Community Food Forums
Last fall, we put the call out to metro Atlanta cities asking who would like to join us as the pilot city to develop metro Atlanta’s first City Agriculture Plan and were thrilled with the response. In early 2019, Food Well Alliance took to the road and co-hosted Community Food Forums with seven metro cities.
We came not only to share information about City Agriculture Planning, but to hear directly from residents, community leaders, and local officials about their vision for their city. The cities of Alpharetta, Clarkston, Hapeville, East Point, Lawrenceville, Lovejoy, and Pine Lake all came out with passion and enthusiasm for the opportunity to reimagine how their cities can grow.
"Local food is a universal language, uniting communities, improving health, and adding meaning and depth to life and relationships."
— Clarkston Food Forum Guest
If we were going to select one city to pilot the program, we knew we would need to gauge the level of interest and dedication each city would bring the forums. We would also need to assess the current urban agriculture resources and infrastructure in each city. It was a tough decision. We were blown away by the creativity, energy, and city pride that all cities and participants brought into these engaging forum discussions!
Over 500 city and community leaders, residents, growers, gardeners, market volunteers, chefs, and more gathered for the food forums — at meeting spaces from breweries to city halls and senior centers to lake houses. Families, friends, and neighbors came to learn about City Agriculture Planning and share ideas for how their cities can prioritize gardens and farms in the future of their development.
In July 2019, the City of East Point was selected to pilot metro Atlanta’s first City Agriculture Plan! We will be engaging not just with East Point, but all seven cities. Stay tuned for more information on next steps with the cities of Alpharetta, Clarkston, Hapeville, Lawrenceville, Lovejoy, and Pine Lake.
