2020 Urban Agriculture Conservation Grant Recipients
Conservation District Map
Urban 20 Overlay
2020 Urban Agriculture Conservation Grant Initiative Recipients
Listed alphabetically by state
California
Inland Empire RCD
Developing Urban Agriculture Projects and a New Generation of Urban Farmers in the Inland Empire
The Inland Empire RCD will develop new farmers market opportunities in an underserved community as a way to engage with local residents and encourage urban agriculture. Local farmers will be offered opportunities to participate in these markets and will be supported through GAP trainings, New Farmer Trainings and other technical assistance.
Riverside-Corona RCD
Conservation Projects for Northside Heritage Meadows
The Riverside-Corona RCD will provide planning and interpretive assistance, plus outreach for the Northside Heritage Meadows Project, which will serve emerging farmers, community gardeners and disadvantaged residents. The project will include interpretive signage, publications, conservation assistance, and community engagement in the development of a seven-acre urban agriculture, greening and community garden project.
Indiana
Marion County SWCD
Native Plant Agriculture on Urban Farms
The Marion County SWCD will utilize the conservation practices of cover crops, hedgerow planting, and multi-story cropping to enhance farm-scaping with native plants in order to provide perennial agricultural food and medicinal products, as well as valuable ecosystem services including biodiversity and critical habitat for beneficial insects and pollinators.
Maine
Cumberland SWCD
Community Agriculture Planning Project
The Cumberland SWCD Community Agriculture Planning Project will assist municipalities in creating Community Agriculture Plans to be easily integrated into larger municipal comprehensive plans and budgets. Implementing this project will expand the SWCD’s work to propagate enduring community agriculture programs throughout the county.
Michigan
Genesee CD
Urban Agriculture and Conservation Technical Assistance
The Genesee CD will provide technical assistance to urban growers and backyard conservationists in Flint, Michigan. The CD will operate an agriculture-producing market garden, convene local food system partners, repurpose vacant lots by applying conservation systems, develop community forestry and conservation outreach materials, and maintain their Urbanwood tree reutilization program.
Missouri
Boone County SWCD
Building Capacity to Support Urban Agriculture in the Boone County
The Boone County SWCD will build its capacity to support and sustain urban agriculture technical assistance, activities, outreach, promotions, and conservation practice education and implementation in central Missouri through the creation of a new urban ag specialist position.
New Mexico
Valencia SWCD
East Valencia Urban Gardens Program
The Valencia SWCD will enhance the East Valencia Urban Gardens Program by expanding a community garden, implementing a kids’ gardening program, establishing garden Community Advisory Boards, creating a school garden network, developing a grower’s market and building partnerships to support new farmers district-wide.
New York
Warren County SWCD
The Warren County SWCD is partnering with Warrensburg Community Gardens in constructing raised beds to demonstrate soil health best management practices and installing a hedgerow for beneficial insects and windbreak. The SWCD will host workshops on soil health BMPs including no-till, cover crops, mulching and nutrient management.
Ohio
Ashland SWCD
Encouraging Urban Agriculture in Ashland County
The Ashland SWCD will partner with Main Street Ashland, local Head Start and FFA programs to install urban gardens at Head Start centers bringing garden access to low-income families, efficiently managing stormwater and improving pollinator habitat–all while creating hands-on agricultural education opportunities for at-risk preschool students.
Cuyahoga SWCD
Establishing Perennial Food Systems in Cuyahoga County
The Cuyahoga SWCD will work with community groups to design and install a perennial urban agroforestry site and a school’s learning and eating orchard in Cuyahoga County with a focus on native North American fruits.
Pennsylvania
Allegheny County CD
Soil Health 2.0: Enhancing Productivity in Allegheny County
The Allegheny County CD will support a series of soil health science and management workshops, development of an Urban Soil Management Guide, provide staff support for a pilot Master Composter program, and map out soil properties for potential Urban Ag lands across vacant lots in two low-income communities.
Indiana County CD
Growing Community Education of Urban Agriculture with Community Partners
The Indiana County CD will establish local partnerships to improve operations and locate spaces for edible plants in order to provide onsite examples for workshops on urban agriculture and soil health BMPs. CD staff will be trained to prepare and run workshops to expand knowledge of local agriculture as well as soil and water management.
Rhode Island
Northern Rhode Island CD
Urban Growers Leadership Program
The Northern Rhode Island CD, in partnership with leading urban farming and gardening organizations, will provide technical assistance to support a new class of skilled urban growing leaders and trainers in Northern Rhode Island through a series of “Train the Trainer” workshops and long-term guidance.
South Carolina
Richland SWCD
BEEfriend Local Pollinators: Pollinator Conservation Technical Assistance, Demonstration and Outreach
The Richland SWCD will up-fit and expand a pollinator conservation demonstration and teaching area in a county-owned park and will use this resource to provide pollinator conservation technical assistance to small farmers, educators and home/community gardeners in the midlands of South Carolina through a series of outreach events and publicity campaigns.
Virginia
Colonial SWCD
Enhancing Urban Agriculture Through Conservation and Education
The Colonial SWCD will expand current urban agriculture conservation and education initiatives in partnership with non-profit Williamsburg Community Growers (WCG). This expansion will include demonstration projects with an emphasis on sustainability in a rapidly developing region, public educational opportunities, and continued development of the WCG Teaching Farm and Community Garden.
Washington
Kitsap CD
The GRACE Planting Pollinator Patches Project
The Kitsap CD will promote native pollinator conservation in urban environments by establishing pollinator/herb plantings in urban gardens, conducting outreach and collaborating on workshops with community partners. While providing fresh herbs to food banks and community meals, the gardens will demonstrate, educate and expand habitat for native pollinators.
Kittitas County CD
Thorp School District “Farm to School” Initiative
The Kittitas County CD will assist the Thorp School District in pursuing a “Farm to School” initiative including converting unused land on the school grounds into a viable, sustainable working farm, adding infrastructure including a greenhouse, integrating the initiative into K-12 classrooms, and promoting urban agriculture practices in the community.
Palouse CD
A Koppel Couple Meant to Be: Conservation and Community Farming
The Palouse CD will continue the preservation of Historic Koppel Farm by developing a long-term conservation plan to provide soil health, water quality and invasive species mitigation. The CD aims to encourage and support social programs that engage the community in access to healthy, fresh produce regardless of income.
Pierce CD
Tribal Sovereignty and Medicine Garden in East Tacoma
The Pierce CD will create an urban agriculture site and traditional medicine garden in a community that has historically been marginalized. This will create access to healthy food in a neighborhood with limited options, as well as access to traditional medicines and knowledge about using these plants.
Thurston CD
Home Grown Yelm
The Thurston CD will work with the growing population of Yelm to produce local food. Workshops, technical assistance, and publication of an urban livestock manual will empower this underserved community. Businesses, city government, and community organizations will partner to create a resilient Yelm with improved access to healthy food.
Underwood CD
Growing Sustainable Agriculture in the Columbia Gorge
The Underwood CD will grow its conservation technical assistance capacity, tool library and social capital, allowing the CD to assist urban and suburban small-scale farmers in building their skills, soil health, access to equipment and land, and resilience in the face of population growth and climate change.