With climate change and global economic restructuring threatening
supply chains and the whole system of commodity
food production, agricultural education has become more important
than ever. Most schools however, are not equipped
to teach the basics of farming Fortunately, a
number of independent programs have emerged to provide
both children and adults with instruction to begin
harvesting their own food and tending to the
land. In no particular order, this list shares
groups combining pedagogy and the cultivation of crops.
The # 1 entry is Grow NYC which
pursues the mission of improving New York City's
quality of life through environmental programs, and transforming
communities and empowering New Yorkers to secure a
clean and healthy environment for future generations. Founded
in 19 70 with a primary focus on
policy, it has shifted to emphasize farmers' markets
recycling gardening, and education.
The group's educational initiatives include the Teaching Garden
at Governors Island, a one-acre urban farm where
kids can learn new skills, and Grow to
Learn, which facilitates gardening programs in public schools.
Learn It Grow It Eat It is a
youth development and outreach program that improves food
access and health awareness among residents of the
South Bronx.
# 2 is Shelburne Farms. It is a
non-profit organization that strives to inspire and cultivate
learning for a sustainable future. To that end,
it educates students on a campus made up
of a 1,400 acre working farm forest, and
National Historic Landmark on Abenaki land, located just
outside Burlington Vermont.
For adults, the organization offers year-round programs on
farming, natural resources, historic preservation, and more. There
are also a variety of initiatives for educators
and students. Efforts like The Place Program and
Vermont Feed, both undertaken with larger institutions, are
designed to serve the local community.
Coming in at # 3 The Food Literacy
Project provides farm-based experiential education and entrepreneurial youth
development programs that bring the Field-to-Fork experience to
life in Louisville Kentucky Originating with a pilot
program in 2005, the group maintains two active
growing plots Oxmoor Farm and an eight-acre urban
vegetable growing operation.
The Project's education programs invite neighbors and community
members of all ages to get their hands
dirty, taste new foods fresh from the field,
and get involved in the work of their
community food system and a working farm. The
group also maintains a mobile educational garden that
travels to schools farmers' markets fairs, and festivals.
Up next at # 4 NY Sun Works
is a non-profit organization that builds innovative science
labs in urban schools. Its Greenhouse Project Initiative
uses hydroponic farming technology to educate students and
teachers about the science of sustainability. The group's
mission is to nurture a generation of environmental
innovators empowered to create solutions to global resource
challenges.
Sun Works' Greenhouse Classroom Labs offer students the
opportunity to grow their own food. They also
provide hands-on learning about topics such as nutrition,
water resource management, efficient land use, climate change
biodiversity conservation contamination pollution, waste management, and sustainable
development.
The # 5 spot is held by EarthDance,
a teaching farm sharing the craft and science
of organic farming with people from all walks
of life. The organization's fourteen-acre space provides a
model of sustainable food production used, through its
Organic Farm School programs, to cultivate food leaders
alongside abundant fresh produce.
Located in Ferguson Missouri, the group's organic farm
is the oldest of its kind west of
the Mississippi River. The Farm & Garden Apprenticeship
offers an education in organic gardening, market farming,
and applied permaculture Youth programs are designed to
connect young people to the natural world, healthy
eating, and the cultivation of produce.
Closing out our list at # 6 Hidden
Villa is an educational nonprofit occupying over 1,600
acres of open space in the foothills of
California's Santa Cruz mountains. It provides experiential education
and responsible agriculture programs, and opens up its
organic farm and gardens to school groups, summer
campers, family gatherings, corporate volunteers, and individual visitors.
In the 19 1920s, Hidden Villa founders Frank
and Josephine Duveneck offered up their property as
a gathering place for discussion reflection, and the
incubation of social reform Today, the staff of
educators uses the institution's array of programs as
a means to reinforce values of inclusion diversity
understanding, and respect, and to create allies and
advocates for a just and sustainable future.