Sustainable Berea Inc

The differences we make to our community and especially to those in need.
Sustainable Berea has worked in many areas of resiliency and sustainability over the 15 years we have been in service to our community. We have embraced alternative energy, created programs that focus on our local businesses, taught people about insulating their homes, and learning to live more frugally.  In 2013, we leased a brown lot in the middle of town and began restoring the land and creating an urban farm where we could grow food and teach others to grow. Our farm has been wildly successful as we have seen the numbers of people growing food and developing native pollinator gardens increase four-fold.  Five years ago we could not get a single person to accept a fruit tree for free. This year, we have 47 people subscribed to the Native Perennial Project where free fruit and nut trees, bushes, and vines are given away to people willing to take classes in “tree guardianship.” We also have worked with 35 families to create beekeepers (5 families per year) and we have a Community Supported Agriculture program that provides food weekly to 20 families. This year we grew more than 70 varieties of vegetables and herbs.  We have classes and workshops that educate about nutrition and health and growing your own food. In the past 6 years, we have installed more than 700 raised beds -- mostly in the homes of low-income households -- through the Berea Victory Garden Program.
In 2018/2019 we completed the Harvesting Hope job training program for opioid-addicted women in recovery and 26 women graduated. This program has been put on hold due to the covid-19 virus an we are developing a curriculum that can be delivered oniine for this population.
We are proud that we continue to be flexible enough to respond to new problems faced by our community as they arise.  Building neighborhoods that are safe and friendly adds to the strength of the community and we have been told by many that we are leaders in that effort as well.  
Goals for the coming months with the Covid019 virus. People are not allowed on the farm in groups, so the farm has taken its educational programs to the pubic on zoom. We continue to make raised beds, one bed at a time with two volunteers working together with social distancing and masks. We distributed nearly 200 containers with 45 pounds of soil for people who do not have space for raised beds but wanted to grow food and teach children about gardening. The distribution occurred with masks, gloves, and social distancing for pick up. . We are developing a program for volunteers who can work one at a time during the pandemic.

Our strategies are based on securing and maintaining high quality programs we have already established and remaining open to new programs around local food systems and local businesses that are needed in the community.  We know from experiences that something does not catch with the community until they see if happen for five years in a row.  The programs we mention are in place and we have determined to keep all of them AND add only one more -- the volunteer program. All the five areas are tested -- we know they are important to our community.  To continue offering important programs strengthens our strategic approach and keeps us from engaging in activities that are not in our focused areas.  Our strategies during the pandemic include communication by social media and publication of our newspaper (bi-annually) and our instructional materials posted on our website and distributed in local businesses. We have stopped our face-to-face presentations to churches, civic organizations, groups and clubs until the pandemic is cleared.

We have many partnerships for our projects and we are always welcoming more support as people become interested in our work.  We have positive media coverage to thank for much of our success. We have a crew of volunteers who love the Blitz and work each year with it. We have support from many organizations in town devoted to sustainable practices and we work with them to enlarge our capacity to organize events for the community.  We have a creative and dedicated staff who work hard and believe in Sustainable Berea and for them, we are very grateful.  We have always believed that if we believe in our work and love our work, the money we need will follow. And, amazingly enough, that philosophy has worked. We all believe we are serving our community well and that is our primary goal. What we do not know, we figure out or ask someone for help. We are dedicated and energized by how our community has changed in the last 15 years and we are happy to say, we have played a part in putting nutritious and healthy food on the agenda with improving neighborhoods and the community.

Total number of donors and funds have increased $197,975 in 2018 from $108,005 (about 83%). More people visited the Berea Urban Farm in 2018 than in the previous year. We installed 116 raised garden beds in our community- more families will grow food. We are also reaching a different population: women in recovery from alcohol and drug addiction. By the end of 2018, 12 women had graduated from the Harvesting Hope program.

We have accomplished a lot, but we still think there is so much more that needs to be done in our community. We will continue installing raised beds, helping women in recovery from opioid and alcohol addiction, educating people in urban agriculture, and so much more.