Metropolitan Agriculture in North America: From Planning to Development - First Forum

First Forum for the North American Urban and Peri-Urban Agriculture Alliance

Saturday, October 4th 2008 Noon - 5:30pm
University of Pennsylvania, Houston Hall,
3418 Spruce St., Philadelphia PA

Please join us for the first public forum for the new North American Urban and Peri-Urban Agriculture Alliance (NAUPAA), founded to support the growing community of sustainable farmers and policy makers working in and around the metropolitan areas of the U.S., Canada, and beyond.

Hosts:
North American Urban and Peri-Urban Agriculture Alliance (NAUPAA)
Penn Planning
Penn Institute for Urban Research
With support from the Cedar Tree Foundation, Boston

The afternoon will start with an informal networking lunch. This will be followed by roundtable discussions of regional planning and community and economic development, moderated by Penn Planning’s Tom Daniels and Domenic Vitiello, featuring leading practitioners, policy makers, and scholars of sustainable agriculture. The event will conclude with the first general meeting of the Alliance, led by its coordinators (Martin Bailkey, James Kuhns and Joe Nasr).

On the following day, NAUPAA and the City Parks Association of Philadelphia are co-sponsoring a field trip - Farmadelphia, a visit to Greensgrow Farm, Weavers Way Farm, Saul Agricultural High School, and Mill Creek Farm. The event is also one of the concurrent activities of the annual conference of the Community Food Security Coalition, taking place in Cherry Hill, NJ, October 5-8. This forum is an important opportunity to connect with colleagues in metropolitan agriculture from across North America and the world.

Confirmed speakers include:
· Marcia Caton Campbell (Center for Resilient Cities, Milwaukee)
· Roxanne Christensen (Institute for Innovation in Local Farming, Philadelphia)
· Marielle Dubbeling (RUAF, the Netherlands)
· Gail Myers (Farms to Grow, Oakland)
· Wayne Roberts (Toronto Food Policy Council)

The $30 ticket for this forum includes a locally grown lunch (with ample vegetarian options), coffee and snacks. The cost of the full-day field trip is $75. Transportation will be provided from and to the CFSC hotel in Cherry Hill. A limited number of student scholarships are available on a first-come basis.

Link to Conference Schedule.