Seaside — The Friends of the Seaside Library and Oregon Humanities will host The Conversation Project’s “We Are What We Eat: Connecting Food and Citizenship” with educator and author Wendy Willis at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 2. The event will be held in the Community Room at the library.

Oregon is famous for its food; its long traditions in agriculture and fisheries; and its role to promote whole food in communities, schools and home kitchens. In addition to the daily practice of cooking and eating, many Oregonians also think, talk and write about food. Might our relationship to food production, preparation and consumption create deeper connections to our place and our neighbors and a pathway to increased self-sufficiency? This is the focus of “We Are What We Eat: Connecting Food and Citizenship.”

Willis is a poet, essayist and national leader in civic engagement and collaborative governance. She has served as a federal public defender and as a law clerk to Chief Justice Wallace Carson Jr. of the Oregon Supreme Court. Willis currently is executive director of the Policy Consensus Initiative, a national nonprofit organization housed at Portland State University devoted to improving democratic governance.

Through the Conservation Project, Oregon Humanities offers free programs that engage community members in thoughtful, challenging conversations about ideas critical to daily lives and the state’s future. Oregon Humanities is an independent, nonprofit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities and a partner of the Oregon Cultural Trust.

The Seaside Public Library is located at 1131 Broadway. For more information, call 503-738-6742 or visit the website at www.seasidelibrary.org