Augie Acres Presentation by Bryan Schmid and Stephanie Dilling Sustainability Summit 4/21/09

Description  Four vacant, blighted parcels  Located one block northwest of main campus  Unbuildable due to soil subsidence  Adjacent to five similar parcels owned by the City of Rock Island

Bryan Schmid 4/20/09

Bryan Schmid 4/13/09

Beginnings  Environmental Learning Community final project  Interdepartmental coordinated research  Biology  Business  Geography  Help from Jim Johansen, one of Augustana’s Farm-to-Fork farmers

Academic Tie-ins  Learning Community  Two related courses centered around the environment  Class projects  Local Culture house  Work at Wesley Acres  Potential for other departments to utilize the site

Goals  SUSTAINABILITY  Augment existing programs:  Farm-to-Fork  Buy Fresh, Buy Local Quad Cities  Augustana’s Environmental Action Plan  Spread knowledge of simple agricultural processes  Benefit numerous academic departments

Goals  Develop a fiscally responsible project  Keep project costs to a minimum  Provide Food Services with a less expensive product  Connect Augustana and the surrounding community

Short-Term Goals  Turn the following sets of crops this year:  Early: Spinach, lettuce, Swiss chard, cabbage, radishes, beets, peas, herbs, potatoes, onions  Middle: Tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, squash, carrots, green beans  Late: Spinach, lettuce, raspberries, garlic (harvested in spring),  Generate interest from student body  First-year courses  Environmental courses  New major: Environmental studies  Create a student group to sustain interest

Current Status  Group had a clean-up in early April  Tilled April 17 th  Planted numerous crops since  Student group being chartered  Developing marketing  Addressing ongoing concerns

Long-Term Plans  If successful, expansion is possible and encouraged  Orchard from heirloom rootstock  Campus-wide involvement  Edible rain garden  Cyclical process of supplying food for campus

Sustainability Aspects  Reuse of blighted, vacant property not fit for building  Local produce  Minimal carbon footprint  Organic agriculture  Fiscally self sustainable in the long-term  Catching runoff in rain garden  Stabilization of a compromised slope

Learning Experiences  Get things started early  Communicate clearly and regularly  Think creatively  Use any available resources on campus and online  Reciprocity – Give and receive  Persistence  Set reasonable goals

Acknowledgements  Jim Johansen of Wesley Acres  Drs. Charles Mahaffey and Jason Peters  Mary Chappell, City of Rock Island  The Augustana administration  Sustainability Committee of Augustana College  All who have given time to the project

Thank You