A Black- and women-led nonprofit has received federal funding to continue its efforts to eradicate food and environmental injustices in communities of color across Chicago.
Urban Growers Collective was one of 385 awardees across the states, U.S. territories, and tribal nations that received funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service to curb climate change and boost local access to nature.
Mayor Brandon Johnson and Sen. Dick Durbin joined community leaders on a sunny September morning at the nonprofit’s South Chicago farm, 9001 S. Mackinaw Ave., to award the group a $1 million grant.
The Urban Growers Collective will use the grant to “do more tree canopy work,” increase training and educational opportunities, and build staffing capacity at its South Chicago farm and the Green Era Urban Energy Campus in Auburn Gresham, said co-founder Erika Allen. Urban Growers Collective manages eight farms over 11 acres of land in eight communities.
Read more at blockclubchicago.org