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Writer's pictureBob Benenson
Apr 305 min read

Next Webinar: Food Education and Farm to School

Join us on May 13 for a discussion about how we teach and feed our youngest eaters


Helping Children Learn About a Better Food Future


Fresh off Monday’s engaging webinar about farmers markets, Local Food Forum is pleased to announce our next "Better" Dialogues" program — on the important topics of food education and adding more locally farmed products to schools’ food programs.


Co-host Chef Sarah Stegner of Prairie Grass Cafe and I welcome you to join the conversation on How Schools Inspire and Feed Our Youngest Eaters, which will take place on Monday, May 13 starting at 7 p.m. central time. Registration is open and the webinar is free to attend. 




Here is our amazing guest lineup:


Alexandra DeSorbo-Quinn has been executive director of Pilot Light since 2014. Created four years earlier by a group of leading Chicago chefs, Pilot Light was working to integrate food education into the curriculum at just one Chicago public school at the time that Alex became head of the organization. In the decade since, she has led Pilot Light to enormous growth and influence. The organization now works directly in many schools across Chicago and in more than two dozen school districts across the nation, has published Food Education Standards that are available for all schools to employ, and created the SnackTime Explorers program, a series of adaptable mini-lessons designed to supplement educators across the U.S. who participate in the USDA’s Fresh Fruit and Vegetable (FFVP) program.

Sebastian White is a clinical psychologist turned chef who was working to divert children from gangs in an underserved community when he started The Evolved Network in 2020. 


The Evolved Network is a Chicago non-profit that works with young people from under-resourced communities to provide education and support through farm-to-table experiences. Sebastian currently provides cooking lessons for students in several Chicago schools. He is also raising money to achieve his ultimate goal: to build out a restaurant and urban farm that will provide young participants with job, business and food growing skills while providing therapeutic assistance for those who need it.


Also joining the webinar panel are Spence Medford and Christy Sherding of the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, located in Dearborn, Michigan just outside Detroit. Though best known for its historic displays about the nation's industrial rise, the Museum has four working farms on its properties and has been very engaged in farm to school programs in its local area. Spence and Christy are spearheading a major national outreach as the Museum is planning to hold events in five cities in October to highlight National Farm to School Month. The event series is a pilot for an ongoing national presence for the Henry Ford Museum's farm to school advocacy.


About the co-hosts:


Sarah Stegner, a two-time James Beard Foundation Award winner, is one of the strongest voices for positive food systems change in Chicago and the nation as a whole. Click on the link to learn more about Prairie Grass Cafe, which she has co-owned for 20 years.


And for those of you who may just be getting to know me, I launched Local Food Forum in April 2021, after I worked for several years at a food systems non-profit. The goal of Local Food Forum is to provide a uniquely focused media platform about and for everyday heroes working across the spectrum of local food ecosystems.

Sarah and I thank our webinar series supporters: Mariano's, Landmark Pest Management, Chicago Chefs Cook, and Community Food Navigator.




Apply Now for Chicago Community Growers Program



The City of Chicago today (May 1) opened applications for its second round of Community Growers Program grants to urban growers. Applications will be accepted through June 30.


As the graphic above shows, the program — which was launched last year — is focused on “increasing equitable community access to healthy foods by developing food access points in neighborhoods experiencing food insecurity.” The program is intended for growing spaces of at least 6,000 square feet, and provides grantees with resources to build long-term sites and technical assistance.


Thanks to Community Food Navigator for alerting us to the new application period, and to Neighbor Space for the following detailed explainer about the Community Growers Program and the separate ChiBlockBuilder land access program, for which applications are open through May 15.




From Neighbor Space:


The Community Growers Program Application is now open through June 30th at 11:59pm! The Community Growers Program provides infrastructure and technical assistance, intended to support long term (5+ years) and larger scale (6,000+ ft) growing spaces run by growers with roots and relationships in the Chicago neighborhood they are growing in.


If you would like to preview the application in a Word document, please refer to this document. Please do not fill out this document, it is intended only for you to preview the questions you will answer in the form below. To use the above document as an editable draft, make a copy of it, as the link is not editable to make sure everyone can see the same language.



Also, a separate application is open for the ChiBlockBuilder’s land access program for urban agriculture programs is open for application.


Separately, an application/request for proposals to apply for Urban Agriculture Land Opportunity through the Chi Block Builder tool is currently open. Application for this proposal closes Friday, May 17th at 11:59 PM CT.  Please visit this page for detailed information about this land opportunity in specific wards.



Info Sessions about Urban Ag Land Access through ChiBlockBuilder (application open April 1 – May 15th)  AND Chicago Community Growers Program Round 2 (application open May 1- June 30, 2024). )


Info Session Dates: 

Chicago’s Community Growers Program is currently working to steward forward urban agriculture projects with the current round one 18 awardees listed here.

Please note: the Community Growers Program is a separate opportunity than the Urban Agriculture Land Opportunity, and while we encourage you to apply for both opportunities if you have the capacity to robustly grow, need land, and need resources, the two programs are separate.



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