Sowing Seeds Here & Now: A Chesapeake Urban Farming Summit

Last week I attended an urban agriculture conference organized by Engaged Community Offshoots, Inc. (ECO) and hosted at the United States Department of Agriculture. ECO is an organization which “seeks to reverse the effects of systemic poverty, racism, and environmental destruction through establishing and promoting social venture community-based businesses.” My friends at Baltimore Food & Faith Project made it possible for me to attend and I must say I really enjoyed the conference.

I left with great information about local resources, businesses, and community folks who are helping to create the nexus of sustainable living, responsible environmentalism, and alternative community building. The conference underscored the great challenges of our society today which are very real. For instance, a few of the speakers reminded us that now in the United States there are 40 million people enrolled in the federal food stamps program now called SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). However, while the problems are real, the opportunities are just as stimulating. Sometimes, when the ground under your feet shakes violent enough, you’ll start looking for another leg to stand on. The attendance at the conference was evidence to me that people are truly searching out sustainable ways to co-exist with each other and the earth.

One of the stars of this urban agricultural movement is Will Allen, head of the national nonprofit organization called Growing Power, Inc. By way of live internet stream and approximately 600 powerpoint slides, Mr. Allen shared with us the Growing Power story. It’s no surprise that he and his organization have been recognized by the White House, Time Magazine, and countless other organizations and publications.

And as inspiring as his story is, he’s not the first to introduce the nobility of agriculture as community development to me. I must recognize the Nation of Islam for the pioneering work that they’ve been doing down through the years in terms of empowering impoverished communities with seed, soil, and spiritual uplift. Their Ministry of Agriculture provides fabulous information, research, and encouragement about how to eat to live.

In addition to the obtained information, networking, resource identification such as the USDA Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships; I probably benefited the most from learning about the many other religious communities in the country who have taken more initial, yet similarly compelling steps in agricultural and community development. As wonderful as Growing Power and other similar national efforts are, at times I can read or watch their stories and feel like it’s too far out of reach for where I am right now with my church. I don’t have acres of land (yet!). I have a backyard on a main road. I don’t have a massive staff. I have about 2 faithful volunteers who know what they’re doing and a few more like me who are just developing green thumbs. Hearing the stories of those who are just a bit closer to the starting line was most helpful to me. At this stage, I need building blocks. And I got them at the conference while learning about efforts like Common Good Farm in Washington, DC, Faith in Place in Chicago, and Goodness Grows in Ohio. Meeting folks connected with these farms and agricultural efforts caused me to play with the idea of hiring a Church Farmer or something. In my religious context, I’ve never seen that, but given the complex challenges related to food and health in my community, maybe it’s time to consider different models of how we minister to the mind and body of Believers.

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed the conference and left with greater conviction that food and environmental stewardship is a spiritual and political issue that I cannot ignore in my personal life or public ministry.

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Tags: Common Good Farm, Food Stamps, Growing Power, SNAP, Urban Agriculture, USDA, Will Allen