“The Richmond Food Security Society wants to share these amazing stories about food and Asian perspectives,” says Colin Dring, Executive Director of Richmond Food Security Society. “We have a lot to learn from traditional diets and how they relate to food issues such as health, economics and poverty.”

The event is free of charge and is located at the Brighouse (Main) Branch of Richmond Public Library on May 31^st from 630 to 800pm in the performance hall, 7700 Minoru Gate. For more information call Colin Dring at (778) 859-1148 or go to www.richmondfoodsecurity.org/

Panel

Warren Bell is a general practitioner with over a decade of medical experience and works in understanding the connection between healthy living and food.

Stephanie Yuen is a seasoned food and travel journalist well known for her print and online publications such as ‘Beyond Chopsticks.’

Jose Sarabia is a an accomplished local organic farmer and agrologist with extensive experience growing rice in the Philippines.

Additional speakers to be announced.

Contact: Colin Dring, Executive Director, Richmond Food Security Society (778) 859-1148 or at coordinator@richmondfoodsecurity.org

March 15, 2012

In Attendance: Arzeena Hamir, Erika Simms, Alex Nixon, Anne Swann, Rani Wangsawidjaya, Lois Carson-Boyce, Serena Lusk, Debbie Brow,  Gretchen Frazer, Karin Whittaker, Colin Dring, Don Mackenzie (Oxfam/Amnesty), Janice Crowe, Wendy McDonnell, Chris Langer

1. Additions to Agenda: 3b: School Farms, 10. Move for Health, 11. South Arm – Gate naming, Aboriginal Food Security Story

Previous minutes approved

2. Seedy Saturday recap: We had a very successful event this year with the most attendance ever. It was also successful for the vendors who participated and they would like to attend next year as well. The event was advertised through the local newspapers as well as our Facebook page/Twitter. We raised $160 for the Shenanigans Youth garden program from the table fees and Coffee/baked goods donations. We are very thankful to Starbucks and Cobs Bakery for their donation. As we didn’t anticipate the huge numbers we didn’t obtain an event licence which we will need for next year. If the event is to stay at Terra Nova, then a suggestion for transport bus is suggested

Discussion of possible change of venue to Thompson Community Centre is an option. We will need to contact Thompson CC immediately to confirm that we will be able to hold our event. Next year’s event is on Saturday March 2, 2013.

Action: Arzeena to contact Thompson Community Centre for next year’s event

3. Farm to Cafeteria Conference recap: Colin reported on this two day conference. The first day consisted of three farm/school tours – one was at UBC farm, Queen Alexandria School and Terra Nova Farm. Unfortunately the weather was rainy and not great for the tours but they were very informative. As well there was a Youth chefs competition between to high school teams. One team came from Sir David Thompson from Vancouver and the other came from David Thompson in Invermere. The food they made was to use as much local produce as possible. The food was sampled at the evening event where Dr. Warren Bell spoke regarding ‘Pharm to Farm’.

Day two: The conference took place at City Hall. It was a great event with many good discussion groups. As well, many networks were established. There were many people from Richmond including two school trustees, Harold Steves and Dave Semple. There is hope for some projects to be started in Richmond. Commentary of ‘Food is trendy’ but it is really not realized what good food really is. A suggestion that we need to ‘Strike while the iron is hot’ and ride on the positive environment that was created at the conference

3b. Wendy from Anderson Elementary came to the meeting to discuss the hurdles that she has gone through to get a school garden started at the school. The staff at Anderson supports the garden project. Eric Yung and Norm Goldstein, School trustees were had a very positive perspective on the gardens. Suggestions for moving forward on the project are to apply for grants. There are grants that are available- School Community Connections Grant, Action Schools BC healthy eating grant ($300), healthiest schools grant,

Action: Arzeena to facilitate a meeting with the school district and Wendy from Anderson.

    Arzeena also asked that Fresh Roots- A non profit society that sets up school gardens puts together a presentation for the school district as another option for schools to start gardening program.

4. Earth Day Update April 21^st:

We are partnering with the library on this event. Other groups will include Oxfam, Amnesty, Karin’s Eco contest, poverty response and the sharing farm. There will be a screening of the film “There Once was an Island”.    Library will be sending out the press release. Window box is available from April 14^th- 21st

Action: Erika to collect brochures, seed packets, gardening tools and a poster of what the food security society does. Organizations can send material and information to the event to be promoted.

    Suggestion of plants at different stages for a display

5. Incubator farm update: 7 farms are all occupied, only 1 from Richmond and 3 farm    school graduates. Pressure needs to be put on the municipality to ensure that ditches are kept as well as giving more access to water without relying on city water. There will be a session about irrigation on March 29^th and it is also opened to the public.

Community gardens update: Renewals end on March 30^th, 2012. As of the meeting date we have had 154 renewals, we are adding 6 new plots at Brighouse School, 3 more plots will be added at Railway and 5 more at Gilbert. As of this date we have a waitlist of 154- The breakdown is as follows: 53 Terra Nova, 28 City Centre, 6 East Richmond, 20 Garratt, 45 Gilbert and 73 Steveston.

6. Serena Lusk introduced Chris Langer, who is writing a report on ‘How Community Gardens connect to food security’. Chris grew up in Richmond and has a Masters’ degree in Food Security. His project will include surveying community gardeners, food and secure populations, interview stake holders, focus group w/ gardeners. This will be limited to City community gardens only. Chris will also look at the models and how they work in Richmond following IDRC best practices. Suggestions: What will help to build up No 5 Road?  As well concerns for the 3 metro Vancouver low income housing sites and the challenges they face. It was suggested that Minoo be interviewed. Also to look at current city programs.

Chris is planning a Survey that would go out to all community gardeners either by email leaving copies at the community gardens. Also included in the survey should be the participants of the community youth garden plots at Garratt. The project will be complete around mid to late July 2012.

Action: Serena will send the project proposal to Erika to attach to these minutes.

7. Local Food Guide: We will be updating the local food guide this year. Arzeena requested a call for any one who may know of any farms that could be added to the pages.  There was a brief discussion on whether or not to translate the document into Chinese. As most of the text is addresses there would be very little to translate.

Action: Erika will be updating information for the Guide.

Janice Crowe will translate into Chinese

8. Good Food Box: This program has been delayed but will probably go ahead in April. The Heart of Richmond would like to participate. Carol White is the Executive Director

9. Water makes Money:  A movie that will be aired on April 10^th at 7pm at the Chinese Bunkhouse at Britannia Shipyards. This event is sponsored by CUPE and Council of Canadians. There will be speakers at this event.

Arzeena would like to start a petition to stop City Hall from using bottled water.

10. Move for Health 2012: this event will take place on Thursday May 10^th at the Minoru Oval. This event is part of the WHO to get the community mobilized; there will be walks and information table.

Action: Debbie Brow will send the contact information to Erika

11. South Arm farm gates: The South Arm United Church will be having a gathering to name the farm gates on the property. This will take place after church on Sunday. Lois Carson-Boyce had a farm gate named.

12. Don MacKenzie from ‘Oxfam & Amnesty’ brought a t-shirt that had an insignia of a sliver of a moon. Native meaning is when the small moon is hanging in the sky it looks like a bowl and that there will be prosperous crops. ‘Hobiyee’ means Happy New Year

Meeting Adjourned 5pm

Next meeting on April 29, 2012

PROJECT/INITIATIVE OUTLINE

Project Title: Community Gardens and Food Security – An Assessment of Impact

Project Leader: Serena Lusk, Manager, Parks Programs, City of Richmond

Researcher: Christopher Langer

1. 1.   Brief Background

Currently, there is a common assumption that community gardens contribute to local and individual food security. The International Development Research Centre, Growing Power, and other groups have recommended various best practices for those running food security-oriented community gardens. Additionally, there is a growing interest in using park space for community garden programs.

1. 2.   Work Undertaken to Date

To date, no work has been done to determine the local impact of community garden programs on food security in Richmond. This appears to be true of other cities in the Metro Vancouver area. Despite this lack of local research, there are a number of studies relevant to this project:

1. Best Practices
   1. Growing Better Cities: Urban Agriculture for Sustainable Development (2006) by Luc J.A. Mougeot
   2. London’s community garden program review — Best Practices Review (2010) by the London Civic Administration
   3. Community Gardens: Best Practices Across Urban America (2010) by Jennifer Lynn Sheldon
   4. Local Food Security
      1. Richmond Food System Assessment (2006) by Coyne and Associates, Ltd.
      2. Local Poverty
         1. Poverty in Richmond: A Sense of Belonging (2000) by the Richmond Community Services Advisory Council.
2. 3.   Defining the Project of Initiative

The purpose of this study is to gain an in-depth understanding of the local relationship between food insecurity and community gardens. The study will attempt to answer the following questions:

•Who is using Richmond’s community garden programs?

•How do gardeners address food insecurity and hunger through gardening?

•To what extent does the community gardens program reflects current best practice literature?

•What barriers hinder using these programs to address food insecurity?

•What best practices might be integrated into the community gardens program?

1. 4.   Methodology

This study will use a number of methods to obtain attitudinal and statistical information on food security and community gardening:

1. Interviews with key stakeholders: Two to four key stakeholders from the Richmond Food Security Society’s member agencies will participate in interviews ranging from one half to a full hour. The objective of these interviews is to learn how community gardening is understood by those who facilitate programs.
2. Community gardener survey: Short questionnaires will be distributed to all gardeners in order to learn more about who is using community gardens (i.e. income level, country of birth, nationality, age, address, education, occupation, what they grow in gardens, and how they see their gardening work contributing to their lives).
3. Group interviews: Two group interviews of four will be conducted after the survey is complete. One group will consist of gardeners, while the other of other (possibly food insecure) community members. Themes emerging from the survey will be discussed, as will issues of barriers to using community garden programs to increase food security.
4. Best practices literature research: A number of best practices for using community gardens to address food security will be explored. These will be contrasted with what is known of Richmond and its community gardens program in order to explore the feasibility of local implementation of various best practices.

Regarding dissemination, a draft report will be provided for the Project Leader to review. The Final Report will incorporate the Leader’s comments, concerns, and other feedback.

1. 5.   Public Participation
   1. Internal Stakeholders
      1. Parks Department:

•Serena Lusk (Manager of Parks Programs)

•Lucy Tompkins (Acting Manager Programs and Projects)

•Mike Redpath(Senior Manager)

•Dave Semple (Senior Manager)

1. External Stakeholders
   1. Richmond Food Security Society
   2. Community gardeners
   3. Community groups

All study questions will be sent to the Project Leader for approval  prior to being used in surveys or interview schedules.

Internal stakeholders shall receive periodic updates of the research in order to allow them the opportunity to critiques and give general feedback. In regards to external stakeholders, members of the Richmond Food Security Society will be invited to provide input as to the direction of the research and later to discuss findings. Two to four members will be asked to participate in an interview for the study. Study surveys will be distributed to all community gardeners, while four gardeners and four members of community groups will participate in group interviews.

1. 6.   Outline of High Level Actions and Timelines (completion July, 2012)
   1. Consultation Meeting With Richmond Food Security Society (mid March)
   2. Interviews With Stakeholders (late March)
   3. Analysis of Stakeholder Interview Data (late March – early April)
   4. Creation of Survey Questionnaire (April)
   5. Survey Distribution (mid-May)
   6. Survey Collection (early June)
   7. Analysis of Survey Data (mid-June)
   8. Group Interviews (late June)
   9. Analysis of Group Interview Data (late June)
   10. Integration of Study Data (late June-early July)

Final Report (late July)

Environmental scientists do not yet know what long-term impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem function could result from dispersing GMOs and related products such as herbicides and Bt toxins (Bacillus thuringiensis toxins) in the environment, what effects they could have on indigenous microorganisms and invertebrates in streams and soils, and what threats they might pose to water quality.”

The City of Richmond and Richmond Food Security Society present Chef Mr. Ian Lai in demonstrations of healthy, fun, affordable and locally sourced Asian inspired cooking.

Cooking demonstrations that will inspire you to create fresh and tasty food from the best Richmond and Lower Mainland ingredients.

Choose from one of two sessions on a first come first serve basis. Places must be booked in advance.

May 10th and 11th, 6:00-8:00 p.m. Garrett Wellness Centre 7504 Chelsea Place, Richmond

To register, fill out the registration form below.

Image Courtesy Richmond News

Last year, the dealership on Cambie and Shell roads erected the Lower Mainland’s first wind turbine for commercial use — a sky-grazing 60-feet tall device, aimed at reducing Auto West’s carbon footprint by generating electricity that is dumped directly into BC Hydro’s grid.

Before that, the company, which has spent more than $1.5 million on green initiatives, installed geothermal heating and cooling, green roofs, underground tanks to collect storm water, a water recycling system and solar panels.

Now the green fever will continue its spread at Auto West when the staff plant a 680 sq ft roof top community garden this spring.

And, come harvest time later this year, 100 per cent of the fresh fruits and veggies from their garden will go straight to the Richmond Food Bank Society.

Full Article: http://www.richmond-news.com/Richmond+firm+green+fever+spreads+food+bank/6449636/story.html

Feria de Bienestar Richmond 2012

Music
Culture
Conferences
Children’s Activities
Services Information

Image courtesy Vancouver Sun

The City of Richmond is poised to join a growing number of B.C. municipalities that oppose the cultivation of genetically modified crops and plants within their boundaries.

A resolution has been working its way through city hall since June 2010, when Arzeena Hamir of the Richmond Food Security Society and April Reeves of GE Free B.C. pitched councillors on proposed wording that would keep Richmond free of genetically engineered trees, plants and crops.

“We got a call a few days ago from city staff saying they are finally ready to write the report,” said Hamir. “It’s been lost in the legal department for nearly two years, but the resolution is expected to come to council in May.”

Richmond councillor Harold Steves said staff were struggling with the question of how to deal with several farmers in Richmond already growing GE corn.

Green Tea Cabbage. Image courtesy Mint Green Apron

Cabbage.

Humble. Yet simple and tasty fare for those who massage it with the right flavours. Often all it needs is to be kissed by a hot pan and topped with some butter and salt. My daughter absolutely loves simply sauteed cabbage and so it often appears on our table.

From the Mint Green Apron blog by a Richmond resident who “is passionate about serving my family great tasting, wholesome food. I focus on using fresh, organic ingredients and I buy locally-grown foods whenever possible. I love to experiment in the kitchen and I love to tell a story with my food…”

RICHMOND, B.C. – With all the controversial news about our changing earth and threats to our food supply, why not find out how we can protect our earth? Learn about issues surrounding food security and food choices, climate change and green initiatives at “Celebrate Earth Day” on Saturday April 21st from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at the Brighouse (Main) Branch of Richmond Public Library, 7700 Minoru Gate.

“This fun, free, family event for all ages will inspire and amaze you with information about local community projects like rooftop gardens, community gardening, and composting,” said Lee Anne Smith, the library’s acting facilities coordinator. “You can even participate in an earth friendly ECO-Contest. Find out how you fit into the environment and discover your ECOtype.”

The program is co-sponsored by Richmond Food Security Society; with booths from The Sharing Farm, Amnesty International and the City of Richmond Green Can Program. Families can also enjoy lunch out on the Canadian Western Bank rooftopgarden on the top of the Cultural Centre or stay inside and make giant bookmarks out of recycled materials.

HANDS-ON ACTIVITIES
10:00AM-12:30PM

• Cambie community clean-up • Tree/shrub planting • Invasive plant removal • Restoration of Bath Slough Trail • Community garden site prep

• Community centre playground construction

VOLUNTEER APPRECIATION 12:30-2:00PM

• Mayor’s address • BBQ for volunteers • Live music

For more information or to sign- up as a volunteer, please call Cambie Community Centre at 604-233-8372.

The Richmond Food Security Society will be there.