We would love to hear your feedback!

MEETING NOTES
MEETING ATTENDEES (count 12):  Edgar Hicks, Larry Kurtz, Kareca Moore, Neel Montgomery, Stephanie Ahlschwede, Kay Stevens, Jenifer Valandra, Jason Valandra, Kristy Carlson, Aja Kniep, Nancy Williams, and Susan Whitfield

OLD BUSINESS:
2nd Annual Food Summit: A Blueprint for the Harvest – Nov. 19 & 20, 2010: Updated and reviewed conference schedule with three tracks: home, food system development and business & community.  Still seeking volunteers to serve on Summit committee, please contact Susan Whitfield, project manager at 972.7330, nomoremptypots@gmail.com.  See schedule on www.nomoreemptypots.org.

NEW BUSINESS

• Nebraska Legislative Resolution 453 (LR 453): Food Desert Study.  Senators Brenda Council and Tom Carlson introduced LR 453 for the purpose of examining “food deserts” in the state of Nebraska. The goal of the study is to identify potential policy interventions in order to increase access to and utilization of nutritious food choices for residents in underserved areas.
• Many thanks to Coalition members: Annette Artherton, Omaha Economic Development Corporation and Edgar Hicks, NCR SARE for accompanying Susan Whitfield, NMEP Project Manager to Lincoln, NE to testify before the Agriculture Committee of the Nebraska State Legislature on Friday, October 22, 2010.  
• Community-Based Participatory Research project (UNMC, College of Public Health): Kristy Carlson and Aja Kniep, UNMC, College of Public Health graduate students, selected NMEP for their Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) project. They educated the group on the CBPR process and developed research questions based on the initial discussion of a commercial kitchen education program. The program will help train families and individuals to prepare healthy food, including local and seasonal ingredients and possibly serve as an incubator for food related microbusinesses. The results of the discussion will provide the foundation for funding proposals with a research based evaluation plan.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

• People’s Garden School Garden Pilot Program: NMEP was invited to support and help develop a plan with this $1MM USDA FNS grant in partnership with the City of Omaha Mayor’s Office of Sustainability, Douglas County Health Department, metro area school districts and nonprofit organizations with an interest in youth nutrition and school gardens. The planned proposal submission is November 8th.
• Community Commercial Kitchen-Family Housing  Advisory Service: FHAS and NMEP will collaborate with others on funding proposals as needed to prepare the kitchen so that it becomes a more useful community asset.  The results from NMEP’s kitchen survey will be used to determine the feasibility of modifying an existing kitchen resource. FHAS will convene the meeting on Thursday, October 28, 2010. For more information, be sure to complete the survey before Wednesday, Oct. 27.

NEXT MEETING
Date: Saturday, December 4, 2010 @ 10:30AM 
Location: University of Nebraska-Omaha, College of Public Affairs & Community Service (CPACS), Room 132D

REGISTER: http://nomoreemptypotsoctober2010.eventbrite.com

Meeting Location

Benson Branch Library
6015 Binney St
Omaha, NE 68104

402.444.4846

Meeting Topics

• Welcome & Introductions 
•  Progress Updates & Discussion
  • Food Summit in November: Tracks, Speakers, Sponsors
  •  Commercial Kitchen: Survey, Meeting & Rental opportunities in November
• Discussion with UNMC Public Health Students
• Meeting Adjournment

Contact: No More Empty Pots | nomoreemptypots@gmail.com | www.nomoreemptypots.org

The group also toured local gardens and farms near the listening sites. From raised bed gardens at an afterschool agency to a thriving neighborhood garden to full-scale farms with produce and livestock, the committee members visited diverse  food production places.

Gardens and farms are a rich resource for education and sharing. You can apply for a SARE grant to provide educational opportunities and to explore sustainable agriculture. 

Produce from a community garden

 Here are two active grants for the North Central Region (NCR): 1) farmer and rancher and 2) youth and youth educator.  For more grant information, please see the links below.

 2010 Farmer Rancher Grant Call for Proposals (Word format)
The deadline for the 2010 Farmer Rancher Call for Proposals is Thursday, December 2, 2010.

2010 Youth & Youth Educator Sustainable Agriculture Grant Call for Proposals (Word)
The deadline for Youth and Youth Educator Grant proposals is Friday, January 14, 2011.

The goal is to educate, facilitate economic development opportunities, inspire, and create plans of action to improve food security in our communities.  The summit will have three tracks: 1) Community Food Systems, 2) Home, and 3) Business & Community. Participants may choose sessions based on interest. Friday, November 19 will feature hands-on pre-conference workshops and Saturday, November 20 will be a full day conference with speakers and breakout sessions. 

Summit sessions planned include scratch cookery with local seasonal foods, improving economic viability of small farms, vermicomposting, composting, year round gardening, edible landscaping, and economic development opportunities of a regional food system plus the policies needed to make it happen. Summit details will be posted as they are available.

The summit planning committee is currently seeking sponsors for the event to reduce the cost for each participant and provide a more inclusive opportunity for all interested residents. If interested in sponsoring the event or specific sessions, please click here or contact the committee at nomoreemptypots@gmail.com.

REMEMBER: Save November 19 & 20, 2010 for the NMEP Summit: Blueprint for the Harvest!

REGISTER HERE: http://nomoreemptypotssept2010.eventbrite.com/

Meeting Location

 Exciting updates and need input on the following:

Progress Updates & Discussion

• USDA Listening Sessions
• Urban Ag & Shared Commercial Kitchen
• Food Summit in November : Blueprint for the Harvest

See you on Saturday @ 10AM!

For more information contact: nomoreemptypots@gmail.com

Letter authors were very compelling. Because on September 23 and 24, the USDA North Central SARE Administrative Council will engage rural, suburban,  and for the first time, urban growers and consumers in dialog about what works, what doesn’t work and what the USDA can do to support improvements and innovation. Each site has its own schedule. Omaha will be the site of the first urban listening session for the USDA.

Residents are engaging more about food. There were at least three more farmers markets this year than last in Omaha. Which means there are more folks growing and selling food as well more folks buying food directly from them.  If you care about what you eat, limited choices or not; if you are food secure or food insecure; if you grow food, cook food or just eat it, you have something to say about food. And the USDA council wants to hear it.

So here’s your chance to have a face-to-face with some of the folks who can help improve our food systems. And get some good grub to go with it. Register today and share with friends!

Want to know who supported the listening sessions? Check them out below.

1. Nebraska Great Plains RC&D
2. State of Nebrasksa - Governor Heineman
3. City of Omaha – Mayor Suttle
4. Rural Development Commission
5. University of Nebraska Rural Initiative
6. Nebraska Sustainable Agriculture Society
7. Pottawattamie County Board of Supervisors
8. Golden Hills Resource Conservation and Development, Inc.
9. Homeside Farm Market & Greenhouses
10. Western Iowa Development Association
11. Boy Scouts of America, Mid-America Council
12. Iowa State Senator:  Hubert Houser
13. Keep Council Bluffs Beautiful
14. Douglas/Sarpy County Extension
15. University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension
16. Southern Sudan Community Association
17. Nebraska Radio Association
18. Grower: Charles Bichel, Iowa
19. Grower: Bernadean Bichel, Iowa
20. Nebraska Urban Indian Health Coalition, Inc.
21. Sarpy-Douglas County FSA Committee
22. HyVee: Mitch Streit, Council  Bluffs 
23. Celiac Sprue Association
24. Center for Rural Affairs
25. Grower: Jim Knopik, Nebraska
26. Nebraska Community Foundation
27. Nebraska State Grange
28. Kansas Black Farmers Association
29. Omaha Resident: Kay Stevens
30. Massena Farms
31. No More Empty Pots
32. Nebraska State Senator:  Brenda Council
33. Grace City Church, Omaha
34. MCC Institute for the Culinary Arts
35. Buy Fresh Buy Local Nebraska
36. Congressmen Lee Terry & Jeff Fortenberry

Location: Charles Washington Branch Library

 MEETING

• Welcome and Introductions: Attendees – 15
• Meeting Summary Notes (July 24, 2010) – posted on www.nomoreemptypots.org

 OLD BUSINESS (Updates)

• USDA Listening Sessions
  • First urban session for USDA SARE
  • Online link to register – http://www.mccneb.edu/sareusda
  • Link to SARE grants: http://www.sare.org/ncrsare/apply.htm
  • 30 Supporters for Listening Session posted online: http://www.nomoreemptypots.org/
  • Suggested Question Areas: Trends, Sustainability, Change
    • youth entrepreneurship via ag business that will lead to entrepreneurial ventures
    • small scale farming
    • land grant research driven by corporate agricultural entities; need research on sustainable and ecofriendly practices and processes
    • youth agriculture: STEM education
    • animal husbandry: large and small scale
    • vermicomposting: research, soil property improvement, soil and plant nutrition, compost tea
    • politics and economics of food
      • City of Omaha planning and policy issues with urban ag
      • Island Grown Initiatives in Massachusetts willing to advise NMEP Coalition
      • link to Rural Coalition and rural ag initiatives
  • Food security may lead to solutions of other related issues
  • Business/Organization structure
    • cooperatives
    • benefits
    • check with CEDC on structure within 501c3
    • need to organize sub-group for task work
  • Create listserv for information sharing
    • Google Groups
    • Basecamp
  • NMEP Summit: “A Blueprint for the Harvest 2010: A Working Conference To Build A Regional Food System”
    • Tracks: Beginning & Advanced
    • Politics and economics of food
    • Date: Nov. 19 - 20, 2010 
    • Pre-conference workshops in MCC Urban Ag Education Series on Nov.19
    • Conference 9 to 3 on Nov. 20
    • Opening and closing speakers: TBD
    • Assessment & Market Analysis
      • Aquaponics
      • Market analysis of potential by county and combined areas, locally and regionally
      •  Online Urban Ag courses

NEW BUSINESS:    

• Community Voice & Idea Generation: Pass the Potatoes (vote online)
• Grown in North Omaha article in OWH Healthwise on Aug. 14, 2010
• AIM Compassion Capital Fund Grant
• Successful first midterm report; Final report due in October 2010.
• Need to leverage dollars to increase financial support
  • Survey/Assessments:
    • Community Assessments/ Mapping
    • Understanding relationship between economic development, food security, income generation, & local food production
    • Looking for coalition supporters with expertise to help with assessment development, data collection and analysis

 ANNOUNCEMENTS

• Paperless Meetings – will have paper and display electronically during meeting
• USDA Listening Session- Sept. 23 & 24, 2010 Register Here:   http://www.mccneb.edu/sareusda
• NMEP Summit: Nov. 19-20, 2010: “A Blueprint for the Harvest: A Working Conference To Build A Regional Food System”
• Community Voice & Idea Generation: Pass the Potatoes (vote online)
• Grown in North Omaha article in OWH Healthwise on Aug. 14, 2010

 COLLABORATIONS

• Golden Hills RCD for regional food system planning and implementation
• Blackburn High School possible collaboration to revive FFA chapter
• Metropolitan Community College: Food Summit – Nov. 19 & 20, 2010

 NEXT MEETING:

Date: Saturday, September 25, 2010 

 Time: 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Location:  W. Dale Clark (Main) Library, 215 S. 15th ST, Omaha, NE  68102

REGISTER HERE: http://nomoreemptypotsaugust2010.eventbrite.com/

Meeting Location

 Exciting updates and need input on the following:

Progress Updates & Discussion

• Urban Ag Initiative
• Shared Commercial Kitchen
• Food Summit in November
• Collaborations

See you on Saturday @ 10AM!

For more information contact: nomoreemptypots@gmail.com

Meeting Location: Together, Inc., www.togetheromaha.org

MEETING SUMMARY NOTES

OPEN MEETING

 Welcome and Introductions: Thank you, Michelle Moyes-Dill, for providing meeting space at Together Inc. for the month of June!  Thank you, Together Inc. staff.  Mike Hornacek, Together Inc., provided information about the space and services at Together Inc. It was distribution day for Angel Food Ministries boxes. 

• Distribution 4^th Saturday of each month
• Food available: signature box for $30 and fruit/veggie specialty box for $22 (check back for video link!)
• Order at www.angelfoodministries.org or in person at Together Inc.
• Pay online or in person with cash, EBT, debit/credit card, no checks accepted

Organizational Updates

• Rev. Stephanie Alschwede: BIG Garden overview
• Katie Upton: VNA Operation Frontline

Meeting Summary Notes (May 22, 2010) – online

OLD BUSINESS (Updates)

Growing Power Model:

• USDA Listening Session: Edgar Hicks – Liaison
  • September 23 & 24 in Lincoln, NE, Council Bluffs, IA & Omaha, NE. 
  • Planning is underway. Look for a Save the Date notice.
  • Visit http://www.sare.org/ for more information about USDA SARE.
• Compost (Jen Valandra, Metropolitan Community College)
  • currently deciding compost vessel
  • expanded proposal and submitted for funding to include more intensive learning experience
• Growing Power ROTC Application (Jen Valandra)
  • Strategic planning group working to complete a project plan to help guide the work of an urban agriculture mode
  • The group is working through the first round of revisions.
• Iowa Western Foundation: developing working relationship between Nebraska and Iowa organizations/individuals working on regional and local food systems

Community Kitchen:

• Survey available on Survey Monkey to capture interest and needs in a shared commercial kitchen.
• Salem’s Children Center & Family Housing Advisory Services
  • Kitchen is in use to prepare meals for USDA Summer Food Program
  • Preparing food for several feeding sites
  • Serving breakfast, lunch and snack for more than 500 participants daily

 Sustainable Garden Partnerships:

• Minne Lusa Miller Park Neighborhood Association is working to sustain thriving garden and share bounties with organizations and individuals within Omaha
• MLMP NA sends emails weekly for harvest and work parties.

Coalition Roles  & Responsibilities:

• Coalition Roles & Responsibilities Matrix – see document on Basecamp
• Six organizations have responded so far.

NEW BUSINESS

NMEP Project Plan Elements (Susan Whitfield)

• Management team is developing the overall strategic plan .
• Kitchen and Growing Power model groups are developing respective strategic plans.

Opportunity: Invitation to submit a proposal for revitalizing and re-imagining reclaimed industrial sites with urban agriculture components.

No More Empty Pots 2nd Food Summit (Kay Stevens)

• Next food summit Nov. 12 and 13, 2010 at Metropolitan Community College
• Kay Stevens will chair
• Currently accepting volunteers to serve on planning committee
• Look for Save the Date notice

ANNOUNCEMENTS

• Hoop house construction at Metropolitan Community College at 8AM on June 26 near Horticulture building
• Contact: Jen Valandra at MCC

NEXT MEETING: July 24, 2010 @ 10AM at Washington Branch Library (28^th & Ames Ave) – Event Details