected to be one of the most adversely affected regions from climate change. as the crisis continues to deepen, droughts increase, heat stress reduces crop yields, changing rainfall patterns disrupt entire harvests, seasons shift, oceans warm and soil fertility declines.

on top of this looming clusterfuck, the competing interests of mining and extraction industries see ground water tables contaminated and salinity on the rise. agri-chemicals continue to take a toil on entire ecosystems and the acceleration of gene editing sees scientists re-write nature’s cookbook by creating genetic generations of crops that have no natural lineage.

with ever increasing and simultaneous pressures on farmers to ‘provide’ for the global community whilst trying to satisfy the market demands for cleaner, greener, ethical and cheaper produce, farmers and regional communities are lurching at the behest of tough game players.

eaters invites us to rethink some of the urban-centric views on the business of agriculture and take a look at the other side. at what is already being done, what the land listeners themselves are hearing and what we can do.

how does it work?

grab a pint from the bar, boot up your phone and take a seat with your teammates, its game on.

eaters elevates the traditional pen and paper pub quiz to a participatory game show with the host announcing questions, previewed on screen and scored live using computer software.

eaters uses a free computer based software solution called speedquizzing which can be played with up to 64 players. using a hub based system means players don’t need access to the internet and aren’t at the mercy of a weak phone signal or venue wifi. small teams use the speedquizzing app as their virtual remote to answer all the agri-trivia. spot prizes are awarded for valiant efforts and personal sacrifices. quiz rounds build to a series of playful physical challenges for selected teams.

as teams accrue points and map out their future food journeys, the ultimate aim of the game is not to win, but to plant a seed for change to go home with.