On September 17, students at the Daniel J. Patterson Campus in Niagara-on-the-Lake had a chance to take home fresh produce grown by fellow students on campus.
In partnership with United Way Niagara, the NC Sustainability team – with the help of Greenhouse Technician program student Lucas Fysh – set up a produce pop-up outside the cafeteria where students were invited to ‘shop’ – at no cost – for fresh vegetables grown in the United Way garden plots on campus.
“We are grateful to United Way who worked with us very quickly to get this first pop-up up and running within a very tight timeframe,” said Katie Bristow, Sustainability Program and Outreach Coordinator. “The produce pop-up aligns with Niagara College’s new Sustainability Plan and the UN’s Sustainability Development Goals (SDG).”
The 30 pounds of produce were primarily grown in the United Way garden plots on campus, a collaborative effort started in 2022 between NC and United Way, to strengthen food security in the region. Since 2022, the garden yielded thousands of pounds of produce which have been shared with a dozen community partners, and now, NC students.
About forty students picked up some of the produce on offer, including eggplant, tomatoes, peppers, okra, zucchini, cucumber, garlic, kale, jalapenos, carrots, and more.
NC Horticultural Technician program students have tended to the garden, managing year-round planting plans as part of their Sustainable Food Production course.
“My role has been really to run all operations of the garden, from lawn maintenance and weeding to overseeing crop selection and planting, to hosting student volunteer groups at the garden,” said Fysh.
Fysh linked up with United Way garden manager, Luke Baulk, an alum of NC’s Horticulture Technician co-op program (2023). Baulk was looking for a student to run the campus garden over the summer, and Fysh was selected as the Garden Operation Lead.
The work was a natural fit with their sustainable food production class, with one assignment being to create a crop planning sheet for the UW Garden.
“I was able to use it when I started the job,” said Fysh, who leveraged skills from the Greenhouse Technician program to manage the outdoor garden.
Fysh connected with professor Paul Zammit from the School of Environment and Horticulture who brought his Spring Term students to get hands-on experience in the garden on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
“I also got to teach what I’ve learned in the program to newer students which was a lot of fun,” said Fysh.
“We are working hard behind the scenes to hopefully do monthly pop-ups and would love to do them at both campuses in the not-too-distant future.”
The College’s 2024-2029 Sustainability Plan: A Time for Action is guiding initiatives like the produce pop-up to shape a sustainable, inclusive, and healthy campus community for today and for generations of Knights to come. Within the plan, food security is a key priority, and is aligned with the UN SDG for zero hunger.
The produce pop-up is a step towards increasing support for programs that address student food insecurity, and the United Way garden supports increasing the amount of food grown and distributed on campus and in the community.
