CREATING A COMMUNITY HUB CDFA VISITS URBAN FARMBIDEN STAFF LOVES OUR WORK Apply for the Community Advisory Committee! YOUTH APPRENTICESHIPS THE NORTH RICHMOND FARM U R B A N T I L T H | S E E D P O W E R . G R O W J U S T I C E . November 2022
U.S. EPA
RADHIKA FOX
Principal Deputy
Tilth,
Dir.
DORIA ROBINSON Urban
Exec.
EPA
THE FOOD DESERT NARRATIVE Interrupting from left to right
JOHN
GIOIA Supervisor, Contra Costa MARTHA GUZMAN
Regional Administrator
CONTENTS FOOD ACCESS Interrupting the Food Desert Narrative CONSTRUCTION SPOTLIGHT Creating a Community Hub APPLY! Community Advisory Committee 100 HOURS Summer Apprenticeship BIDEN STAFF STOPS IN EPA Clean Water Act SACRAMENTO COMES TO TOWN Farm Bill Listening Session THE NORTH RICHMOND FARM URBAN TILTH | THE CSA TEAM! Providing food to families weekly! from l to r Ebonay, Johnny, Kenny, Theresa, Liz Urban Tilth inspires, hires, and trains local residents to cultivate agriculture, feed our community, and restore relationships to land to build a more sustainable food system, within a just and healthier community.
INTERRUPTING THE FOOD DESERT NARRATIVE TheNorthRichmondFarm|November2022 FOOD ACCESS! FOOD FOR 500 FAMILES EVERY WEEK! FoodAccess!Yesss!NorthRichmond isnolongerafooddesert. Ifyoudon’tknowtolook,youmay driverightbythebustling, unassuminglocationinNorth Richmond.Butit’stheplacewherewe distributeproducefor500families eachweekthroughourFarmtoTable CSAprogram(CommunitySupported Agricultureprogram). Yep!Notonlydowehavefresh produce,butwehavethegreatest teammakingithappen ouryouth, localresidentsANDourpartner farmers. TheFarmtoTableCSAisa youthandalocalresident run non profitventure.The missionistoensureFRESH, locally grownandorganic produceisavailabletoall WestContraCostaresidents. AsaCSAmember,youenjoy high qualityseasonalfruits andvegetables oftentimes pickedjustacoupleofdays beforeyoureceivethem! Notamemberyet?Don’tmiss out WealsoacceptEBT! JoinourCSAat urbantilth.csaware.com! @urbantilth.org
CREATING A COMMUNITY HUB
We asked you what you wanted and you responded!
Besides the farm, you said you wanted a community room, a café, an amphitheater, a commercial kitchen, a store whew! You expanded the vision!
With your input, we have a five phase project Plans have been drawn up and there’s lots of work happening behind the scenes
Right now, what you will see when you drive by the farm are the graphic renderings of each phase. And, you will see the actual construction of the rain gardens on Fred Jackson way.
As you may know, our 3 acre lot of land had been a dumping ground for 40 years Well look at it now! My how things are changing!
Cleaned up the soil to grow food Producing food for families Creating a community hub Let’s go!
N O M A D I C | 2 4 C O N S T R U C T I O N S P O T L I G H T
Youhaveanownershipstakeinwhatgoeson atthefarm.ConsiderjoiningtheCommunity AdvisoryCommittee! OurBestServices UrbanTilth|NorthRichmond CommunityAdvisory Committee JoinUs! WhatYouWillDo Provide feedbackonfarm activities,programs,events, outreach, engagement materialsandstrategies Participateinmonthly meetings,activities,programs, andevents AdviseontheHistoryWalk AdviseonCafedesign,menu We're asking for a two-year commitment. We will compensate North Richmond residents. In Year 2, we will choose two residents to serve on our 501c3 board. UrbanTilth Contact: Contact: Contact: Latifah Abdullah | latifah@urbantilth.org | 510 210 3849
Urban Tilth Summer Apprenticeship
This year our Summer Youth Apprentice Program hosted 40 West County youth at community garden, creek restoration, and farming sites across Richmond, California.
The youth invested 6 weeks learning about environmental justice, food justice, and food sovereignty while working with our staff to cultivate land and resources in our community.
The Crews:
School Garden: These apprentices worked at both our Richmond High and Verde Elementary School Gardens.
Community Garden: Worked in the Greenway Community Gardens at 16th street and 6th Street and Ohio Ave.
Produce Box: Worked to harvest, pack and deliver fresh produce to local families; learned about food justice and our food system with the Farm to Table Community Supported Agriculture Project.
Watershed: Worked with our Watersheds Team to help restore local creeks. They learned about water protection, restoration along Wildcat Creek & Cerrito Creeks.
Ujima “Collective Work and Responsibility”: This new cohort explored Black Land and Liberation. This team built a new garden space devoted to Afro-ecology and healing.
Upon completion of the 100 hrs of the program, the youth received a $1,000.00 stipend.
Keep an eye out for the next opportunity to participate in our Apprentice program!
S u m m e r A p p r e n t i c e s 2 0 2 2
THE CLEAN WATER ACT
We had a couple of folks come through.
As you can see from the cover, the Biden Administration's EPA staff (Radhika Fox and Martha Guzman) came by. Their visit was part of the celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Clean Water Act.
Not only did they witness the new construction of our rain gardens, but they also heard from our Basin of Relations Watershed graduates. They were very impressed! Did you know that our Watersheds team takes care of our local creeks?
The talented crew completed our intensive training program. They now work in green infrastructure and contribute to the health of our communities
THE FARM BILL
SNAP, WIC, school lunches, Meals on Wheels . . . all are helpful resources, AND they are all a part of the Farm Bill.
For the first time, the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) came to an urban farm to hear from residents, advocates, and farmers.
ROSS, SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE FOR THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
There was a lively, healthy discussion on what should be included in the next farm bill (which is updated every five years)
TILTHURBAN
URBAN TILTH WATERSHED TEAM
KAREN
Harvest Join us every Monday 9 am to 1 pm Free Farm Stand Every Thursday at 2pm Fred Jackson Way & Chelsey Join our csa urbantilth.csaware.com volunteer or bring your class, contact Jackie at jackie@urbantilth.org urban tilth seed power. grow justice urbantilth.org 323 Brookside Drive Richmond, CA 94801 510 232 0911
