City Slicker Farms

Programs: Urban farming education: the urban farming education program empowers marginalized youth and adults with the skills necessary to grow fresh produce and contribute to more equitable food systems. This program provides leadership development for low-income youth of color ages 14-20, trains young adults in sustainable agricultural practices, conservation and environmental stewardship, and offers short-term service learning opportunities for volunteers of all ages. Participants learn about social struggles in their community for food access and self-determination and gain employment experience in a creative and supported environment. Our first year of ufe programming at the new west oakland farm park included a 10 week summer leadership development program for youth, 30-week environmental education course for west oakland high schoolers that takes advantage of the sites unique features and outdoor classroom; hands-on farm learning opportunities for over 900 community members and youth of all ages; ongoing mentoring and support for participants in the sites new 28-plot community garden; and educational tours of the farm park for community members and leaders at the local, national and global levels.

backyard garden program: using a model we have developed and honed over the last decade, city slicker farms partners with neighborhood organizations serving low-income residents to build new community group gardens and deliver mentorship, heath education, and fresh food access. Program participants receive a fully stocked garden at no cost to them, complete with raised bed planter boxes, seedlings raised in the city slicker farms greenhouse, soil and compost, and a fruit tree. Gardeners then partner with an experienced staff or volunteer mentor who offers support, educational curriculum and/or technical assistance tailored for each individual and site, as well as gardening supplies and seedlings for two years. For many of our institutional and community group partners, we also provide garden-based curriculum to engage their clients in lessons on ecology and nutrition. The garden program benefits our community in many ways. For young children, exposure to school gardens and natural environments improves social and emotional development, fosters collaborative skills, alleviates stress, and improves dietary choices. For adults and senior citizens, community group gardens provide affordable fresh produce, opportunities for recreation and exercise, and for some, the ability to carry out a lifelong hobby that promotes wellbeing. For all of our program participants, we have found that increasing the availability of fresh produce through gardening, and pairing it with nutrition classes focused on preparing healthy meals, creates positive health outcomes for program participants. Every year participants report saving money on grocery bills, eating a more nutritious diet, and strengthening their community by sharing their bounty with neighbors.

community market farm program: the community market farms program directly increases food access among low-income residents by transforming underutilized lots into high-yield urban farms that are centerpieces of civic pride and educational opportunity. Cmf food production now centers around the west oakland farm park, formerly a blighted brownfield lot. Crops are seeded in-house at our nursery and seedlings are then used at our farm and garden sites and made available at sliding scale prices to the public. Through this whole neighborhood approach, city slicker farms works with several hundred volunteers annually to produce a bounty of fresh, culturally appropriate, locally grown food in west oakland that feeds hundreds of people every year. All of the food produced at our farm sites is distributed on a sliding-scale basis to low-income west oakland residents at our saturday farm stand, where no one is turned away for lack of funds. In addition to producing food, cmf farm sites employ organic farming methods in the heart of mixed industrial-residential neighborhoods, helping to restore soil resiliency, improve water use and quality, and provide green spaces for communities that often lack safe places for family recreation.