Student involvement and leadership in the campus gardens

Students at the University of Utah have the chance to be involved in the Edible Campus Gardens all year long. In the fall gardeners can grow produce into late October and can collect leaves to use in compost materials. During the winter months students can prepare the gardens with compost and can grow certain weather hardy vegetables. Then finally in the spring and summer months are when the most produce can be grown and enjoyed all around campus. Students  can volunteer and are paid in fresh produce and they can also take leadership positions like the garden experts shown in the video.

Get to Social Soup

Social Soup is a monthly event hosted by the Utahn's Against Hunger, and offers incredible insight into food and nutrition in Utah. Students enjoy fresh, homemade soup while taking in an interactive lecture on what they can do to help themselves and others eat a proper diet. Students enjoy the event and reccamend it to anyone interested in becoming more informed about what they take into their bodies.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2piCmxuzRQ

Newark, New Jersey Mayor Cory Booker takes the Food Stamp Challenge

Newark, New Jersey Mayor Cory Booker takes the Food Stamp Challenge


http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2012/12/07/booker-presidential-run-not-even-in-the-realm-of-consideration/?hpt=hp_t3

I saw the following story on CNN online and thought it worthy to copy and pass along here.
Way to go Mayor Booker!


Newark, New Jersey, Mayor Cory Booker did not deny his interest in seeking higher political office in an interview on CNN's "Piers Morgan Tonight" Friday, when he also spoke about living for a week on food stamps.

"It's a little more difficult than I imagined," said Booker, a Democrat. "I thought it would be good on eating on a tight budget, so I started out not really marshalling my food well, so I'm really cutting back now."

– Follow the Ticker on Twitter: @PoliticalTicker

Booker said he resolved to spend a week eating only what he could afford on credits from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program after an online conversation "with a woman who was pooh-poohing government's role in providing nutrition for kids" went viral.
He described his week, which concludes this weekend, as an effort to raise awareness about "food insecurity," obesity and other food-related issues.

Among the most challenging aspects, he said, was giving up caffeine.
"Going out and getting a cup of coffee at Starbucks will wipe out your entire allowance for a day, and for a guy who was admittedly caffeine-addicted, I am now going through a bit of a withdrawal," he told CNN's Piers Morgan.

"This is one thing, the challenges for me right now, complaining about the headache and caffeine withdrawal - I'm off this in a week," he added. But, he continued, there are working families who rely on SNAP and similar programs.

CNN

The Food Stamp Challenge 2012

In November 2008, fewer than 31 million people were on food stamps.  Today there are over 46 million Americans were receiving benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).  With a population of just over 308 million, almost 15 percent (1 in 7 Americans) count on the program in order to survive.  Because of this and the need that is out there for food assistance, the Food Stamp Challenge was born.  This week long challenge consists of living on a food budget of four dollars a day.  While living on a food stamp budget for just one week cannot come close to the struggles encountered by low-income families’ week in and week out.  Taking part in the challenge provides great insight and will give you a whole new perspective and greater understanding about hunger in America.

Bishops Storehouse Final Nat Pack

                            Nat Pack about the contributions that the LDS Bishops
                          Storehouse makes to the community and the world at large.

 Director of the Sugarhouse Community Garden, Heidi Spence talks about all of it's features and participants.

The tale of two local farming families from the south end of the Salt Lake Valley.  Each telling their sides of farming and the struggles to keep pushing on, or too get out of the business before it bankrupted their family.

Grab-n-go Nutrition on Campus

Grab-n-go Nutrition on Campus is an important issue. The food sticker initiative is a project aiming to label grab-n-go food in several different categories to make it easier for students to find something healthy quickly.

Bees at the U

The University of Utah Beekeepers Association wants to bring more bees to Campus.  The group started this year are currently has two hives up on the fourth floor of the Union Building.   Association president Stephen Stanko said the group will expand the the Edible Campus Garden next spring.  Stanko said this will benefit, the bees, the campus gardens and the students involved.

The Social Justice Gardens at Jackson Elementary School

http://bennioncenter.org/index.htm

Real Food Challenge Comm 3555 Final Video - Jason Nowa

Social Soup Lecture Series Wrap

The Social Soup Lecture Series during Fall 2012 was a great place to be--fun students, great teachers, concerned speakers trying to improve their communities and the people that live in them--and soup!

Good food, vibes and tips for healthy eating were in good supply at every event.
If you haven't attended a Social Soup--look for them during spring semester.

Thanks to: Melinda K. Katie H. Jennifer N. and my team members Joe and Jason.

International Rescue Committee: On Food and Nutrition

      Nedim Izetbegovic, of the IRC, talked about some observations he has made with regard to refugee nutrition. Izetbegovic is one of the few Bosnian interpreters for the IRC and does a lot of integration work for Muslim refugees who come to Salt Lake City. He hopes more and more people come out to the IRC to volunteer. Through advocacy, education, community gardening, and resource development, the IRC provides refugees with opportunities to access healthy foods and nutrition education in Salt Lake City.

The Food Stamp Challenge Gets Social

On November 13 the Social Soup lecture series tackled this year's Food Stamp Challenge.  University faculty, students and outside community members gathered to discuss the Challenge:  What it is, what it means and what kind of experiences they had participating in it. Students also engaged in an exercise to raise awareness of the kinds of issues and concerns that those living on food stamps have to deal with on a daily basis.

Utahns Against Hunger

How do people in Utah fight the terrible issue of hunger? The answer seems to be pretty simple: joining forces to make this terrible situation disappear. But, it may not be as simple as many people might think. A strong leadership from a solid organization is the driving force that bonds all our efforts together. And that what Utahns Against Hunger, a non-profit organization that tackles the hunger issue, does to make hardship turn into hope for struggling families. Here is a video that I made with Gina Cornia, Executive Director for the organization, where she explains how the entity helps Utahns in need to get hope and quality nutrition for their lives.

Edible Campus Gardens

Several students at the University of Utah share their perspectives on the campus gardens and try to get involved. To volunteer at the campus gardens, visit https://webapps.utah.edu/forms/bennion/volunteer/index.tpl and fill out the volunteer form.

Quality Food, Local Ingredients, and Fast Service

 

About 32,000 students are currently enrolled at the University of Utah. Most of them are well versed that the two major food outlets on Campus are in the Olpin Ray Union Building and the HC, up by the dorms. But what some students might not know is that there are other food venues on campus that incorporate local foods into their menus, and there’s even a Vietnamese food truck that are all worth trying.

In the final video project, I wanted to focus on the food venues that don't receive quite as much attention as the Union and the Heritage Commons and why students should give them a visit.

U Students Take the Food Stamp Challenge

Could you live with four dollars a day to spend on food? 

Students at the University of Utah took on the Food Stamp Challenge and experienced life on the food budget allotted to food stamp users.