The FairShare CSA Coalition documents a grassroots organization, administered by a small paid staff and a considerable number of volunteers, which has evolved from a coalition with eight participating farms to fifty, and has become an established part of the local/sustainable agriculture landscape in the Midwest. Also documented are its interactions with other sustainable agriculture organizations in the area, as well as community supported agriculture organizations in other regions of the country. Documentation on the Partner Shares Program and the Foodbook project is particularly strong.
The collection is arranged in five series: ADMINISTRATIVE FILES, SUBJECT FILES, PROJECT FILES, OUTREACH FILES, and VISUAL MATERIALS.
The ADMINISTRATIVE FILES series includes organizational by-laws, board minutes and agendas, correspondence, financial records, staff and committee files, grant-related materials, and records relating to participating CSA farms. Staff members represented in the records include Sarah Lauffer, Lauri McKean, Laura Brown, Erin Schneider, Gini Knight, Abby Wind, Executive Director Kiera Mulvey, Partner Shares Program Co-ordinators Doug Wubben and Sharon Lezberg, as well as Board member Erika Janik. Records are arranged by program or staff position and date, rather than by staff member name. Included in this series are partial records of the Wisconsin Rural Development Center (WRDC), of which MACSAC was a chapter organization, and which acted as MACSAC's fiscal agent until WRDC ceased operation in 2002. Also present are administrative records from MACSAC's beginnings in the early 1990s, with minutes from meetings of the organization then known as the Madison Eaters Revolutionary Front (MERF).
The SUBJECT FILES series contains background materials on the community supported agriculture movement, farming projects in other communities, and topics of concern to the organization, such as national farm bill legislation or projects of organizations with a similar focus.
PROJECT FILES include records related to initiatives such as Partner Shares, the program matching funds for CSA shares for low-income or special needs households; the rebate program on CSA produce shares offered by area health maintenance organizations (HMOs); a grower mentorship program; foodbook/cookbook projects; and fundraising events including farm-a-thons (sponsored work sessions on farms), Empty Bowls, and Bike the Barns. Also included are records for the Madison Home Garden Project (MHGP, 1999-2001), a program to create home vegetable gardens, and Healthful Food, Healthy Communities (HFHC), a project between MACSAC, Troy Gardens, UW Extension, and Wisconsin Homegrown Lunch/REAP to improve nutrition resources on the north side of Madison. This series includes meeting notes and minutes, correspondence, financial records, promotional materials, and newspaper and magazine clippings. Documentation on the Partner Shares Program (PSP) and the Foodbook project is particularly extensive. Also documented is support for the Partner Shares Program among religious organizations.
The OUTREACH FILES series includes public events such as the spring annual CSA Open House, where prospective CSA participants interview farmers and pick up produce share information; newsletter and other media advertising and publicity files; website; presentations about the community supported agriculture movement; and tabling at events held by organizations with related concerns.
VISUAL MATERIALS include various prints, slides, and digital files documenting farm events, Empty Bowls, and the Spring Open House, as well as photo album pages documenting the Partner Shares Program. Also included are drawings for the Foodbook and other projects.
