Phoenix Urban Research Farm Internship

COMMUNITY PARTNER

Urban Agriculture program, University of Arizona Cooperative Extension

ABOUT THE INTERNSHIP

Duties

Student(s) selected to intern with the Urban Agriculture program at the University of Arizona (UA) College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) Cooperative Extension (CE) will perform a variety of duties, including, but not limited to:

• Lead and coordinate volunteer groups to maintain a half acre Phoenix Urban Research Farm (PURF) as part of the City of Phoenix's PHX Renews initiative to alleviate urban blight in the city.  UA is a partner on the initiative, and will be growing a community-oriented, small-scale urban farm on 0.5 acre of the 15-acre vacant lot at the corner of Indian School and Central Avenue (right near a light rail stop).
• Using PURF as an experiential learning laboratory, teach local elementary and high school field trip groups specific, structured lessons related to: Common Core education standards; science, technolongy, engineering, and math (STEM) principles; healthy lifestyles and nutrition.
• Promote PURF's activities through managing social media, creating videos, and other multimedia outlets.
• Advertise the hands-on volunteer opportunities and teaching days to local community groups.
• Record the number of participants who attend volunteer work days.
• Recruit low-income and disadvantaged community groups who want to be involved with PURF; identify their needs to ensure we are serving the community in the proper capacity.

Population served

Many vacant lot sites are located in disadvantaged and low-income areas; therefore, these are the main populations to be involved and served with the vacant lot initiative project. Other populations served include: veterans (VA hospital is within a quarter mile), children from nearby elementary and high schools, and special needs and disabled youth and adults.

Community need/impact

Vacant lots in urban environments present a threat to positive community development because they are often associated with higher crime rates, unsightly debris and trash, and a lack of cultural identity. The City of Phoenix has identified a 15-acre lot on the corner of Central Avenue and Indian School in the heart of central Phoenix as a research and test site for vacant lot revitalization.  The project as a whole is called PHX Renews, and is an initiative lead by Mayor Greg Stanton.  A lease has been secured for three years; this project is temporary by nature. The UA CALS CE is a partner on the project and is developing the Phoenix Urban Research Farm, a small-scale urban farm on a half acre of the 15-acre vacant lot site.

Generally, the community need is to reduce the number of vacant lots and increase the number of community-oriented garden and farm spaces in order to improve community and economic development in gentrified areas of Maricopa County.  More specifically, the community need at the 15-acre vacant lot site is to create a TEMPORARY community-oriented urban farm space in order to improve community involvment and economic development in downtown Phoenix.  Other needs include improving nutrition through hands-on learning experiences for low-income children and families, improve workforce development, and educate people about where their food comes from and what it takes to grow food, even on a small scale. 

PHX Renews is a flagship and innovative program being driven by the Mayor.  As part of PHX Renews, PURF will conduct rigourous applied research on how to replicate vacant lot revitalization efforts in other areas of Phoenix and Maricopa County. There is also the potential to improve nutrition, increase the amount of enjoyable green space in Phoenix, reduce the urban heat island effect, educate hundreds of elementary and high school students about agriculture, and more.  Finally, the potential impact is to suggest "best management practices" for developing, sustaining, and increasing the number of farm/garden spaces in urban centers.