Back to Nature: Native Flora for Wildlife and People. The Lincoln University Native Plants Program

Presentation made at Latinos in the Heartland (12th : 2014 : St. Louis, Mo.) and published in the annual conference proceedingThe overall objective of the Lincoln University Cooperative Extension (LUCE) Sprouts and Roots Program (SRP) is to improve the well-being of minorities and other underserved communities through gardening and to promote intergenerational activities in Jefferson City and elsewhere in Missouri. To meet this objective, training is offered on nutrition, wellness, and gardening. The effects of gardening and healthy habits on the physical and psychological health of seniors and youth are being evaluated in an ongoing research study. Recruitment was done in schools, senior centers, Boys and Girls clubs, churches, and other locations with the assistance of the LUCE Paula Carter Center on Minority Health and Aging. Flyers, emails, calls, and personal visits were used to contact potential participants. Children and seniors attended indoor and outdoor classes in spring and fall, and pretests and posttests were provided to determine their change in knowledge of particular topics. Participants practiced their new knowledge to grow their own food at the community garden located on campus. Sixteen adult seniors and 16 children participated in 2012. The farmers market, also located on campus and adjacent to the garden, is offering the opportunity to SRP participants and area farmers to sell produce, baked goods, and other value-added products. An average of 14 vendors, and a total of 43, attended the market in 2012 where fresh or value-added products were sold on Thursdays and Saturdays during the growing season. Some vendors continued selling their products during the winter months. More than 4,000 people of different ethnicities, ages, and genders attended the market on Saturdays in 2012, compared to 1,305 in 2011. The SRP is providing communities the opportunity to develop their own value-added products by facilitating their access to a commercial kitchen recently opened to the public, located next to the market and community garden

Cross-cultural and experiential learning in El Salvador for extension specialists : lessons learned in the field

A delegation from Lincoln University (LU) Cooperative Extension of Missouri participated in a 12-day exchange program that included visits to communities and institutions in Central and Western El Salvador. The delegation included LU Native Plants Program (LU-NPP) staff and members of four communities in Missouri. The objectives were: 1. For the LU delegation to be immersed in the Salvadoran culture and learn how communities protect their resources and use native plants in their daily lives; 2. To exchange lessons learned between the LU-NPP, Salvadoran educators, producers, farmers, and communities; and 3. Identify organizations or agencies interested in forming alliances with the LU-NPP. Joint collaborative efforts between LU and organizations in El Salvador will help empower small farmers and will further advance agricultural and ecological education for low-income students in El Salvador and in Missouri. During site visits, local leaders from different agencies and community organizations and the LU delegation engaged in conversations to learn from each other's experiences. Salvadoran specialists were surprised to learn that Lincoln University also works with low-income communities and that farms in Missouri do not only grow cash crops. Many of the Native Plant Program's lessons learned in Missouri could be adopted in El Salvador to help small farmers and rural entrepreneurs. Evaluations from participants of this exchange program indicate that the delegation members increased their level of understanding of Latino culture and some had the opportunity to practice their Spanish skills which they can also use in Missouri. This program was funded by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) and was part of two Capacity Building Grants

Building Community with a Farmers Market, Commercial Kitchen and Community Garden The Sprouts and Roots Program at Lincoln University

Presentation made at Latinos in the Heartland (12th : 2014 : St. Louis, Mo.) and published in the annual conference proceedingThe overall objective of the Lincoln University Cooperative Extension (LUCE) Sprouts and Roots Program (SRP) is to improve the well-being of minorities and other underserved communities through gardening and to promote intergenerational activities in Jefferson City and elsewhere in Missouri. To meet this objective, training is offered on nutrition, wellness, and gardening. The effects of gardening and healthy habits on the physical and psychological health of seniors and youth are being evaluated in an ongoing research study. Recruitment was done in schools, senior centers, Boys and Girls clubs, churches, and other locations with the assistance of the LUCE Paula Carter Center on Minority Health and Aging. Flyers, emails, calls, and personal visits were used to contact potential participants. Children and seniors attended indoor and outdoor classes in spring and fall, and pretests and posttests were provided to determine their change in knowledge of particular topics. Participants practiced their new knowledge to grow their own food at the community garden located on campus. Sixteen adult seniors and 16 children participated in 2012. The farmers market, also located on campus and adjacent to the garden, is offering the opportunity to SRP participants and area farmers to sell produce, baked goods, and other value-added products. An average of 14 vendors, and a total of 43, attended the market in 2012 where fresh or value-added products were sold on Thursdays and Saturdays during the growing season. Some vendors continued selling their products during the winter months. More than 4,000 people of different ethnicities, ages, and genders attended the market on Saturdays in 2012, compared to 1,305 in 2011. The SRP is providing communities the opportunity to develop their own value-added products by facilitating their access to a commercial kitchen recently opened to the public, located next to the market and community garden. www.cambio.missouri.edu/Library/ Keywords: urban agriculture, gardening, immigrant healt