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INVESTIGATOR: Rushdan, T.

PERFORMING INSTITUTION:
GREENING OF DETROIT, THE
1418 MICHIGAN AVE
DETROIT, MICHIGAN 48216

FARMING DETROIT -- AN EDUCATION AND TRAINING PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE GREENING OF DETROIT AND THE DETROIT BLACK COMMUNITY FOOD SECURITY NETWO

NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: The Greening of Detroit (The Greening) and the Detroit Black Community Food Security Network (DBCFSN) propose a collaborative project called Farming Detroit that will increase the number and the success of the city's beginning farmers through education, training and mentoring that addresses the specific needs of limited-resource urban growers. The project will serve limited-resource beginning farmers that are socially disadvantaged, often facing multiple barriers to opportunities for economic self-sustainability. This grant provides the organizations with an opportunity to take the apprenticeship programs to the next level, and formalize a partnership that will improve and standardize the training curriculum by capitalizing on each one's strengths and increasing access to resources such as shared farm sites, teachers, and equipment. Merging the two programs will maximize the use of expertise and best practices learned by each organization in previous years, and provide for more efficient use of financial, human and material resources, and greater efficiencies in administrative staff costs.

OBJECTIVES: Provide an urban agriculture apprenticeship program that serves 10 beginning farmers each year that includes six months of training, work and educational experiences to build skills and knowledge that prepare apprentices for careers in urban agriculture.100% of those participating will be beginning farmers (those who have operated a farmer for less than ten years). At least 80% will be residents of Detroit, Hamtramck or Highland Park, will be socially disadvantaged and have access to limited resources.Participants will earn $9-12 in hourly wages (depending on experience) through the apprenticeship, totaling $8,190-$10,920 in compensation by the end of the season.Apprentices will receive 900 hours of classroom training and in-the-field growing experience on topics that include soil management, composting, pest control, crop planning, irrigation, farm equipment, community organizing, marketing, land acquisition, financial and risk management. Apprentices also will participate in training and activities to build their understanding of community needs related to Detroit's food system, and learn about opportunities to strengthen the community's voice and participation in issues of food access and security.At the end of the six-month apprenticeship, participants will demonstrate gains in knowledge and understanding of agriculture production techniques, crop farming and farm business operations to support their capacity to successfully engage in sustainable, small-scale urban farming in Detroit. All apprentices will report confidence in performing at least 80% of tasks listed on an 80-point post-training assessment.At the end of the six-month apprenticeship, participants will report increases in their knowledge of community resources, including connections and relationships with other farmers in addition to organizations, businesses and sector leaders, to support their success.50% of apprentices will be employed in agriculture work within six months of completing the program, and 25% of all apprentices trained will be engaged in a new farm startup.

APPROACH: Apprentices will be recruited during the winter months, hired in April, and will work through September. Recruitment strategies will include job postings on each agency's website, and through outreach at community centers, schools, places of worship, neighborhood associations, community organizations, and other similar sites in Detroit. Applicants will be interviewed to assess experience and interest, and they will also participate in a hands-on assessment to determine their potential ability to perform farm operations.The Greening and DBCFSN will conduct the project during a one-year project period, reaching a total of 10 participants. The apprenticeship will offer participants a twelve-week training program that blends hands-on, experiential learning with workshop-based studies. Training will be tailored to address the needs of the participating limited-resource and socially disadvantaged farmers, and will specifically focus on the challenges and opportunities that are unique to Detroit's urban environment. Upon completing their first year in the program, graduating apprentices will be able to serve as mentors to additional beginning farmers.

PROGRESS: 2015/09 TO 2016/08
Target Audience:The project served limited-resource beginning farmers that are socially disadvantaged, facing multiple barriers to opportunities for economic self-sustainability. Detroit was once a thriving manufacturing city, but today, the city's poverty rates are among the highest in the U.S., with 39.3% of residents living below the federal poverty level.Detroit's unemployment rate remains double that of the national average. Hamtramck and Highland Park, both located completely within Detroit city limits, face the same economic challenges. The financial constraints associated with joblessness and the high costs of a nutritious diet are further compounded by a lack of access to quality grocery stores, creating barriers that prevent many Detroiters from access to adequate food. Car ownership rates are lower in Detroit than the metropolitan region as a whole, with more than one-fifth of households functioning without a car. Food products with which to assemble balanced and nutritious meals are difficult to access with a lack of significant grocery outlets and public transportation to get to them. Most Detroiters travel twice as far to get to a grocery store than they would to find fast food, as a result, Detroit residents redeem 56% of their food stamps at party stores, liquor stores, dollar stores, and other venues which rarely pro-vide the quality, fresh, and diverse foods necessary to make up a balanced diet. Due to these conditions, low-income socially disadvantaged residents of Detroit, Highland Park and Hamtramck were the target audience reached by this project. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Class titled 'Social Justice' explored the historical conditions that lead to hunger and poverty particularly within an urban environment allowing participants to understand community engagement. Discussed tool safety, personal safety & hygiene, and body mechanics History of Urban Agriculture in Detroit specifically. Participants took a tour of Detroit historical sites related to farming and self determination, and viewed a presentation on the important figures, networks, projects, and resources in the city Class focusing on soil composition, topics included soil testing, soil building and types of soil. Conducted on site at Earthworks Urban Farm Botany- discussed basic plant parts and functions Tilling demonstration Transplant production- how to plan, start, maintain and transplant vegetable starts Pest and disease management- Tour of Detroit Market Garden to learn how to identify common pests, deceases, and natural remedies. Crop Planning and Rotation taught at D-Town farms Composting- Urban scale composting systems for your farm Post Harvest handling, Storage and getting ready for market. This class discussed various market options like CSA, wholesale and retail. Season Extention- Discussed various season extension devices including high tunnels, cold frames, and row cover at Michigan State University Business Planning Basics- Participants wrote a mock business plan and listened to a panel of industry lenders including banks, grant opportunities and farm service agency Purchasing land in Detroit: Guest Speaker: Community farmer who has successfully gone through the city process of purchasing land spoke to participants about their experience Growing fruits and vegetables - in addition to learning plant families, this class explored growing methods for various crops. Basic Carpentry- participants learned power tool handling and basics of typical building and maintenance activities required to operate a farm Nutrition and Farm Cooking: Guest Presenter - The Greening's Nutrition Educator planned and cooked a meal using farm vegetables and discussed nutrition basics Introduction to Bee Keeping. This class included the basics of bee-keeping within the city and the importance of pollinators for crop yield. Urban Chickens- Participants learned the basics of raising chickens in the city and toured Georgia Street Community farm Food Preservation- This three part class taught pickling, canning, freezing and dehydrating to promote safe food storage and minimization of waste. Seed Saving 101- explored the importance of seed saving and various techniques involved. Know your History/Know your Future- Participants develop a presentation on the history of farming in their family and what their future farming plans are. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Nothing Reported What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

IMPACT: 2015/09 TO 2016/08
What was accomplished under these goals? The Greening of Detroit and Black Community Food Security Network supported seventeen beginning farmers. This work included experiential experience at Detroit Market Garden Farm and D-Town farm in addition to several other local urban agriculture operations focusing on fruit orchards, vegetable production and rearing urban livestock. Educational opportunities to build skills and knowledge comprehension are detailed below One-hundred percent of the seventeen participants served by this project were beginning farmers, having operated as a farmer for less than ten years. The majority of participants had been farming for less than 2 years All seventeen participants were paid between $9 and $12 per hour based on their experience and progression of increased task responsibility through-out the apprenticeship Apprentices received over 900 hours of combined classroom training, in-the-field growing experience and field trip participation on topics including soil management, composting, pest control, crop planning, irrigation, farm equipment, community organizing, marketing, land acquisition, financial and risk management. Apprentices also participated in training and activities to build their understanding of community needs related to Detroit's food system, and learn about opportunities to strengthen the community's voice and participation in issues of food access and security. For a detail of the training provided please see below One hundred percent of participants demonstrated gains in knowledge and understanding of agricultural production techniques, crop farming and farm business operations. Participants' skills were noted to have increased through observational reporting, evaluations which measured project material comprehension and self-reporting on the post-training assessment On the 80-point post-training assessment all participants reported increased confidence in their knowledge of community resources, including an expanded network of relationships with other farmers and farming operations , community resource organizations, financial lenders and business leaders to support their continued success At the conclusion of this project 24% of participants had already arraigned new work opportunities on beginning local farms. One hundred percent of program participants indicated through post-training survey that they would seek out agriculture work during the next growing season. Eleven percent of apprentices were actively developing their own new farm setup for operation in 2017

PUBLICATIONS (not previously reported): 2015/09 TO 2016/08
No publications reported this period.