URBAN AGRICULTURE MODEL
PROyecto soberanÍa
Proyecto Soberanía (Sovereignty Project) is Re:Vision’s urban agriculture model. Re:Vision uses urban agriculture as a singular strategy that allows us to reconceptualize Southwest Denver’s food system to address a multitude of community needs such as creating a local and resilient food system, supporting community health, building community wealth, community preservation efforts, and environmental sustainability. Our model is made up of 3 urban farms, 120 family gardens, and 20 Champion gardens. Proyecto Soberanía provides local employment to community members, summer education opportunities to local youth and produces 90,000 pounds of food that feeds over 2,000 families each year.
Re:Vision’s urban farms and satellite network of family gardens throughout Westwood is central to our food and cultural sovereignty efforts. Most of the produce grown on our farms is funneled back to the community via the No-Cost Grocery. A portion of our harvest is reserved for our Denver Health CSA Box program in partnership with Denver Health Community Health Centers.
As a majority Mexican immigrant neighborhood that is at risk of physical and psycho-social exclusion and displacement due to gentrification, our urban farm is the heart of our cultural and community preservation efforts in Westwood.
URBAN FARMING
LA GRANJA
La Granja feeds our community and is the heart of our food hub work. Led by our farm manager, our team cultivates organic vegetables at our urban farm to distribute for free to the community at the no-cost grocery or as CSA boxes for Denver Health patients experiencing food insecurity.
Granja CorazóN
Urban Land Conservancy agreed to allow Re:Vision to activate an underutilized patch of land on Morrison Road. Located at the old Thriftway, the parcel of land is home to a fussball court, a Re:Vision Champion garden, and 3,600 square feet of growing space that produces 500-1000 additional pounds of food.
granja soberanía
Coming soon…
URBAN GARDENS
Family Gardens
Launched in response to Westwood mothers’ concerns about their children’s health in a neighborhood that’s a designated food desert, Re:Vision helps low-income families grow food by providing seeds, plants, compost and drip irrigation systems to convert their yards into high-production organic vegetable gardens.
Every summer Re:Vision supports 150-200 low-income families experiencing food insecurity to plant 400 sq ft backyard gardens to create long-term food access. Each family is assigned a promotora who provides training and technical assistance throughout the growing season, maximizing garden production, building relationships, and creating a strong, hard-working neighborhood network. Leveraging the wealth of agricultural knowledge in Westwood – and a culture steeped in relationships built around food – Re:Vision helped grow a community food system, backyard garden by backyard garden.
CHAMPION Gardens
Because many families in Westwood face barriers such as a lack of space or a lack of permission from their landlord to install a garden on the property, Re:Vision started Champion Gardens. These are community gardens serving 4-8 families and are installed at larger community sites like community centers, libraries, schools, and childcare centers.
CSA FOOD BOXES
In partnership with Denver Health Westwood and Pena clinics, patients are screened for food insecurity at Denver Health’s Healthy LIfestyles Clinic. Patients receive a healthy food prescription that they can redeem once a week at each clinic for a CSA food box at each clinic.
WANT A GARDEN?
Support for backyard gardens is available to residents of 80219 and 80204. Please contact us to get on a priority list for 2024 - applications officially open in March!
SUPPORT A GARDEN?
You can help support the largest community-led food access project in the country by sponsoring a backyard garden for a food-insecure family today! Please click on support for further information.