Ashley Christensen, the Best Chef in the Southeast according to the James Beard Foundation, will be one of the featured panelists during the second Activate 14 event in downtown Raleigh on Saturday, July 12, entitled “Sustainable Foodways.”

Activate 14 is a series of free, public events held at the AIANC Center for Architecture and Design, 14 East Peace Street, Raleigh. All activities are designed “to empower people to make a difference in shaping the world around them” according to the organizers.

Christensen, head chef and owner of Poole’s Downtown Diner, Chuck’s, Beasley’s Chicken & Honey, Joule, and Fox Liquor Bar, will join a host of other experts for panel discussions, workshops, demonstrations, and more activities to explore how food makes its way to our tables, how money is used to fund the food we eat, and how design and sustainability act as the connecting thread.

The day will begin at 2 p.m. with food provided by Bulkolgi Korean BBQ food truck and beer from Fullsteam Brewery. Both require cash payments.

Participants will also visit booths manned by from Oak City Collective (screen printers), Raleigh Urban Design Center (an office of planning and development), Farm to Fork CSA (a local co-op connecting farms to consumers), and Quail Ridge Books and Music. Younger Brothers Productions will provide live music.

At 3 p.m., the primary host and sponsor of Activate 14, award-winning architect Frank Harmon, will moderate a panel discussion that will include Ashley Christensen, Vansana Nolintha of Bida Manda (Laotian cuisine), Carol P. Hewitt of Slow Money NC (making loans to local, sustainable food and farming businesses), and Sandi Kronik of Eastern Carolina Organics (marketing and distributing wholesale Carolina organic farm produce to retailers, restaurants and buying clubs).

Workshops will begin at 4 p.m. and include: (1) Cooking Demo with Angela Salamanca of Centro Mexican Restaurant, (2) Financing Our Foodshed with Carol Hewitt, (3) Food Design from Farm to Table with Frank Harmon, (4) Composing + Vermiculture with Maurice Small, (5) Urban Chickens and Beekeeping, and (6) Urban Sketching with Scott Renk.

At 6 p.m. the “Gathering” will begin, featuring food, beer, music, and the opportunity to interact with all of the day’s participants.

For more information on this and future Activate 14 events, go to http://activate14.com.