Dear friends,
I hope the start of fall is treating you well. I had the opportunity to visit Milwaukee, Wisconsin a few weeks ago to attend Growing Power's National & International Urban & Small Farm Conference. I went for my Senior Independent Study research on urban agriculture in Cleveland, Ohio, to explore post-Wooster options, and just for fun. I was impressed at the diversity of conference attendees, as it is often difficult to find sustainability-related events that are fully inclusive. I also appreciated the willingness of conference participants to talk about justice and race (which is probably because there were people of color in attendance).
During the conference was fortunate enough to go on a tour of Growing Power's national headquarters. Growing Power, founded by farmer Will Allen, is a very famous urban agriculture organization. They are working to ensure that all communities have access to tasty, healthy, culturally appropriate, and sustainable food. They provide training to aspiring farmers and youth at their headquarters in Milwaukee and also at Regional Training Centers with partner organizations throughout the country. Growing Power is focused on teaching low-tech, high-profit methods of agriculture that can allow small farmers to make a living by farming. Such methods include growing in greenhouses, aquaponics, microgreens, mushrooms, and vermicomposting. The organization also grows food on farms in Wisconsin and Illinois, managed by a diverse staff of 140 individuals.
Growing Power is also a founder of the Growing Food and Justice For All Initiative (GFJI), which is a collaborative network of individuals and organizations that are growing a movement to dismantle racism in our food system. I got to hear from a number of inspiring individuals involved in this initiative as well as participate in GFJI activities like creating murals and public theater performances.
I hope the start of fall is treating you well. I had the opportunity to visit Milwaukee, Wisconsin a few weeks ago to attend Growing Power's National & International Urban & Small Farm Conference. I went for my Senior Independent Study research on urban agriculture in Cleveland, Ohio, to explore post-Wooster options, and just for fun. I was impressed at the diversity of conference attendees, as it is often difficult to find sustainability-related events that are fully inclusive. I also appreciated the willingness of conference participants to talk about justice and race (which is probably because there were people of color in attendance).
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| Erika at the Growing Power headquarters. |
During the conference was fortunate enough to go on a tour of Growing Power's national headquarters. Growing Power, founded by farmer Will Allen, is a very famous urban agriculture organization. They are working to ensure that all communities have access to tasty, healthy, culturally appropriate, and sustainable food. They provide training to aspiring farmers and youth at their headquarters in Milwaukee and also at Regional Training Centers with partner organizations throughout the country. Growing Power is focused on teaching low-tech, high-profit methods of agriculture that can allow small farmers to make a living by farming. Such methods include growing in greenhouses, aquaponics, microgreens, mushrooms, and vermicomposting. The organization also grows food on farms in Wisconsin and Illinois, managed by a diverse staff of 140 individuals.
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| Will Allen gave the tour at GP's HQ. |
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| Chiles (would be popular with the farmers at Adelante Mujeres). |
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| Growing Power runs much of their headquarters on solar power. |
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| One of my favorite parts was the goats. |
Growing Power is also a founder of the Growing Food and Justice For All Initiative (GFJI), which is a collaborative network of individuals and organizations that are growing a movement to dismantle racism in our food system. I got to hear from a number of inspiring individuals involved in this initiative as well as participate in GFJI activities like creating murals and public theater performances.
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| Conference participants were invited to help construct a mural for part of the GFJI intitiative. This mural will go to Chicago. |
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| GFJI's presence at the conference also included an ever-burning fire (maintained by representatives from indigenous communities) and a sociodrama on agriculture, adopted from Latin American traditions. |
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