The Food Chain

Detroit's urban farmers

Feb 8, 2024

Explore Detroit's urban farming movement with guests Mark Covington, founder of Georgia Street Community Collective, and Tyson Gersh, co-founder of the Michigan Urban Farming Initiative. Discover the resilience of residents creating farms and community spaces in the city. Uncover the history of Detroit's decline and the challenges faced by urban farmers. Learn about successful projects like Tyson's community garden, and the impact of the Georgia Street Community Garden on the community. Discuss the urban farming initiative, vacant lots turned into gardens, and the future of farming in Detroit.

31:44

Creator website

Episode guests

Tyson Gersh

Mark Covington

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Quick takeaways

Urban farming in Detroit has brought economic stimulus, investment, and fresh produce to the city.

Detroit's urban farmers face challenges such as land acquisition and resistance from the city government, but persist in fostering community engagement and driving economic growth.

Deep dives

Detroit's Economic Decline and Urban Farming

The podcast explores the economic decline and history of Detroit, from its boom and dominance in the auto industry to its subsequent decline and challenges. It discusses factors like suburbanization, racial segregation, and the 1967 uprising that resulted in white flight and population loss. Amidst the city's struggles, urban farming initiatives have emerged as a means of revitalization and community development.

Introduction

2min

Detroit's Thriving Urban Farming Movement

2min

The Rise and Fall of Detroit

5min

Exploring Detroit's Potential and Purchasing a Bargain Property

2min

The Challenges and Triumphs of Urban Farming in Detroit

6min

Unexpected Journey of Georgia Street Community Collective

2min

Urban Farming Initiative and History of Detroit

15min

The city of Detroit in the United States has a lot of vacant space – as much as a quarter of residential, commercial and industrial sites lie unused today.

In this programme Ruth Alexander meets the people who are growing food in their neighbourhoods, creating urban farms and community gardens where houses once stood. Mark Covington is the founder of Georgia Street Community Collective, and Tyson Gersh is the co-founder of the Michigan Urban Farming Initiative.

Ruth learns why so much land stands empty from the city’s official historian Jamon Jordan. Jamon explains the role of the automobile industry in bringing jobs and people to Detroit in the early 1900s, and the circumstances that led to decades of population decline, job losses and debt for the city government, culminating in bankruptcy in 2013.

Tepfirah Rushdan is the newly appointed, first Director of Urban Agriculture for the city of Detroit. She explains how she hopes to bring urban farmers and politicians together to find a way for food to be grown alongside new developments as investment returns to the city.

If you’d like to contact the programme you can email thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk

Presented by Ruth Alexander.

Produced by Beatrice Pickup.

(Image: the Michigan Urban Farming Initiative a farm in downtown Detroit, surrounded by roads and buildings. Credit: Michelle and Chris Gerard/BBC)

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The Food Chain

Detroit's urban farmers

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

Detroit's Economic Decline and Urban Farming

The Impact of Urban Farming in Detroit

Challenges and Future of Urban Farming in Detroit

Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts