-Toronto has a municipal election coming up in about two weeks. It looks like two of the major candidates strongly support more funding for urban agriculture! Not to be outdone, prominent American politicians are throwing their support behind urban ag as well, Congressman Tim Ryan is probably the biggest proponent so far.
-How did Buffalo, a resource-strapped city, go from a laggard to an urban agriculture mecca in just 10 years? A University of Buffalo researcher outlines their path to success:
-Engaging in “ordinary, incremental, persistent practices” ;
-Building a diverse but unified coalition ;
-Balancing incremental and systemic change;
-Nurturing communitywide capacity ;
-Responding nimbly to windows of opportunity ;
-Getting support from local government ;
-Connecting food to the popular issues of the day .
Check out the whole article in the Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development
Changes in local laws followed years of on-the-ground action by MAP, which grew food, sold it to low-income residents, and raised fish on an urban aquaponics farm.
MAP’s “Rust Belt radicals” had limited policy reach on their own, so they partnered with the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, government officials, farmers and others to get messages out. All had a shared vision for improving Buffalo’s food system.
MAP built urban farms (incremental change), while also pushing lawmakers to amend land use laws (systemic change).
MAP trained hundreds of youth to produce, distribute and sell food, and worked with partners to send policymakers to food-related workshops. This created a large body of experts with the know-how to move Buffalo’s food policies forward.
MAP and its allies jumped at the chance to advise planners writing the city’s new Green Code. Such windows of opportunity may open rarely; activists must take advantage when they do.
Continual engagement with city planners and councilmembers resulted in an awareness of problems surrounding food, which in turn led to proposals for new laws.
Economic revitalization is a priority for post-industrial cities across the Rust Belt. Recognizing this, MAP lobbied policymakers on the idea that food — and good food policy — could be vehicles for economic development.
Changes in local laws followed years of on-the-ground action by MAP, which grew food, sold it to low-income residents, and raised fish on an urban aquaponics farm.
MAP’s “Rust Belt radicals” had limited policy reach on their own, so they partnered with the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, government officials, farmers and others to get messages out. All had a shared vision for improving Buffalo’s food system.
MAP built urban farms (incremental change), while also pushing lawmakers to amend land use laws (systemic change).
MAP trained hundreds of youth to produce, distribute and sell food, and worked with partners to send policymakers to food-related workshops. This created a large body of experts with the know-how to move Buffalo’s food policies forward.
MAP and its allies jumped at the chance to advise planners writing the city’s new Green Code. Such windows of opportunity may open rarely; activists must take advantage when they do.
Continual engagement with city planners and councilmembers resulted in an awareness of problems surrounding food, which in turn led to proposals for new laws.
Economic revitalization is a priority for post-industrial cities across the Rust Belt. Recognizing this, MAP lobbied policymakers on the idea that food — and good food policy — could be vehicles for economic development.
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