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2 days ago
Krista Leraas
Posted project update #11Shir Tikvah: A new food shelf garden host
Post CommentLast week we made a new friend. Shir Tikvah, a synagogue community in South Minneapolis, will be the new hosts of a garden dedicated to The Aliveness Project & we couldn't be happier.
Social activism has always been a part of Shir Tikvah's vision & purpose. In fact, they have supported The Aliveness Project in many ways over the years & are delighted to continue to do so with the garden.
We are excited to work with Shir Tikvah's wonderful staff & congregants to install, maintain, & harvest the garden as well as to deliver produce to The Aliveness Project's kitchen. May this be the start of a long & fulfilling relationship!
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on January 31
Krista Leraas
Posted project update #10New video series celebrates food cooperatives & features us!
Krista & one of our 2011 food shelf gardens are featured in the premiere of this new video series by celebrity chef Kevin Gillespie of Top Chef fame. Check it out!Post Comment -
on January 10
Krista Leraas
Posted project update #9Meet our first urban farming student of 2012!
Post CommentThe process of matching PRI's urban farming students with Harvest Moon's food shelf gardens has begun. Our first match is placing Allen Killian-Moore in the garden at the Land Stewardship Project's building where he will be growing vegetables and herbs for The Aliveness Project. He is an artist who is rediscovering his love of soil and growing food.
Allen was raised in the garden, with his early experiences informing an interest in food cultivation. His mother grew up on a farm in Wisconsin and brought that knowledge to urban Minnesota where she grew every kind of vegetable imaginable in a small backyard plot. Those experiences as a child gave Allen a love of the soil. He has taught gardening to kids in New York and worked with the Youth Farm and Market Project in Minneapolis. He hopes to implement an urban farm, growing, harvesting, eating, and marketing organically grown produce utilizing a permaculture methodology. Allen is also very interested in issues of food-justice and distributing knowledge or resources along egalitarian lines, building sustainable communities in the process. He wants to connect people to the sources of their food, providing them with the tools and know-how to cultivate their own foods and build sustainable lives.
Allen is also an artist, writer, environmentalist, and curator. He works in a variety of disciplines including film and video, natural cultivation, mixed-media, sound art, and photography. Allen has described these disciplines as being complementary and fluid, each drawing upon elements from the others in a symbiotic relationship. His work offers contemplation on both the frailty and resilience of life, as well as exploring human relationships with the natural environment and the degree to which social, cultural, or economic structures shape our existence. These interests are often viewed through an ethical, spiritual, or philosophical frame within his work. A primary concern inherent in his practice is the desire for progressive dialogue while allowing room for thoughts or actions to connect in a dynamic interchange of people and ideas.
We are looking forward to working with you, Allen!
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on December 3
Krista Leraas
Posted project update #8Unbelievable!
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on December 3Funded!
Gardens for Food Shelves = Training for Urban Farmers by Krista Leraas
Let's do both! While we're at it, let's install veggie gardens & do garden coaching for low-income homeowners. Mmm, mmm, good!
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102% funded $9,145 pledged
- 157 backers
- Funded Dec 03, 2011
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on December 2
Krista Leraas
Posted project update #7New rewards posted
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on December 2
Krista Leraas
Posted project update #6Less than 24 hours left!
We are getting close, dear backers & would-be backers. We have less than 23 hours to raise $3,700. It CAN be done!
Consider doubling your pledge! If we get just 87 people to double their pledges or become new backers, we will make it!
Why do it? What makes this project so powerful?
- It has so many beneficiaries:
- HIV/AIDS patients get vegetables of maximum possible freshness and local-ness.- Low-income Habitat for Humanity clients get gardens outside their back door (instead of just plain old landscaping)- Enthusiastic young would-be urban farmers get mentoring, instruction, access to land, and logistical support so they can experience success right away.- It expands work that is already being done:
- This project leverages resources from 4 different organizations (so far!), all of whom have ample experience, and all of whom have worked together successfully.- Harvest Moon Backyard Farmers is drawing on 3 years of experience tackling the logistical challenges of urban micro-farms in the Twin Cities area.- It lays the foundation for future work:
- What if The Aliveness Project could get 100% of their summer season produce from the freshest local sources?
- What if every food shelf in the Twin Cities offered clients fresh, organically-grown vegetables and a chance to participate in growing them?
- What if there were enough passionate and trained urban farmers to do all of this?!- We all deeply love doing this work! And as someone once said, "Love makes the world go 'round."
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on December 1
Krista Leraas
Posted project update #5What will you do for World AIDS Day?
It's funny how things happen sometimes. One minute I'm chatting via phone with Maggie from our project partner, PRI Cold Climate, about how to reach our Kickstarter goal. Next thing I know, we are invited to a food- & health-oriented breakfast to share our work the next morning. Thanks to Sandy at Intermedia Arts here in Minneapolis for "eavesdropping" on Maggie's call & extending the invitation. I'm so happy to have gone & met all the incredible people doing incredible work there.
Upon arriving, I was greeted warmly by Sandy & the host, artist Robert Karimi who is an artist-in-residence at Intermedia Arts focusing on food, cooking and health. (I'm excited to find ways to partner with Robert & his engaging, inspiring energy!) I soon learned that the topic for the breakfast was World AIDS Day, which is, of course, today. Stimulating & inspiring conversation roamed the subjects of sex education, engaging youth, using food as a convener, & managing disease through high quality nutrition (something I've studied a lot for myself).
Despite 30 years of the disease, HIV/AIDS rates are climbing. That means that more folks need to be educated regarding prevention & also that more patients need to be educated about how to manage their health. Robert shared that a proper diet (along with exercise & other lifestyle choices) can be a powerful way for patients to stay relatively healthy & to live for many years. By supporting our project, you are also helping some of these very patients to do just that. Thank you.
What will you do for World AIDS Day?
Krista
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Lisa Sinclair on December 1
Robert Karimi is a favorite of mine. His shows, his cooking and his values are excellent and he's a funny guy, too. Catch one of his shows if you get a chance. When I read that you went to Intermedia Arts, I thought, "wouldn't it be great if they connected with Robert:." And you did! I'm glad to have my old fave and my new fave connect.
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on November 30
Krista Leraas
Posted project update #4123 more backers...
Post CommentThanks to everyone who has been part of the flood of backers over the past couple of days! We're now over the $3000 mark!
We've still got a ways to go, of course. At our current rate, we'll need another 123 backers to make our goal by Saturday morning. Let's do it! If you know someone who is "planning" on becoming a backer or "thinking" about it, give 'em a nudge.... You can remind them of the lovely rewards still available. :)
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on November 29
Krista Leraas
Posted project update #3Dina & Kiki talk about why you should back our projects!
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Krista Leraas
Minneapolis, MN
Dina Kountoupes and I successfully launched Harvest Moon Backyard Farmers earlier this year. It rose out of our work creating & running the Backyard Harvest program at the Permaculture Research Institute Cold Climate, a project that I co-founded i... view more
Congratulations!