An urban farming non-profit called Fresh Roots, which has been working with Queen Alexandra elementary on its garden, hopes to create two more partnerships with Vancouver Technical and David Thompson secondary schools.
Fresh Roots, a project co-founded by Ilana Labow and Gray Oron in a backyard garden three years ago, now develops school-based market gardens to help teachers meet curriculum goals through experiential learning, while providing produce for school cafeterias and culinary arts programs.
The group has worked with Queen Alex for one full growing season.
"It's had such a tremendous impact in the school community that my inbox became flooded with requests from teachers in other schools to be in a partnership with us," Labow said, adding, "I've watched eight-year-old boys arm wrestle for broccoli flowers growing in that garden. It's astounding to see the student body hungry to pick collard greens and bring green beans home to their parents."
Although several schools approached Fresh Roots, it's currently focusing on agreements with Van Tech and David Thompson. The non-profit is making a presentation at a school board planning and facilities meeting tonight (Jan. 4) to get approval for the projects.
The high schools have gardens, but both need help. "They've found it's really challenging to maintain a garden on their own. Part of what we offer is a resilient partner in helping them steward their garden because they want to use their gardens for curriculum and they want to eat food from the gardens," Labow said. "But after a garden gets implemented, many teachers learn it's actually really challenging to grow food and teach."
At Van Tech, for example, the idea is to create a larger-scale market garden beside its existing garden.
"There will be spaces for curriculum, spaces for their experimenting, spaces for us to grow, spaces for them to use fields that we're growing for their curriculum etc.," Labow explained.
Fresh Roots overall goal is to create equitable access to local, healthy, sustainably grown food through urban farming and through community involvement.
Labow maintains society needs more people who are connected to where food comes from and more people who know how to grow food.
"Schools are a perfect place to make the connection between food, health and environment," she said. "This agreement [with Van Tech and David Thompson] is a really important link to a more food secure community."
Labow added that literature demonstrates that such programs improve children's nutrition, increase academic performance, increase children's knowledge and skills about food and the food system, strengthen the school community and reduce bullying, while supporting local farmers and the food economy, and reducing the schools' contribution to climate change.
Labow, the project developer for Fresh Roots Urban Farm, was trained at and worked with Growing Power in Chicago and studied under a leading sustainable agriculturalist at Arava Institute for Environmental Studies in Israel. She's a graduate of UBC's Land and Food Systems Department.
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