Latest news with #urbanagriculture
CBS News
23-05-2025
- General
- CBS News
Denver Urban Gardens slows plans for expansion following federal cuts
Denver Urban Gardens, a nonprofit that has built hundreds of gardens across seven counties in the Denver metro area, is having to revisit its plans for expansion after its federal grants were pulled back. CBS DUG received a combined $1.2 million in federal funding that they planned on using to increase food access for six West Denver neighborhoods, but now those plans have been uprooted. "This is my plot right here, tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, anything for a salad," said Joe Milia, showing off his garden in downtown Denver. DUG is celebrating 40 years as a nonprofit, and although its plans for expansion have slowed with federal funding drying up, its impact in the city is still being felt. "If you saw this area, this whole garden, a few years ago, there was nothing here," said Milia. "It was kind of torn apart and run down. DUG, taking this over has not only allowed people to take these 30 plus plots and grow food, but it also has beautified a section of downtown." CBS Milia has gardened here for two years, and although he may not be dependent on the garden to put food on the table, it brings him a sense of accomplishment and community. "When you take something from a seed or a small plant to growing it, nurturing it, cleaning the whole park around it," said Milia. "Then eventually bringing it home and having a salad, it's getting your hands dirty and accomplishing something." "These gardens are incredible ways to bring people from all ages, all walks of life, all demographics together to grow food," said the organization's executive director, Linda Appel Lipsius. "And it's so simple and beautiful, and something that you know, Denver can use more of." Appel Lipsius has been working for years to make a deeper impact in the community, while bringing fresh produce to areas where it's hard to get. "The community came together and said, we need food," said Appel Lipsius. "Access to this affordable, fresh, healthy food is either going to go away entirely or be dramatically reduced." CBS The West Area Plan included community gardens and food forests, which are more like public orchards where anyone can stop in and take the food. But, that dream may now take years to bear fruit because of a drastic cut to the program's funding. "So far we have lost two thirds of the $1.2 million that we received from the federal government," said Appel Lipsius. "Now we're still doing it, but it's just going to be a lot slower, and it's really pretty heartbreaking because it was something that was going to be truly transformational for the community."
Washington Post
21-05-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
New York's big bet on offshore wind may still pay off
SUNSET PARK, New York — In a city where waterfront development typically means towering glass boxes filled with luxury condos and designer boutiques, the Latino environmental justice group UPROSE has fought for years to create new jobs in sustainable manufacturing, renewable energy and urban agriculture along the banks of New York Harbor.
CBC
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
Edmonton has named the magpie as its city bird and symbol
The new face of Edmonton is a bird ... and it is the magpie. One Edmonton resident has been promoting his favourite bird to be recognized by the city for years. Dustin Bajer is an urban agriculture consultant in Edmonton.
RNZ News
08-05-2025
- Science
- RNZ News
Researchers ask how we could survive a nuclear war, in Palmerston North
Photo: United States Department of Energy Residents living near cities would have to produce food to feed city populations in the event of a global catastrophe, like nuclear war or a massive volcanic eruption, a new study has found. The team at Adapt Research, supporting independent charity Islands for the Future of Humanity, modelled how a city could feed its people after such a disaster, if global links to imports like fuel, food and also transport and telecommunications were disrupted. Researchers used Palmerston North of Manawatū-Whanganui as a case study of a median-sized land-locked city of 91,000 people to model yields from agriculture with the food supply needed to feed the population. Lead author, Dr Matt Boyd said they found 80 percent of the city's food supply needed could be met by growing food within a one kilometre radius of the city, and 20 percent of the supply could be topped up by urban agriculture. "We established within Palmerston North, in this case, the amount of potential land where you might be able to grow food, like people's backyards and golf courses and parks and things, and what would be the optimal crops to grow that would produce the most protein and food energy per area of land, and therefore feed the most people," he said. The eruption of Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki as seen from the Eputobi rest area in East Flores, East Nusa Tenggara. Photo: AFP / National Disaster Mitigation Agency "What we found is that it's a surprisingly little amount of near urban land that would sort of top up to feed the city's population." He said the Covid-19 pandemic inspired the need for the research, "because we all remember what happened to supply chains ." Freight and food security for global commodities like wheat were also threatened in the years that followed , when the Russia-Ukraine war began in February 2022. Researchers modelled which crops would be most efficient to grow in an environment where imports were no longer possible, to maximise caloric and protein yields. They found peas and potatoes would suit normal growing conditions, whereas sugar beet, spinach, wheat and carrots would be most efficient during a nuclear winter scenario. Food security has also been further threatened by the Russia-Ukraine war. Photo: RNZ / Samantha Gee Considering the country's reliance on imported fuel as our "Achille's heel," Boyd said agricultural machinery could still run, powered by biofuel that was produced by 9 percent of the entire city crop. "During a global catastrophe that disrupts trade, fuel imports could cease, severely impacting the industrial food production and transportation systems that keep our supermarket shelves filled. "To survive, New Zealanders will need to dramatically localise food production in and around our cities. This research explores how we might do that." Boyd said modest investments into securing seed availability, integrated food security into the wider national security and building local food processing capacity could be the difference between survival and famine. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
