THE AMERICAN COMMUNITY GARDENING ASSOCIATION
21st ANNUAL CONFERENCE
September 7 - 11, 2000
Each year the American Community Gardening Association’s (ACGA) national conference gathers people involved in all aspects of community gardening and greening to share experiences and learn from each other. The conference program will include slide presentations, panel discussions, keynote speakers, hands-on workshops, networking, walking/bus tours of Atlanta’s historical sites, green spaces, and a post-conference trip to Callaway Gardens. Get more information on the conference by contacting:
Bobby Wilson or Cathy Walker at (404) 762-4077 or email:
About ACGA
ACGA is a national non-profit membership organization of professionals, volunteers, and supporters of community gardening and greening in urban, suburban, and rural communities. ACGA seeks to promote community gardening and greening as a means for improving the quality of life for people and their communities. Visit the ACGA website at
Local Hosts
The local partner organizations include: The University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Service (Fulton/DeKalb Counties), the Atlanta Urban Gardening Program, Atlanta Community Food Bank, Skyland Trail, and Atlanta Urban Gardening Leadership Association.
Accommodations
The Fairfield/Courtyard Marriott located at 175 Piedmont Avenue NE, Atlanta, Georgia (404) 659-7777 have reserved rooms for the conference attendees.
Loudermilk Center
40 Courtland Street Atlanta, Georgia 30303 404 507-1690
Tuesday, September 5, 2000
5:00 pm - 9:00 pmACGA Executive Board Meeting
Wednesday, September 6, 2000
9:00 am - 5:00 pmACGA Board Meeting
Thursday, September 7, 2000
8:00 am - 12:00 noonACGA Board Meeting
10:00 am - 7:00 pm Registration
Fairfield Marriott 175 Piedmont Avenue NE, Atlanta
Hospitality Room
1:00 pm - 4:30 pm Pre-Conference Workshops
A. Circular Gardening/Three R’s (reduce, reuse, recycle) Workshop
B. Visit/work with a community gardening group
C. Visit/work an organic garden
D. “From Apples to Zucchini: A Comprehensive and Participatory Look at Community Gardening Impacts and Challenges” From the Roots Up Workshop
5:30 pm - 7:00 pmGet Acquainted Reception
Loudermilk Center
Icebreaker - Ms Dorothy Mants from Tobie Grant Community Garden
Vegetable puppet show (Planet Earth)
Friday, September 8, 2000
Loudermilk Center
8:00 am - 4:00 pmRegistration - Lobby
8:30 am - 10:15 amACGA Millennium Conference Invited Guests
Opening Session
George Hadley, Fulton County Extension Coordinator
Bill Campbell, Mayor of Atlanta
Gale Buchanan, Dean, College of Agricultural and Environmental Science, University of Georgia
Tom Tyler, President, American Community Gardening Association
Tommy Irvin, Commissioner, Georgia State Secretary of Agriculture
Dan Glickman, Secretary, US Department of Agriculture
10:30 am - 12:00 noonMorning Sessions
“ Therapeutic Value of Gardening - Saving Money from the Garden - Benefits of Community Gardening and the Leadership TrainingProgram” Atlanta Leadership Association - Helen Mason, Mary Kemp, Martha Glenn and Gladys Brown
“Kids Gardens from Coast to Coast”
Jim Flint, National Gardening Association, Burlington, Vermont
“Empowering Youth through Community Gardening”
San Francisco League of Urban Gardeners (SLUG)
“Community Development through Gardening: State and Local Policies Transforming Urban Space”
M. Elizabeth Nowinski, University of Baltimore School of Law
“Spreading the Seeds: Asset Based Community Building”
From the Roots Up
“Teaching Gardening in Elementary Schools”
Sharon Heit (PTA President), Charlene Baker and Verdelle Paxton (Teachers), and
Demarcus Brown (Student)
“Grow Lab 2000” How to build your own grow lab unit for $60
Michele K. Firkus, Youth Garden Advisor, Penn State Urban Gardening Program
Horticulture/Gardening Workshop**
12 noon - 2:00 pmLUNCH ON YOUR OWN
2:15 pm - 4:15 pmAfternoon Sessions
“Workshop on USDA Millennium Gardens Initiative”
Joel Berg, USDA Gardens Initiative
“Community Garden Best Practices for Community Development Corporations (CDC)”
Julia Schneider, Program Director for Employment, the Enterprise Foundation, NYC
“Partnering with Community Development Corporations on Neighbor Open Space Projects”
Carl Haefner, Deborah Hall, Shannon Nec, Philadelphia Green
“Wholesale and Alternative Markets” Jennifer-Claire Klotz, USDA, Washington, D.C.
“Community Food Project Offers Funding Opportunities for Gardens”
Zy Weinberg, USDA
“Collective Gardens as the Keystone of a Community Food Security Network”
Jean-Marie Chapeau and Martha Stiegman, Eco-initiatives, Montreal, Canada
Denotes panel presentations
“Food Circles Networking Project”
Thomas Kerr, Kansas City, Mo.
“Healthy Farms, Healthy Kids: Improving the Quality of School Meals through Local Foods”
Andrea Azuma, Occidental College CFS Project
“Branching Out: Utilizing Assets Beyond the Garden”
From the Roots Up
“The Better Urban Gardener Project - Teaching Diverse Populations Organic Gardening”
Erik Foley and Sally Anne Sadler, Washington State UniversityCooperative Extension
“Urban Centers Become Home to Diverse Populations”
Marco T. Fonseca, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension
Horticulture/Gardening Workshop**
6:30 pm - 10:00 pmEvening EventsAtlanta Botanical Garden
Reception, Seed Exchange and Silent Auction
*****Don’t forget - Bring your seeds and items for silent auction *****
Saturday, September 9, 2000
Loudermilk Center
8:00 am - 4:00 pmRegistration - Lobby
8:30 am - 11:30 amTours of Atlanta’s Community Green Space
8:45 am - 10:00 amMorning SessionsA
“Organic Gardening Technique and Practices”
Wayne McLaurin, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension
“How to Design a Barrier Free Garden”
Lisa Schrader, Skyland Trail Health and Education Center, Atlanta, Georgia
“Growing Heirloom Seeds with Youth”
Kay Grimm, Kids in Bloom, Indianapolis
“Gardeners as Stewards of Our Landscape”
Harold Herbert, Georgia Adopt-A-Stream Program
“Appreciating the Bounty: Cultivating Diversity to Enrich Community Building and Personal Empowerment”Part 1
From the Roots Up
Horticulture/Gardening Workshop**
Denotes panel presentations
10:10 am - 11:25 amMorning SessionsB
“Funding a Community Garden Project”
Joan Marsh, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension
“Community Gathering Places”
Milenko Matanovic, Pomegranate Center, Issaquah, Washington
“Urban Orchard Project”
Scott Harris, Tree Folks, Inc., Austin, Texas
“Gardening and Community Development”
Solomon Boye, Toronto Parks and Recreation, Canada
“Appreciating the Bounty: Cultivating Diversity to Enrich Community Building and Personal Empowerment” Part 2
From the Roots Up
“Involving Youth and Young Adults in the Development of Our Community through Community Gardening”
Kendra Williams, Helena Community Garden, Montana
Horticulture/Gardening Workshop**
12 noon - 2:30 pmACGA Annual Meeting and Luncheon
Loudermilk Center
2:30 pm - 5:15 pmTours of Atlanta’s Community Green Space
2:45 pm - 4:45 pmAfternoon Sessions
“How Would a National Urban Agriculture Policy Agenda Look?”
Andy Fisher (Community Food Security Coalition), Betsy Johnson (Garden Futures), and
Martin Bailkey (University of Wisconsin Department of Urban Planning)
“The Struggle for Space: Preserving Community Gardens in New York City”
Ximena Naranjo, Green Guerillas, and Karen Washington, La Familia Verde Garden Coalition
“Cooking Stone Soup: The Benefits and Challenges of Coalition Building”
From the Roots Up
“Garden Project and Garden Angel Program - Volunteer Service/Master Gardener Program Growing Food for the Elderly and Inform”
Jim Call, Assurance System for the Aging
“Plant a Row for the Hungry” Presentation and Slide Show
Jacqui Heriteau, Garden Writer Association of America
Horticulture/Gardening Workshop**
6:30 pm - 10:30 pmGeorgia Style CookoutCamp Truitt 4-H Camp
Denotes panel presentations
Sunday, September 10, 2000
Loudermilk Center
9:00 am - 10:30 amMorning Sessions
“The City-wide Community Gardening Mapping Project”
Lenny Librizzi and Gerald Lordahl, Council on the Environment, New York City
“Gardening Mosaics: Youth Participatory Research of Multicultural Gardening Practices”
Veronique Lambert, Cornell Cooperative Extension, NY
“The Square Foot Nutrition Education Project - Teaching Nutrition through Gardening”
David Eson, WSU Cooperative Extension - Pierce County, Washington
“The Proof is in the Pudding: Using Participatory Evaluation Strategies to Build Strong Programs”
From the Roots Up
Horticulture/Gardening Workshop**
11:00 am - 12 noonACGA Millennium Conference Invited Guest
Closing Session
Dr. Fred Harrison, Dean of Agriculture Fort Valley State University
Bobby L. Wilson, County Agent University of Georgia/
Vice President, American Community Gardening Association
**All horticulture/gardening workshops will focus primarily on basic gardening skills, such as soil preparation, proper planting methods, insect and disease control, etc. These topics will be listed in the program booklet.**
Monday, September 11, 2000
Post-ConferenceTour Cost not included in registration packets.
8:30 amLoad vans for departure - Bus will depart from hotel
9:45 am The University of Georgia Experimental Station, Griffin, Georgia.
Visit demonstration gardens and grape orchard
12 noonArrive Calloway Gardens. Lunch on your own.
2:30 pmDepart Calloway Gardens
4:30 pm Arrive at Hotel
**Don’t forget to bring your slides for the Friday night slide show.**
******Remember only three slides******
Denotes panel presentations