Genius! Why urban farming is more than just a good idea...

Will Allen, the founder of Growing Power, Inc., received the MacArthur Foundation's annual "genius grant" this past week. Growing Power is an amazing organization that strives to put healthy, high-quality, affordable food in the hands of all people through their urban farms. They have mostly focused their mission on lower income communities in so called "food deserts." Allen started out in Milwaukee but in the past few years Growing Power has moved into Chicago. You may have seen their urban farms in Grant Park, Jackson Park, or Cabrini-Green to name a few. You also may have noticed their farm stands at the Green City Market in Lincoln Park or a whole host of farmer's markets on the Southside. I highly recommend checking out the organization’s site to see all the great things they're doing, and supporting them by purchasing their produce at one of the farmers markets they attend.

As you can imagine Growing Power has received a lot of press as a result of their recent award, here is a great article from the NY Times on Will Allen and his vision for the organization. The one downside to Allen being awarded the MacArthur grant is that the Just Food team’s effort to secure someone from the Growing Power organization, which we started working on a few weeks ago, to speak at an upcoming community meal seems like a long shot now. :) Anyway, I encourage you to check out what Growing Power is doing and support them if you can, because they are a great organization that is bringing about positive change in communities through food and farming.