A Rooted University: Growing Resiliency, Community, and Engaged Food Citizens at the UM Campus Farm
Borgman, Mariel; Burnette, Dana; Cole, Sara; Gourley, Ryan; Guckian, Meaghan; Jacokes, Meghan; Smith, Stephanie
2014-04
Abstract
In response to the recommendation from the Campus Sustainability Integrated Assessment of University of Michigan (2009), and the long-time vision of a core group of faculty and staff representing the Sustainable Food Initiative at the University of Michigan, the School of Natural Resources and Environment’s Sustainable Food Program 2012-2013 Master’s Project Team established the University of Michigan Sustainable Food Program (UMSFP) and the University of Michigan Campus Farm. Since its inception, UMSFP has remained an entirely student-driven initiative. A leadership team of four graduate students and four undergraduate students is responsible for program oversight and makes all of the core decisions surrounding its administration. In January 2013, UMSFP Program Manager, Emily Canosa, was hired to provide mentorship and support to the student leaders and to aid in the continuity to the program, as student leadership turns over each year. Emily is the only non-student member involved in the UMSFP leadership meetings. UMSFP also has an advisory board comprised of the students on the UMSFP leadership team, faculty, and staff. The program has since blossomed into a community of 10 active member groups, each representing unique interests in sustainable food. One of these member groups, Friends of the Campus Farm, along with student interns hired by the Matthaei Botanical Gardens, are responsible for directing and managing the Campus Farm, located at the Matthaei Botanical Gardens. The Farm began as a pilot program in May 2012, and it grew to its full production space of two acres, with a quarter acre cultivated, in Summer 2013. The Campus Farm was founded with this threefold mission (Dengate et. al, 2013): 1. Develop responsible citizens and leaders by facilitating formal and informal education on sustainable food topics. 2. Strengthen communities through collaborative programming and outreach 3. Grow sustainable food that supports the well-being of people and the environmental at the University of Michigan and beyond In line with this mission, programming at the farm has flourished since the planting of the pilot plot in May 2012: • Students can buy produce on campus in the fall at MFarmers’ Markets and at UMSFP’s member group Student Food Co.’s bi-weekly produce table • University courses incorporate the farm into their curriculum and projects, racking up more than 600 hours of course contact annually • Friends of the Campus Farm schedules regular workdays and volunteer opportunities for upwards of forty loyal volunteers who donate over 1900 hours of their time to the Farm each year. • New students get acquainted with the farm during Welcome Week and orientations • Three hundred community members celebrate each year at the Harvest FestivalSubjects
Campus Farm Agriculture Food Sustainability
Types
Project
Metadata
Show full item recordRemediation of Harmful Language
The University of Michigan Library aims to describe library materials in a way that respects the people and communities who create, use, and are represented in our collections. Report harmful or offensive language in catalog records, finding aids, or elsewhere in our collections anonymously through our metadata feedback form. More information at Remediation of Harmful Language.
Accessibility
If you are unable to use this file in its current format, please select the Contact Us link and we can modify it to make it more accessible to you.