IFOAM Congress 26th September to 5th October, 2011 in the Republic
Korea.

Goals of the conference – Organic urban agriculture:

To discuss how to solve the issue of reduced farm land caused by urbanization in the world; to pursue agriculture accessible to urbanites in the urbanized area; and to discuss the conditions necessary for urban agriculture to perform positively. The main objective of this urban agriculture conference is to improve the natural environment of urban areas and to preserve healthy ecological systems.

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Photo by Stephanie Parker.

GRO1000 Grassroots Grants in the amount of up to $1,500

The next round of applications will be accepted starting in the fall 2011

Overview

The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company has established GRO1000, a commitment to install 1,000 gardens and green spaces in the United States and select international sites by 2018. The last installation will be completed in 2018, which coincides with the 150th anniversary of the founding of ScottsMiracle-Gro.

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This map shows the location of urban agriculture projects, volunteers and available space.

Bringing city dwellers together to explore inspirational ways of producing, storing, cooking, preserving, distributing and sharing food.

Excerpts:

In Amsterdam, Farming the City has brought together, for the first time, representatives from the ever-expanding range of players involved in local urban and suburban food production, including community activists, local politicians, computer geeks, planners, policy-makers, farmers, gardeners, shopkeepers, social workers, developers, landlords, engineers, designers, health professionals and academics.

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Photo: Little City Gardens, by Caitlyn Galloway.

“This legislation is proof that “the system,” as ossified and change-resistant as it may seem, can occasionally work.”

By Antonio Roman-Alcalá
Civil Eats
April 14th, 2011

Excerpt:

This week, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed the most progressive legislation for urban agriculture in the nation. The new legislation has amended the zoning code to allow agricultural activities in all parts of the city, as well as defining the parameters by which urban agriculturists can sell their products. It doesn’t address the touchier subjects of animal husbandry or marijuana cultivation, but has created opportunities for and the legitimacy of urban fruit and vegetable cultivation.

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A few of the steps urban farmers can take to protect the health and quality of our urban watershed

By Daniel Dermitzel
Mother Earth News
4/13/2011

Excerpt:

The growing popularity of urban agriculture presents an opportunity to reduce the amount of water and pollutants entering our combined sewer systems. Urban farmers and our community as a whole have much to gain from implementing a few simple techniques to reduce runoff and pollution of our urban watershed. Our productive urban landscapes (i.e., farms and gardens) have the potential to be more environmentally friendly than the many chemically treated lawns and unproductive green spaces we currently see throughout our city.

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