Safeguard the Edible Campus Gardens from a Parking Lot Future
We the undersigned endorse the formal recognition of the Edible Campus Gardens on the grounds of the University of Utah. Specifically, we request the designation of permanent outdoor garden spaces in the Campus Master Plan or equivalent and the appropriate program resources to support them. This will allow the Edible Campus Gardens to continue to enrich the Universitys commitments to sustainability, health, community empowerment, and creative teaching and learning.
The Edible Campus Gardens, established by Professor Fred Montague in 1996:
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Provide a living laboratory with unique opportunities for volunteering, academic and service learning, community development, and individual growth;
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Contribute to a sustainable future through the sharing of knowledge, ability, and skills to grow healthy, resilient communities with food cultivated using ecologically sound methods;
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Provide beauty, biodiversity, and a showcase for urban intensive food gardening on a campus dominated by lawns, hardscapes, and parking lots;
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Are a long-term investment by students in soil-building, place-making and urban agriculture and so should be provided spaces protected from development to the greatest extent possible.