Are you planning a Community Garden that will be located in Ionia or Montcalm County? If so, please be sure to register for this year!
For more information visit http://www.ioniahost.com/garden/
Sunday, February 16, 2014
Mid-Michigan Farms & Markets: Healthy and Local! VIDEO
Published on Feb 5, 2014
Much of Mid-Michigan is rural, with many vibrant agribusinesses and farmer markets. Our region enjoys one of the most successful "Agriculture Environmental Assurance" and "Purchase of Development Rights" programs in the state, serving to protect vital farmland and the environment on a permanent basis. Our system of local farmer markets strengthens the connection between families and farmers in all three counties. Enjoy this segment of our video that highlights the importance of sustainable farming practices.
More info
Grow some food. Grow wherever you are.
Grow some food. Grow wherever you are.
Katherine Martinko
Living / Green Food
February 14, 2014
© Growing Cities“Growing Cities” is a new documentary film about the rise of urban farming in the United States. When Dan Susman and Andrew Monbouquette, two young men from Omaha, Nebraska, become disillusioned with the lack of urban farming projects in their hometown, they strike out on a road trip. They are searching for people who grow their own food, who believe in the tremendous potential of urban farming, and who are changing their communities through growing food.
The filmmakers certainly find what they’re looking for. It’s not surprising that the West coast has many well-established urban farms. In San Francisco, municipal laws are lenient toward urban farmers, even inner-city livestock; and Seattle provides land to anyone willing to farm. Milwaukee, Chicago, and Detroit boast incredible operations that feed thousands, build community, and offer employment opportunities. New York City boasts impressive rooftop gardens; Boston continues to maintain an original, World War II-era Victory Garden; and farmers in Atlanta and New Orleans are working to make urban spaces green and productive, while training underprivileged youth.
Urban farming is beneficial for many reasons. It can offer much-needed nutritious food to urban dwellers. Many Americans nowadays live in what’s called a “food desert,” where local stores don’t stock fresh produce regularly. In Detroit, for example, 550 000 residents (over half the city’s population) don’t have close, reliable access to vegetables and fruit.
Urban farming teaches Americans how to view vacant land in a new light. Wherever there’s space, there’s an opportunity to grow something. Even if you don’t own the land, many landowners are happy to have someone actively improve and beautify their empty lot for free, while benefitting the community. As one Atlanta farmer explains:
“The hugest part of sustainability is having people understand the importance of caring for land, regardless of whether you think you own it or not.”
Urban farming helps secure the national food supply. Americans have done it before, thanks to the tremendous growth of Victory Gardens during the two World Wars. Just a few years after being established, these homegrown gardens provided 40 percent of all produce consumed in the United States. There’s no reason that can’t happen again. Americans possess 35 million acres of lawns that could be productive.
What’s needed is a cultural shift in the perception of agriculture.Farmers need to be raised up in our society, and regarded in a similar way to doctors and engineers. After all, farmers are the most important people in our lives because they are the ones who feed us. And people need to get their hands dirty, to learn about growing food in limited, compromised spaces. You’d be amazed at what’s possible.
Growing Cities Trailer from Growing Cities Movie on Vimeo.
“Growing Cities” is definitely worth watching. It’s inspiring, lighthearted, and educational, and has been very well received at film festivals. You can find alist of screenings here, or learn how to host your own. The film’s website also has lots of helpful information for starting your own urban farming projects.
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Food security through collective impact
Food security through collective impact
Working toward collective action and success within the food system allows stakeholder to address complex food access challenges.
In order to generate long-term solutions to complex social problems like food access or food insecurity, multi-organizational and diverse community collaborations must be present to have lasting results. Shrinking resources and competition for funding all but demand that business as usual be re-evaluated and that collaborative partnerships become essential.
In the winter of 2011, John Kania and Mark Kramer published a paper in the Stanford Social Innovation Review on Collective Impact. They wrote, “large-scale social change requires broad cross-sector coordination”. To achieve this type of coordination they describe the notion of collective impact as the commitment of a group of important actors from different sectors to a common agenda for solving a specific social problem. Kania and Kramer share that there are typically five conditions that exist to produce true alignment and meaningful change:
- Common agenda across organizations – Committing to a shared vision and mutually reinforcing actions brings more collective attention and effort into an initiative.
- Shared measurement systems – Sharing results on a common platform ensures efforts are aligned, accountable and meaningful.
- Mutually reinforcing activities that build synergy – Stakeholders do not all have to do the same thing, but instead take on differentiated activities that build on and reinforce the work of each other.
- Continuous communication – Ongoing dialogue and transparency builds common motivation, common vocabulary and fosters an environment of co-learning.
- Backbone support organizations that foster the synergy – Having an organization support the collective work through planning and management facilitates focus, synergy and collaboration between sectors.
Access to food is a social problem that many Michigan residents and communities face. One organization trying to solve this may provide temporary relief and an isolated impact. However, the collective impact that could be realized when a group of diverse stakeholders take on mutually-reinforcing activities that build upon one another’s work is farther reaching and more sustainable.
To address food access issues, one should delve into understanding the food system for starters. This system consists of the people, processes and places that interact to move food from the farm to the table. It is often characterized as being comprised of six sectors: growing food, processing, distributing, preparing, retailing and eating. In order to have the greatest potential for powerful solutions that address food access issues, the food system sectors must work collectively alongside the decision-makers, businesses, community groups, educational bodies and entities outside of the food system in order to address the complexities of food access issues.
One of the more prominent tactics addressing food access and insecurity across the nation is through the convening of a food (policy) council. These collective, collaborative bodies are becoming more and more prevalent. In Michigan, almost half of the counties boast some form of a food council. To assist in food council creation Michigan State University Extension staff on the Community Food Service team are available to assist communities with understanding the community food system language and exploring the collective impact framework.
Join the School Garden Community
Join the School Garden Community
Co-hosted by edWeb.net, the Edible Schoolyard Project, the National Farm to School Network, and Life Lab
Welcome to the Growing School Gardens Community!
School gardens are a growing initiative to help children understand where their food comes from and how their food choices impact their bodies, the environment, and their communities at large.
A school garden can have an impact on the entire life and educational program of school and the surrounding community. Gardening activities can be incorporated into nearly every curriculum subject to enhance the appreciation of the natural world, and to provide hands-on learning activities for students.
This online learning community is a place for educators, gardeners, parents, and community volunteers to come together to share information and resources on how to start and maintain a school garden, and integrate it into the curriculum, the life of a school, and the local community.
The community hosts free monthly webinars and live chats with leaders in the field that are highly engaging and interactive. Online discussions provide an easy way to continue the conversation and share ideas and experiences with peers across the country, and around the world.
Upcoming Webinars
Tuesday, February 18, 2014 - 4pm / Eastern Time
Common Core in the Garden
Presenter: Whitney Cohen, Education Director at Life Lab
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 - 4pm / Eastern Time
Regional Support Models for Sustaining School Gardens
Presenter: John Fisher, Director of Programs and Partnerships at Life Lab, with Park Guthrie, Garden Education Specialist for the Oakland Unified School District in California
Pre-registration is not required for Growing School Gardens community members.
(But you must register as a COMMUNITY MEMBER!)
Join the webinar at the scheduled time with this link: www.instantpresenter.com/edwebnet11
You'll be automatically emailed a CE certificate for attending a live session.
Common Core in the Garden
Presenter: Whitney Cohen, Education Director at Life Lab
Tuesday, March 4, 2014 - 4pm / Eastern Time
Regional Support Models for Sustaining School Gardens
Presenter: John Fisher, Director of Programs and Partnerships at Life Lab, with Park Guthrie, Garden Education Specialist for the Oakland Unified School District in California
Pre-registration is not required for Growing School Gardens community members.
(But you must register as a COMMUNITY MEMBER!)
Join the webinar at the scheduled time with this link: www.instantpresenter.com/edwebnet11
You'll be automatically emailed a CE certificate for attending a live session.
Be sure to join the Growing School Gardens community:
- Receive invites and reminders to free webinars
- Access the recordings for past webinars
- CE quizzes (to earn your certificate for viewing a past webinar)
- Additional resources and discussions
Join the Growing School Gardens community for invitations to the free webinars, to view the archives and get a CE Certificate for previous programs, and to access the discussions and resources.
One of the pioneers of the school gardening movement is Dorothy Mullen, who is an organic gardener who lives in Princeton NJ. After the tragedy of 9/11, she wanted to do something positive for the community, so she started a school garden for Riverside Elementary School in Princeton. The photos in this community are of the garden she created. Dorothy worked with the teachers at the school to create a garden-based curriculum for grades K-5, correlated to NJ state standards.Dorothy's Guide to Starting a School Garden and her Checklist for Starting a School Garden are very helpful guides for anyone who would like to begin. A copy of these guides and many other very useful articles and lesson plans can be found by visiting the community Resource Library.
Please feel free to join and start discussions on topics related to school gardens.
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
Seed Starting Supplies
Hi Everyone,
I also want to give a big shout out to the DO-IT Center in Ionia for donating seeds for the 2014 Community Gardens! Thank you so much!
Here is also info about an upcoming training, "Growing a Weed Free Garden!"
I am working on a mini-grant for Global Youth Service Day involving seed starting for some of our local community gardens. If this grant is received, we will purchase some small indoor garden greenhouses and other supplies to offer some seed starting classes.
Please review this link from Menards: http://www.menards.com/main/
If you would like to have one of these small greenhouses please let me know. You would be required to commit to the following:
- commit the time necessary to care for seeds to later be transplanted in local community gardens,
- you can involve 10-30 volunteers (adults and youth) in a seed starting lesson,
- commit to sending in at least 2 photos at the seed starting event and 2 photos at the completion of the project.
I have to finish this mini-grant up soon, so please let me know if you are interested. pbeeman@ioniaisd.org or iccfoodnetwork@gmail.com. And please let me know if there are additional supplies you would need in order to complete this project.
We already have plenty of seeds, planting soil, and a simple lesson plan to follow.
Here is also info about an upcoming training, "Growing a Weed Free Garden!"
To all of you in Ionia there is a community garden at the animal shelter with plenty of room for all . There will be a meeting on March 8 at 10am at the animal shelter for those interested and learn how to grow a weed free garden and to beat all there will be door prizes so stop out weather you need space or just want to learn about weed free gardening .
Check out these pictures from last year's seed starting workshops!
Monday, February 3, 2014
Michigan Nutrition Network: Choices 2014
The Michigan Nutrition Network and Michigan Fitness Foundation present:
CHOICES 2014
The conference that celebrates food, health and collaboration!
March 27-28, 2014 | The Dearborn Inn, A Marriott Hotel | Dearborn, Michigan
Opening Keynote Speaker: Roberta Duyff
In its ninth year, the Choices Conference provides professional development, networking, resources and information to those who bring nutrition, health and wellness information to Michigan citizens of all ages. Sessions range from topics like healthy snacks and farm markets to building relationships and civility in the workplace. Participants also learn about analyzing data, designing effective presentations and cultural competence.
Featuring:
- 6 Keynote Speakers
- 12 Breakout sessions
- CEUs
- Great Food
Pre Conference Workshops
An In-depth Look at PSE's in SNAP-Ed: The Missing Link
Susan Foerster, MPH, Founder, Network for a Healthy California
A pre-conference workshop is being offered to MFF SNAP-Ed program leaders conducting or planning to conduct SNAP-Ed projects in local communities and who are interested in incorporating policy, systems and environmental change interventions into their overall SNAP-Ed programming.
Attendance is limited. If you are interested in attending this pre conference workshop, an application is required.
ServSafe Food Protection Manager Training and Certification Exam
Wednesday, March 26 | Training begins at 8:00 a.m. Certification Exam begins at 4:00 p.m.
MFF is offering a ServSafe Food Protection Manager Training and Certification Exam to Choices Conference participants. For more information visit the previous link and click on March 26 to register. Space is limited to 35 participants.
MNN requires all staff implementing food tastings or cooking demonstrations be supervised by a designated staff member who is ServSafe certified.
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