Urban Roots

With September, Hunger Awareness Month, coming to an end, read a letter from our Executive Director, Brian Stephens, on food insecurity and the importance of our work at Urban Roots: "Dear Friends, As September ushers in the back-to-school season, it also marks Hunger Action Month, a time to shine a spotlight on the urgent issue of food insecurity in our communities. While the school year brings renewed focus on learning, at Urban Roots, we remain deeply committed to ensuring all of us have access to healthy and affordable fresh foods year-round, hand in hand with our youth and our community. And the need has never been more pressing. This month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released its annual report on food security in the U.S., and the findings are alarming. Texas has the second-highest rate of food insecurity in the nation at 16.9 percent—a staggering 4.5 percent higher than the national average. In Texas, more than 1 in 6 households face food insecurity, with approximately 1.8 million families, including 5.1 million Texans, at risk of hunger. Urban Roots is committed to making healthy, affordable fresh food accessible to everyone, not just for today but for generations to come. Since our founding, we’ve empowered nearly 700 young people through learning and leadership opportunities through the power of farming, compensating them with $865,000 in stipends. We pay our youth because we believe in valuing their contributions and investing in their futures. By doing so, we equip them with essential life skills, build their confidence, and foster a deep sense of responsibility for creating change in their communities. This year alone, we worked with 76 young leaders, and the impact is undeniable. 85 percent of them now see themselves as more confident leaders, with 97 percent reporting improved social and emotional skills critical for success in leadership, relationships, and professional careers. 92 percent of our youth feel more empowered to address food justice issues and increase food access in their communities. And the true magic of Urban Roots is that the fruits of our youth’s growth are literally feeding our community. While cultivating young leaders, we distributed 111,000 servings (21,000 pounds) of fresh produce, with 97 percent of our harvest feeding more than 250 households right here in our community. This incredible impact was made possible with the help of 800 dedicated volunteers from 91 zip codes, who contributed 2,255 hours of service to our cause. To say we couldn’t do it without you would be an understatement. Your continued support fuels our mission and allows us to grow, nourish, and empower young people and our community. Thank you for working with us to give our neighbors access to nutritious, delicious quality food—together, we are making a lasting difference. We Grow Together." Learn how to support our work here: https://lnkd.in/gJMUeaYx

We’re in our seeding -> sprouting -> planting season! Our farm team is experimenting with raised beds which should mean less weeding, less maintenance, less pests, and healthier roots. ? ? We hope you’re as excited for this season’s harvest as we are! Our autumn season will have a variety of summer and winter squashes, and a field day of leafy greens – arugula, bok choy, kale, napa cabbage, mustard greens, lettuce and chard, delicious!? ? That’s not even to mention our turnips, carrots, cucumber, broccoli, snow peas, radishes, green beans and more.? ? Check out our slowly growing repertoire of recipes and veggie preparation by going to the link to keep learning! Feel free to suggest your favorite farm fresh recipes or veggies you’d like us to add next: https://lnkd.in/gdTCkhfw ? Happy start to fall, y’all!

Hey there, farmly friends! We’re grateful for your patience while we’ve been brewing up some things behind the scenes on the farm, and we’re excited to share new volunteer dates. If you’re ready to enjoy the fall weather, touch the soil, and get in tune with the farm serenity, sign up here ??: https://lnkd.in/gUA4h2qM

We're so delighted and excited to take part in growing art and creativity, and grateful to be a beneficiary, we can't wait!

Comunidad is proud to be in #partnership with Urban Roots – a #nonprofit organization located in Austin, TX which works to grow and distribute farm fresh organic produce to communities in urban areas that have difficulty buying affordable or good-quality fresh food. Each year, Urban Roots dedicates at least 75% of their harvest to food access agencies across #Austin.?? ? On the community level, we understand that access to quality, fresh food is vital to the health and wellness of our residents. We’ve partnered with Urban Roots to deliver 20 bags of fresh #produce each week to families that have signed up for the program within some of our local Austin communities.? So far, the results have been invaluable, bringing a new level of community among our #residents as they receive the produce each week and share their excitement for preparing great meals with family and friends.?? ? We are eager to expand the program further in the Fall!?? ? For more information on this amazing organization and their #community programs, click the link below:? https://urbanrootsatx.org/? ? Get to know more of our community partners on our website: https://lnkd.in/gpD-CYKR? ? #CommercialRealEstate #FoodDeserts #FarmFresh #WorkforceHousing #SocialImpact?

Check out our summer bod! We’ve grown SO MUCH this past season (peppers, squashes, okra +++) with caring hands from volunteers, our farm team, Summer Farm Program youth, and our Community Ambassadors! We’re grateful to have been able to share the farm with neighbors this summer and grow an abundance of love, good feelings, and food together. These fields have worked hard all through the hot months, so we’re prepping the farms (and ourselves!) for rest as we begin seedlings for the next season. It’s not quite as flashy as big stalks and lush crops, but taking care of ourselves and our fields for healthy ecosystems (bodies/soil) is vital. And in our opinion, a body at rest is the most gorgeous kind of a summer bod out there. We’ll see you soon when we open the farm again for the upcoming autumn season with volunteer days and special events! Take care, rest well and don’t forget to hydrate!

Our Summer Farm Program celebrated with a last hurrah on Saturday! We enjoyed a warm day of reflection, sharing, and joy at our Family Feast, sending off the season with good feels in great company. We’re so proud of the youth who joined us to grow together this summer season, and we can’t wait to see where they go next! Our team wishes them a happy, restful summer, and we hope to see them on the farm again soon ??

Supporting Urban Roots always comes with warm feels, but some of our awesome ATX business friends are making it even sweeter. Thank you to Lick Honest Ice Creams, Tiff's Treats Cookie Delivery and Promix Nutrition for their creative support! ?? We love vegetables but are also into celebrating National Ice Cream Month with Lick in July! You can donate to us in-store or online through their website – donate $20+ and get a free scoop card! Treat yourself to Lick on Sun., July 21 when 10% of their ATX sales will go to Urban Roots. ?? At Tiff’s Treats from Aug. 4 - 17 use the promo code “UrbanRoots” to support us at no extra cost to you. The code can be used at all store locations through cookiedelivery.com and the Tiff’s Treats app for order same day OR ahead (like, today!) and schedule delivery for 8.4-17! ??We were invited to PROMIX Nutrition’s 1st Annual Charity Golf Tournament, as one of their 4 beneficiaries for their 1% for the Planet initiative in June ?? Are you a business owner or influencer with an idea for partnering to support our food access work and youth opportunities? We’d love to talk! Drop us a “hello” at [email protected]. Let’s grow together and make a difference for our community!

Check out this scavenger hunt from a summer Open House on our East Austin farm! Youth showed us how to broadcast seeds (a mix meant to return nutrients to the soil while this field rests), and we spotted Boggy Creek from the East Austin farm. We hunted down corn, gourds, rosemary, and multiple types of flowers, as well as the honey bee hives kept on the farm. We also said a little “hello” to our fig and pear trees, and listened to “advice from mushrooms” (youth wisdom)! Chef Jam from Thai Fresh led the youth that day in making a cucumber pork dish as well as a glass noodle dish, and both were delicious. After finishing the hunt, we enjoyed time in community + the farm beauty in abundance. Thank you to everyone who joined us and to our guest chefs for the season, Chef Jam, Chefs Shawn and Phil from Parkside Austin Project and Chef Tom of Colleen’s Kitchen.

Curious about what the youth interns in our Summer Farm Program have been up to this season? Team building! Think: trust activities such as using their senses to help a peer identify trees on the farm Workshops! Giving each other kind feedback and communication Field trips to: Resistencia Books to learn about the historic Austin institution, helped tend the garden there, did some creative exercises, and explored Food as Praxis, with the guidance of ATX Barrio writers, @Austin Bat Cave, Miguel Briones, and @Red Salmon Arts @Farmshare Austin to learn about their programs, the farm industry, and other ways of farming! On-the-Farm experiences + guests, such as learning about herbs from Herbalist Dani Culinary upskilling! Cooking with guest Chefs Shawn & Phil from Parkside Project, Chef Tom of Colleen's Kitchen, and still-to-come Open Houses this Friday with Chef Jam of Thai Fresh. We’re so proud to see them grow. Thanks for spending the summer with us!