Urban Roots: Growing and giving
April 12, 2019
Urban Roots is a non profit organization that inspires, engages, and nourishes the community through food and farming. In a 3-and-a-half acre land UR grows about 25,000 pounds of vegetables each year all grown with organic practices, like cover cropping, crop rotation, and non-chemical pesticides. Forty percent of the produce is donated to food pantries, and 60% is sold at a local farmers market in Austin. Part of Urban Root’s movement is to empower the youth which is why they have paid internship opportunities for teens entering and being in high school.
The only farm-based youth leadership organization in Austin, Urban Roots has been empowering youth and nourishing community for more than 10 years. Urban Roots started in 2008 with just 15 teenagers and one field as a project of another youth development organization, eventually becoming an independent nonprofit in 2011.
On the 3.5 acre farm in East Austin, they serve teens and young adults through paid internships that focus not just on farming, but also on their growth as leaders and good citizens.