An Edible Community
Its Growing Everywhere
Summary:
Envisioning our community as the local food source, we embrace public and private land, schoolyards, balconies, roofs, walls, and fences to produce affordable local food for everyone. Partnering with schools, businesses, public agencies, neighborhoods and youth, we are working toward the goal of a sustainable local food system.
Section 1: You
First Name
Cathy
Last Name
Neal
Website URL
Organization
Bountiful Brookline
Country
United States
Section 2: Your Organization
Organization Name
Bountiful Brookline
Organization Website
Organization Phone
617-943-5252
Organization Address
8 Clark Court Brookline Mass 02445
Is your organization a
Non‐profit/NGO/citizen sector organization
Organization Country
United States
Your idea
Name Your Project
An Edible Community: Its Growing Everywhere
Country and state your work focuses on
United States, MA
Describe Your Idea
Envisioning our community as the local food source, we embrace public and private land, schoolyards, balconies, roofs, walls, and fences to produce affordable local food for everyone. Partnering with schools, businesses, public agencies, neighborhoods and youth, we are working toward the goal of a sustainable local food system.
Website URL
Innovation
What makes your idea unique?
Bountiful Brookline (BB) offers an outside the box (and ground) perspective to the where, how and what of local food production. An urban edge community adjacent to Boston, open land in Brookline is at a premium, making it logistically and financially implausible to develop a single site community farm to serve the unmet need for access to fresh, affordable local food. Unlike traditional community farms, BB is successfully engaging and promoting a concept of the whole community as a source of sustenance. We are pursuing a systematic approach: advocating, educating and implementing opportunities to reach out through public events, growing projects and community partnerships.
At its heart, Bountiful Brookline represents the best of community, partnering with town agencies, community organizations and individuals on issues of food security, health and youth engagement. With our focus on locally produced food, we are creating new ways to collaborate and cooperate on a topic of universal concern. Bountiful Brookline’s broad appeal is our ability to bring the many players to the table to find common ground - to participate and unify around a core issue of good food for a better community.
Do you have a patent for this idea?
No
Impact
This Entry is about (Issues)
What impact have you had?
Since its conception, a little over one year ago, Bountiful Brookline has metamorphosed from an idea and several pilot projects into a valued community presence which creates innovative opportunities for local food production in Brookline. We have provided expansive leadership in the community by connecting over five hundred residents in groups focused on community gardening, home/garden sharing, schoolyard and public space gardening, beekeeping and poultry raising. Our first large-scale public event brought together well over three hundred attendees for workshops, networking, information sharing and access to food related resources. As new stewards of the Brookline Community Foundation garden, we are showcasing innovative urban growing methods as well as growing food for the most vulnerable in the community. Our ability to make connections and forge partnerships is, in many ways, our most important and unique contribution to date. A bountiful Brookline is the sum of its parts, and by initiating partnerships with youth service providers, schools, town agencies, and others we bring value as a facilitator, innovator and creative activist.
Problem
Equitable access to an abundance of affordable, fresh, local food is an issue for every community, regardless of circumstances. Even with innovative public food policies in support of “farm to table”, our local food efforts provide essential “need blind” benefits that engage the community to make Brookline a better place to live for everyone. For over twenty percent of our population, predominately families with children and the elderly, that live below the federal poverty line or with very limited incomes, fresh local food is a luxury. Although Brookline is lacking in equitable access to space, sun and water and over seventy five percent of the community live in apartments, as a whole we have enough bountiful resources to address our food needs when we expand our perspective!
Actions
Although it harkens back to our New England roots and embraces the “reclaim the commons” movement, Bountiful Brookline is a groundbreaking concept, which envisions transforming the entire community into a local food system. To foster support, bringing the community together is key; seasonal celebrations, workshops, convening growers groups and direct actions are underway. We provide crucial leadership at the neighborhood and town-wide levels by organizing schoolyard gardeners, community gardeners, public space and home/garden share. Building coalitions of residents, town agencies, organizations and institutions is strengthening our efforts for a system of schoolyard gardens, a teen leadership program, orchards and other food production sites in town including expanded community gardening and beekeeping, keeping poultry and livestock. For those not inclined to actively participate, we are working to educate and instill a collective vision. Ultimately, we may pursue the town meeting process to strengthen our role, in the true spirit of New England community!
Results
From the beginning, the following key elements comprised our vision and these components already inform our work.
Food for All: By providing Brookline’s food through traditional and cutting edge methods we will maximize access to healthy, fresh food! Food production sited at schoolyards, neighborhood spaces, and shared gardens will be supported through the center and teen food crews.
Edible Community Center: The heart of Bountiful Brookline is a place to gather, providing a vital presence in the community and offering materials and trainings as well as coordinating garden and food growing activities.
Teens Grow Food
Youth engagement is vital to our mission. Teens Grow Food will provide local youth with a meaningful role in growing, promoting and supporting the mission of Bountiful Brookline.
What will it take for your project to be successful over the next three years? Please address each year separately, if possible.
To create a sustainable community organization, Bountiful Brookline must be responsive and inclusive yet pragmatic. At this stage operating entirely as a volunteer effort is not a sustainable model. We have a home base/demonstration garden, a pilot teen program is slated to begin this summer, food is being grown around town as a result of BB and new partnerships are underway.
Year One:
• Formal Three to Five Year Strategic Plan including; Public Awareness, Outreach, Technical Support, Membership, Youth Activities. in process.
• Develop Board of Directors with current Steering Committee. Fall 2010.
• Finalize Development Plan; timeline, sources and goals. Include; membership, fee for service, events, foundation and individual support. fundraising is underway.
• Membership framework and campaign. A tiered plan to appeal to a cross–section. Summer 2010.
• Strengthen presence in the community and online. This work is underway: events, press, presentations to business groups, professional organizations, community and neighborhood groups. Web site in progress.
• Formalize Internships for College/High School students: Develop a cohesive program n association with local collages, career offices and others. Interns have come through informal avenues.
Year Two:
• Secure up to 1.5 acres of private land to support summer youth programs. Negotiations are underway with private property owners/neighborhood associations.
• ˆCommunity Mapping Project implemented and online.
• Engage initial staff and regular interns.
• Obtain Office space: anticipated @ Brookline Community Foundation, early 2011.
Year Three:
• Teen Program to be fully operational for the summer, additional placements in Spring and Fall.
• Operational Budget that supports three part-time staff, programs and small grants within Brookline.
• Full roster of workshops, demonstrations and other resources as income opportunities.
• Neighborhood, Schoolyard, Community and Public Space groups fully operational and self-sufficient.
• Web site that supports community engagement, programs and membership benefits.
What would prevent your project from being a success?
At this time, we recognize that it will take more then the concerted efforts of a core group. We are confident based upon our experience to date that with the increasing numbers who have joined our online community, attended our activities, and sought involvement, we will continue to grow the organization.
Our biggest challenge is to maintain a strong level of participation in the projects and programs we are involved in and not to overwhelm ourselves or become too broad in our work. To this end, the strategic plan process, which reaffirms our vision, mission and lays out clear strategic actions will enable us to keep a focus, prioritize our actions and strengthen our organization.
We need to effectively promote the importance and value added that Bountiful Brookline brings to the community, presently and in the future. We have been embraced by many facets already, and have created partnerships that can only help. Creating a more formal role within the town may help to access funding for staff and youth, school and community programming. This is a model with community farm programs in Massachusetts as well as around the country. BB cannot assume a primary role in programming without town support; pursuing grants, and/or allocation of funds. This is already understood by participating town agencies.
We believe these issues can be resolved as we move forward with our strategic plan, board of directors and funding program underway.
How many people will your project serve annually?
1001‐10,000
What is the average monthly household income in your target community, in US Dollars?
$1000 - 4000
Does your project seek to have an impact on public policy?
Yes
Sustainability
What stage is your project in?
Operating for 1‐5 years
In what country?
United States
Is your initiative connected to an established organization?
Yes
If yes, provide organization name.
Bountiful Brookline is a designated fund of the Brookline Community Foundation
How long has this organization been operating?
1‐5 years
Does your organization have a Board of Directors or an Advisory Board?
Yes
Does your organization have any non-monetary partnerships with NGOs?
Yes
Does your organization have any non-monetary partnerships with businesses?
Yes
Does your organization have any non-monetary partnerships with government?
Yes
Please tell us more about how these partnerships are critical to the success of your innovation.
Challenging the status quo, “just do it” has served us well and Bountiful Brookline could pursue its mission in this manner. It is, however, unlikely we would achieve the systemic changes we believe are necessary. Local government and NGOS’s have been instrumental - providing legitimacy and contributing valuable expertise. We are effective partners and our roles continue to develop in positive ways. Our relationship with government will most likely occur through our town departments. We are committed to promoting local complementary businesses that offer invaluable support through funding, cash and in-kind donations. Our community-mapping project, introduced this spring, identifies potential and existing food production sites, relevant community resources and businesses that support these efforts.
What are the three most important actions needed to grow your initiative or organization?
This is a critical time for Bountiful Brookline as we enter our second year. Our impact and achievements are remarkable especially considering this work has been accomplished by dedicated volunteers in a home office, with very little money. Although we do not lack for ideas and have found our efforts to be well received, its time to take stock of things. We want to plan for a sustainable future for our community and to serve as a replicable model for other communities. Priority Actions include: 1. A Strategic Plan: The steering committee, with support from a local non-profit development specialist, is in the process of developing a strategic operating plan. In addition to reaffirming our vision and mission, this process will delineate strategies, measures and outcomes to move Bountiful Brookline forward. At the same time we are formulating a development strategy that includes recommendations for membership, fee for services and fundraising opportunities. 2. Membership: To better serve the community, we believe Bountiful Brookline can benefit from the creation of a membership structure. As a way to build loyalty and generate funds, this program lends itself to strengthening community connections through merchant offers, workshop opportunities and online member services for garden and equipment sharing and harvest, seed and plant exchanges. 3. Staff : A labor of love, Bountiful Brookline needs to have a small paid staff. Initially it will be comprised of three part-time personnel: executive director, administrative/project coordinator and education/outreach manager. Seasonal staff will be employed for the youth programs, with a long-term goal of dedicated staff to oversee food gardens and orchards.
The Story
What was the defining moment that led you to this innovation?
37. A passion for urban agriculture, community farms, edible landscapes and travel combined with the realization of my town’s predicament and informed by my professional experience as a landscape architect, community design, resulted in my “why not” moment! My vision of Bountiful Brookline came together in vivid detail and amazing clarity of whom, how and where this community could develop its potential as a local sustainable food source. Thus was born a new image of Brookline as a growing community complete with orchards at medians, berries along the edges of parks, vertical gardens at south facing walls, rooftop community gardens, beans climbing fences, balconies abundant with tomatoes and basil, bees, chickens and more…
Brookline’s history as an agriculture community serving Boston also includes an important role as a model of progressive land use planning. The home to Frederick Law Olmstead, the father of Landscape Architecture, Brookline has long been recognized for its small neighborhood parks as well as its extensive system of public paths and parkways that help to define this urban edge community. Fast-forward and these neighborhood spaces suggest opportunities for berry patches, fruit and nut trees, even grazing livestock. Bountiful Brookline seeks to honor this past and to embrace a new model for urban community agriculture.
Olmstead was a social innovator who used his professional skills as a landscape architect to address quality of life issues, designing public landscapes for the betterment of society. It seemed especially fitting for Brookline to be the setting for this new vision of a sustainable community model whose goal is to address quality of life and environmental needs for our future!
As this idea gained momentum, through conversation and further study, it’s been all the more compelling to realize how much of Brookline’s past has informed its present as well as set a framework for its future. Throughout the town, what has been uncovered is how much continues to be produced and how the remnants of historic farms, orchards, fields, and greenhouses often define where food is still grown in Brookline.
Tell us about the social innovator behind this idea.
I have found my place in the world through my passions, creativity and desire to see the possibility in any situation. I thrive on challenges that involve putting together the pieces: bringing everyone and all possibilities to the table, to create something that reflects the best energy and ideas, in a collaborative manner.
Trained as a Landscape Architect, my interests have always been in the arena of community design; affordable housing, access to healthy food and the arts. For over twenty - five years I have actively engaged in food justice, community and land stewardship issues in New England, Wisconsin and North Carolina through small and large community based initiatives; Environmental Awareness Center, Madison, Wisconsin, Roslindale Village Main St, Boston Community Loan Fund, The Food Project, Boston and now Bountiful Brookline.
A passionate and active gardener and advocate for community sustainability, I have extensive experience in community planning, non-profit management and design education with youth and adults. I have farmed both in this country and abroad, started and run food co-ops and as a founding member of the Mass Food Policy Council am deeply committed to food security issues locally, statewide and beyond.
While studying in Denmark, I was inspired by the principles of co-housing and Scandinavian approaches to land use. These ideals have informed my personal and professional choices in areas of land use planning including decisions about where to live and what I teach. At the Boston Architectural College, Landscape Institute I am promoting ideas of designing for the greater good through conservation, planning and design ideas including edible landscape, a studio course this summer. My home landscape is a work in progress as an edible sustainable landscape – an opportunity to showcase many ideas of a bountiful Brookline.
Bountiful Brookline is truly a manifestation of who I am, an expression of my vision and beliefs. And at this time in this place, I am able to bring to bear so much of what I have lived, experienced and learned to promote, inspire and activate in the interest of the entire community!
How did you first hear about Changemakers?
Through another organization or company
If through another, please provide the name of the organization or company
The New England Grassroots Environmental Fund notified me through an email notification.
 | Cathy Neal submitted this idea. - 128 days ago |
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