Detroit: Urban Agriculture Tour

Finished up the Michigan Association of Planning's annual conference today with a great tour, and met some pretty fascinating Detroit people who are doing amazing things,.

Japanese journalists film us touring D-Town farm

In the morning we headed over to D-Town Farm, run by the Detroit Black Food Security Network on land in Detroit's Rouge Park.  The land is  leased from the City of Detroit for $1/year for 10 years.  Our host, Malik Yakini, chairman of the DBFSN as well as a Detroit Charter School principal, gave us a tour and an explanation of the DBFSN as well as the context in which it is doing its work.  The goal of D-Town farm is to create a model for urban agriculture and to achieve food security for Detroit's black population. D-Town sells produce at Eastern Market, other Farmer's markets in the City, and several restaurants.

Yakini says he is unapologetic about the intent of the DBFSN to advance black power and expressed the local grassroots movements' opposition to large-scale urban agriculture within City limits that does not have the interests of the community in mind.  We also discussed food policy issues; Yakini is on the Michigan Food Policy Council and is working to help develop policy within the city and at the state level that will help community-scale urban agriculture.

While we were there, Japanese journalists filmed our tour for a TV station, and a French radio reporter showed up, wanting to interview Yakini, who seemed used to the attention this project and others like it is garnering on the international stage.

Gwen, who came to Earthworks Urban Farm from Nebraska
 through Americorps

EarthWorks Urban Farm

Next we visited Earthworks Urban Farm, a project of the Capuchin monastery in partnership with Gleaners Food Bank, which has been in operation for ten years. Our tour host, Gwen, came to the Farm via an Americorps assignment and has stayed on through the end of this growing season.  She spoke of the need to engage the local African-American community in urban agriculture, noting that the movement is often led by young, white transplants. The Capuchin program trains local neighborhood residents in farming and gardening, and utilizes the produce in the soup kitchen, which serves neighborhood residents in need..

Home

I often wonder if our sense of place is not tied deeply to our childhood experience- and since we often don't live in those childhood places as adults, if we are constrained to ever feel at home when we leave.

I never moved out of Michigan, but I did move to another city and can't say even after ten years that I truly think of it as home.  Will this change as I raise my children here?

This weekend a place-event is happening: the St. Joan of Arc spring fair, an event that is as close to the core of my sense of place as is anything I can imagine. I will never forget the excitement in grade school as the carnival rolled in to town and began setting up in the parking lots adjacent to the school and church. Always in mid-May, the fair represented a time of renewal. We were released from school early on Friday to enjoy the warm spring days and ride the Ship Dragon and Tilt-a-Whirl.

The east side of Detroit and the eastside suburbs-  Lake St. Clair, St. Clair Shores, and Grosse Pointe, still feel more like home to me than anywhere else.

Image Credit: Andrew Potter: http://andrewpotterphoto.blogspot.com

GOOD Magazine The Neighborhood Issue

New to me is GOOD Magazine, which has been around since 2006. GOOD is a quarterly concern which focuses on good ideas, and covers business, cities, culture, design, education, environment, food, health, media, politics, technology, and transportation. The website includes a forum where readers can contribute and engage.

The current issue focuses on neighborhoods, bringing together a lot of urban planning theory and common-sense good ideas to create a graphically beautiful, engaging piece. The volume includes a "Good Guide to Better Neighborhoods" includes twelve ideas, including the standard (plant a community garden, throw a block party),  novel (create a neighborhood clubhouse, find a third place), and timely ideas (squatting in a foreclosed home).

I highly recommend the issue, website and blog.

Issue 019 - GOOD Magazine - GOOD

Michigan Green Leaders

Just in time for Earth Day,  Detroit Free Press has a Sunday spread on Michigan Green Leaders, highlighting individuals who are leading the way to a brighter, greener future in the state. I am fortunate to know and work with several of these individuals.  They are all truly visionaries. View a slideshow here.


Image Credit: Detroit Free Press

Growing Up in a Place: No Child Left Inside

Lately, my husband and four-year old son have been obsessed with Super Mario Brothers for the Wii.    They spend hours at a time collecting coins, absorbing magic mushrooms and destroying all manner of mythical creatures. While I can remember spending hours on the original NES game myself back in the 80's (yes, I saved the princess), this development highlights a rather strong difference between my husband and I regarding our parenting philosophies: I don't think this is such great thing. He just thinks they are bonding.

Last Saturday we went for a walk in the park; it was the first nice day in a very long time. It quickly became clear how much Super Mario's landscape had invaded my son's mind.  He related inanimate objects to Mario creatures.  He equated the fire pole at the playscape to the flagpole scaled by Mario at the end of each level. As we walked, he pretended to be throwing giant turtle shells at us, and pretended to be hopping to avoid poison mushrooms.

Yes, it was all very cute,  But I do worry (I am a mom, right?). I am not a puritan about video games, but he is very young.  I think there needs to be a balance between fantasy and reality, and there needs to be space for imagination to thrive.  Exploring the outdoors, I believe, is the surest way to stimulate the imagination, and I think it is critical for children.

Raising kids in a cold climate presents some challenges.  Weather can discourage parents from getting their kids outside.We get out to local recreation ares and parks when we can, but not as much as we should.  We are blessed with a wonderful town full of trails, parks, and rivers, and we need to get out there .

The No Child Left Inside movement, which echoes the No Child Left Behind Act, was inspired by Richard Louv's book Last Child in the Woods, and is trying to bring attention to this issue by combating  so-called "Nature Deficit Disorder."

Local initiatives abound; here in Southeast Michigan we have No Child Left Inside Days (April 20-25) sponsored the the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Environment, an upcoming summit on the topic at UM Dearborn in June, Nature Connections out of Milford, and a locally authored book, One Child One Planet.

Because we have always been avid hikers, campers, and backpackers, I am really not too worried about my son's video game obsession. We'll get outside soon, as the weather improves. In the meantime, I try to pull him away from time to time, if only to take a breath of fresh air on the front porch.

Detroit Declaration

"I so love your heart that burns
That in your people’s body yearns
To perpetuate,
and permeate,
the lonely dream that does encapsulate,
Your spirit, that God insulates,
With courageous dream’s concern"

-Jack White

Came across this recently....

We know you’re out there. We know you love Detroit and want to see it not just survive, but thrive. This is our rallying cry. Welcome to a political movement for a brighter Detroit future.

Visitors are encouraged to sign the Declaration for Detroit, join the Facebook page, and spread the word. More detailed policy recommendations calling for sustainable arts funding, a comprehensive land-use strategy, and transit system modernization are drafted for three of 12 principlesin the Declaration, .

A recent article in USA today elaborates on this as a new form of grassroots online activism.

As of this writing, the Facebook page has 9,499 fans, and the site launched just over a month ago.

The Declaration is a manifesto drafted by 20 Detroit residents that outlines 12 principles for the community to follow to revive Detroit:

• Be welcoming and embrace our diversity.
• Preserve our authenticity
• Cultivate creativity.
• Diversify our economy.
• Promote sustainability.
• Enhance quality of place.
• Demand transportation alternatives.
• Prioritize education, pre-K through 12 and beyond.
• Elevate our universities and research institutions.
• Enhance the value of city living.
• Demand government accountability.
• Think regionally and leverage our geography.

I am excited about the content of the manifesto. These are all things I support wholeheartedly. And I think the language used in the declaration is eloquent and concise. To whomever is responsible: Bravo!

It is heartening to see this type of grass-roots activism building. It's heartening to see any type of positive energy regarding Detroit, especially in light of all of the negative press. It's also very easy to become a fan of a Facebook page and sign an online petition, but difficult to do the real work to make a dent in the tidal wave of forces that have conspired to destroy Detroit.

I have chosen to remain in the metro Detroit area primarily so my children can know their grandparents. My great-grandparents came here early in the century from Sicily, and built their lives here. I have extended family and friends all over the region. I have happy memories of the Eastern Market Saturdays and visits to Belle Isle with my dad, fishing on the Detroit River at Angell Park, Greektown lambchop family gatherings (Opa!), dinner at Lelli's and Larco's with my grandparents, Tiger Stadium, old and new. I have a strong sense of connection to this place, and I wonder whether it will ever improve within my lifetime. And I wonder what, if anything, I can do about it.

Because, of course, I live in the suburbs.

Like most Detroiters.