The past 150 years of industrial processes have left a legacy of toxicity in the soils of today’s urban environments. Exposure to soil based pollutants disproportionately affects low-income communities which are frequently located within formerly industrialized zones. Both gardeners, who come into direct contact with soil, as well as those who eat the products grown in the soil are at risk to exposure from industrial contaminants. Options for low-income communities for remediating contaminated soils are limited, with most remediation work being carried out by costly engineering firms. Even more problematic is the overall lack of awareness and available information regarding safety and best practices with soils.

In response to these challenges, a grassroots movement has emerged that seeks to empower urban residents with the tools and information necessary to address residual industrial toxicity in their ecosystems. Focusing on methods that are simple and affordable, this movement wishes to remove the barriers of cost and technical expertise that may be otherwise prohibitive. This paper will give an overview of case studies of organizations that have been successful in implementing these strategies. [Read more…]

In case you haven’t noticed yet, NOFA chapters are not rolling in the kind of cash that corporate lobbyists use to influence state and federal policy. NOFA chapter policy budgets range from small to non-existent. What we do have is us, all of us who are active members. We represent numbers – many passionate voices who are willing to speak out. And authenticity. NOFA members can testify with eloquence from our own lived experiences as land workers of all kinds – farmers, farm workers, gardeners, apprentices, landscapers – and aware eaters of organic locally grown food. By ourselves, however, there are not enough of us to make a big impact and this year, we are having to direct a lot of our energies to saving what we have spent many decades working for. That is why we do most of our advocacy and policy work through coalitions, building alliances with groups and organizations with whom we share values, programs and goals, pooling our resources with others so that together we can have a stronger impact.
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reprinted from Urban Agriculture Magazine, November, 2017

In light of climate change, failures in industrial agriculture, increased energy costs and demographic pressure, and as multinational corporations increase their control of the food system, a significant rise in food prices, if not food shortages can be expected. This situation is compounded by the fact that by 2030, 60% of the world’s population will live in cities, including 56% of the world’s poor and 20% of the undernourished. Today, for a city with 10 million people or more, over 6,000 tonnes of food has to be imported every day, traveling an average of 1,000 miles. Given these scenarios, urban agriculture (UA) is becoming a major sustainable alternative for food security on an urbanised planet. Urban production of fresh fruits, vegetables, and some animal products, near consumers, improves local food security, especially in underserved communities. By improving access to fresh, nutritious food, UA can help in combating childhood obesity, diabetes, and poor nutrition that are prevalent in many urban communities.
[Read more…]