The Longhaulers

Meet Jason + Jocelyn.

About Jason Angell:

I am a reformed political reformer. I believe that the only sure fire way to achieve change in the world is to attempt to practice it in every aspect of our daily lives.  I have abandoned the wait for the one leader that can save us all and understand that it can only be done by as many of us as possible.  I do not fit into the neat box: I like to write and think but also to work with my body, get happy and sad, love people and withdraw, am hopeful about our collective capacity to make the world better but often dispirited by what I see, and am generally just trying to find a way of living I feel good about while making enough to get by.

My road to now has consisted of: working as a journalist in Beirut, Lebanon; teaching and learning from Native American kids and families in Portland, Oregon; organizing for more education funds in Philadelphia, PA and NYC; getting a MPA to better understand how our big systems work; dipping a momentary toe into running for office, and directing a think/act tank for the most radical political party I could find. Back home and trying to bring it all together.

About Jocelyn Apicello:

I care about health. So much so that I started this farm-based project with hopes that it would re-purpose my life and some lives around me. I am trying to encourage healthier eating (i.e., by growing a diversity of chemical-free fruits and vegetables), healthier working (i.e., by incorporating physical activity with a a sprinkling of at-the-desk tasks), healthier community-making (i.e., by creating a space for neighbors, family and friends to connect) and healthier ecological-balancing (i.e., by joining the ecological cycle in a give-and-not-just-take way).

I've been involved in the fields of public health and social justice for two decades, through the avenues of education, research and advocacy. I delivered health care to people experiencing homelessness in NYC and teach people experiencing incarceration in NYS prisons. I design courses like “Food + Community” and “Capitalism and Public Health” and “Health Inequities.” All of these paths keep me grounded and make me stronger - and together with this place-based practical project of a community farm, my mind, body and soul are contently occupied.

Jason and Jocelyn live and work together on Longhaul Farm, along with their two children, two dogs and several farmyard animals. In 2015 they launched the Ecological Citizen’s Project, which works to nurture citizen-led campaigns for a more just, healthy, democratic and regenerative way-of-life.