Best Practices: Victory Gardens

In my research on food justice, I've been disappointed that there's seemingly no list of best practices. You know... how to get good, sustainable food to people who really need it. My general conclusion is that this is still new shoes and no one's gotten to that point yet.

The thing is... there are LOTS of good programs and there are lots of people - like me - who are desperately looking for opportunities to help promote healthy, environmentally-friendly eating and who want to help the 36 million Americans who don't have access to enough food.


Therefore, I am going to start posting programs that I believe are best practices.

If you live in the vicinity of these projects, you may want to join in; if you don't, maybe you want to start something similar where you are or donate to these foundations/non-profits/forward-thinking individuals/etc. In this endeavor I certainly welcome submissions and critiques from the 6 people who actually read this blog.

So without further ado, I'd like to introduce you all to Victory Gardens 2008+...

(VG2008+) is a program of Garden for the Environment and the City of San Francisco's Department for the Environment. A two-year pilot project to support the transition of backyard, front yard, window boxes, rooftops and unused land into organic food production areas, Victory Gardens 2008+ derives its title from, and build on, the successful nationwide Victory Garden programs of WWI and WWII. Victory Gardens 2008+, however, redefines "Victory" in the pressing context of urban sustainability. "Victory" is growing food at home for increased local food security and reducing the food miles associated with the average American meal.

In 2008, VG2008+ installed and supported 15 pilot gardens throughout San Francisco... a feat aided by the VG2008+ staff. Yes, that's right, staff. This isn't your mother's community garden. They held workshops on organic horticulture for participants as well as the public, planted an edible garden in front of San Francisco's City Hall (see above photo), and organized a CSA with their Victory Gardens that supports the whole community.

Victory Gardens 2008+ was ideated by San Francisco based artist and designer Amy Franceschini in the Fall of 2006, for which she received the 2006 SECA award from the SF MOMA. Amy Franceschini partnered with Garden for the Environment for the planting of three initial Victory Gardens, and to develop and operate a citywide Victory Gardens program in San Francisco.

If you're looking for a way to take your community gardens up a notch - this might be the way to go.

Photo credit: Scott Chernis for AP Photo