Terry Schwarz, Urban Design Center of Northeast Ohio
Urban Agriculture as a Local Land Use Choice: Urban agriculture is an important strategy for extracting value from Cleveland’s growing portfolio of vacant land. Local food production can help sustain residents and neighborhoods, and lead the way to a more sustainable and humane city.

- Are you interested in learning more about putting urban agriculture to work for Cleveland`s vacant land? Take the Cleveland+Local Food Survey to sign up to get involved!

Connect with Terry:
tschwarz@kent.edu
(216) 357-3426

Darwin Kelsey, Countryside Conservancy
The Conservancy was established in 1999 to help Cuyahoga Valley National Park (CVNP) halt and reverse the rapid disappearance of farming in the Cuyahoga Valley. Since then the organization has developed initiatives to train new farmers, establish local farmer`s markets, connect would-be farmers to rural land owners (FarmLink), and educate the public with the Countryside Harvest Guide - a resource for finding farm-fresh, locally grown produce and delicious foods made in Northeast Ohio.

- Check out the Conservancy`s upcoming workshops: Exploring the Small Farm Dream and High Tunnels 101

Connect with Darwin:
dkelsey@cvcountryside.org
(330) 657-2532

Emmy and Jessica Levine, Wonder City Farm
Wonder City Farm is located on the near west side of Cleveland. This last season they provided beets, carrots, greens, and herbs to City Fresh to be included in the market share bags that are sold at the Fresh Stops. Emmy and Jessica have also been collecting organic waste materials from area restaurants in their effort to reduce waste and recycle these nutrients in their compost system for use at their garden site. In the future they hope to expand their outreach to the local community and neighborhood youth and offer a variety of educational opportunities in the garden.

- Visit Emmy and Jessica at the Tremont Farmer`s Market

Connect with Emmy and Jessica:
wondercityfarm@yahoo.com

Morgan Taggart, OSU Extension
In addition to providing programs and resources for community gardening, the OSU Extension partners with CityFresh in offering the City Fresh Market Gardener Training, which provides education and training on business planning and growing techniques, hands-on learning workshops, a network of urban market gardeners to promote sharing of tools, equipment, knowledge, and marketing, and provision of start-up funding for urban agriculture enterprises.

- Enroll in the the City Fresh Market Gardener Training program

Connect with Morgan:
taggart.32@cfaes.osu.edu
(216) 429-8238

Maurice Small & Lisa Jean Silvia, City Fresh
City Fresh is a program of the New Agrarian Center which impacts the local food system through the development of neighorhood food centers (Fresh Stops), nutrition education, Urban Market Garden Training, and the cultivation of direct farm to business connections.

- Sign up online for a City Fresh Share and visit your local Fresh Stop location

Connect with Maurice and Lisa:
mrsmall216@yahoo.com
(440) 774-2906

Chris Norman, Countryside Conservancy
The Conservancy was established in 1999 to help Cuyahoga Valley National Park (CVNP) halt and reverse the rapid disappearance of farming in the Cuyahoga Valley. Since then the organization has developed initiatives to train new farmers, establish local farmer`s markets, connect would-be farmers to rural land owners (FarmLink), and educate the public with the Countryside Harvest Guide - a resource for finding farm-fresh, locally grown produce and delicious foods made in Northeast Ohio.

- Check out the Conservancy`s upcoming workshops: Exploring the Small Farm Dream and High Tunnels 101

Connect with Chris:
cnorman@cvcountryside.org

Peter McDermott, Going Out Green and ClevelandComposts!
Peter is working with Ohio City restaurants and the West Side Market to develop a program that will "green" Cleveland`s food service industry. This project will:

1. Connect restaurants with local food purchasing options and track the economic impact of this purchasing
2. Conduct workshops with participating businesses to encourage sustainable business operations
3. Develop a commercial composting program (ClevelandComposts!) that will turn business food waste into valuable soil products and
4. Develop a marketing campaign (Going Out Green) to promote participating businesses and brand the Ohio City neighborhood as a green food service district.

Connect with Peter:
peter@e4s.org

Amy Matthew & Geri Unger, Cleveland Botanical Gardens
CBG`s Green Corps is a horticulture-based work-readiness program for urban youth which combines real world experiences in horticulture and business with a high school curriculum, based on Ohio Academic Standards. Each year, Green Corps participants get real world experience by playing a major role in the production and marketing of Ripe from Downtown products, using crops grown in the Learning Gardens.

- The Green Corps program is hiring high-school students to participate in their upcoming programs. Know someone who might benefit from learning horticulture, marketing and leadership skills this summer? Connect them with Amy Matthew!

Connect with Amy:
amatthews@cbgarden.org
(216) 721-1600

Jocelyn Kirkwood & Meagan Kresge, Gather-Round Farm
Gather-Round Farm is a permaculture garden on a former parking lot on Lorain Avenue in Cleveland`s nearwest side. The garden will serve as a market garden and an educational sight with examples of backyard sustainability practices, for example: run-off filtration & management, rain water collection and use, beneficial native plants, and permaculture design techniques to create wildlife habitats and sustainable food supply for Cleveland area. Both Meagan and Jocelyn are graduates of the City Fresh Market Gardner training program, and Meagan has been a Certified Permaculture Design Technician for over ten years.

- Attend the “Support Gather ‘round Farm” Spring kick-off meeting and potluck: Saturday, March 8 @ 2144 W. 38th Street from 5:30-10:30 p.m. Gather-Round Farm is also seeking support from the community as they face potential zoning issues. E-mail Jocey for information on how you can help.

Connect with Jocelyn and Meagan:
joceykillbocey@hotmail.com

Brad Masi, New Agrarian Center
The New Agrarian Center is committed to building a stronger and more sustainable regional food system in Northeast Ohio - a food system that promotes health in the broadest sense of the word: healthy land, healthy communities, and a healthy economy. Their programs include City Fresh and the George Jones Farm and Nature Preserve.

- Attend the City Fresh Monday on March 24th at the Great Lakes Brewing Company Beer Cellar- This month`s topic: Adaptive Re-Use of Old Urban Buildings for Local Food.

Connect with Brad:
brad@gotthenac.org
(440) 774-2906