Progress 09/01/11 to 08/31/14
Outputs
Target Audience: Throughout its three-year project period, REAP served limited-resource, socioeconomically-disadvantaged refugee and immigrant farmers and ranchers. Refugees are forced to flee their homes abroad due to war and persecution and survive against the greatest odds. Often after perilous journeys to temporary safety followed by long years in the uncertainty of refugee camps, they are resettled in the U.S. with little more than the clothes on their backs. As soon as they arrive, the clock is ticking for them to become economically self-sufficient within the eight months of federal assistance available to them. For most refugees, the majority of whom arrive with little or no formal education or knowledge of English, this is a formidable challenge. During the three years period, the project served 74 individuals from 13 different countries. At the time of their enrollment, of these 74 participants: - Fifty-five (74%) were unemployed, five (7%) had part-time employment, nine (12%) had full-time employment, and five (7%) reported being self-employed. - Forty-four (59%) had monthly earned income of less than $500, ten (14%) had between $501 and $1,000, twelve (16%) between $1,001 and $1,500, five (7%) between $1,501 and $2,000, and two (3%) greater than $2,500. - Forty-five (61%) received Temporary Assistance to Needy Families and forty-nine (66%) were enrolled in the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. - Twenty-seven (36%) had arrived in the U.S. less than two years ago. - Twenty-six (35%) were women. Twelve participants (16%) were from Burma, and twenty-seven (36%) from Iraq, with others hailing from Afghanistan, Bhutan, Cambodia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Mexico, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda, Uzbekistan, and Zimbabwe. Changes/Problems: Over the course of the three year project period, the implementation of REAP was faced with three primary challenges necessitating innovative modifications. These resulted in a paradigm shift in thinking about how to most effectively offer support to beginning ranchers and farmers from refugee communities in San Diego. These challenges, modifications and revised approaches are outlined in detail in what follows: First, the composition of the target audience experienced changes that required a slight revision of the original vision for the project: While the project proposal for REAP anticipated primarily engaging the community of refugees from Burma in San Diego, with ongoing assistance to the Somali Bantu community, the actual number of refugees resettled from Burma was in fact much lower than projected. Instead, San Diego saw a significant increase in the number of Iraqi refugees, primarily from the Christian Chaldean minority. While San Diego advanced to the status of “refugee resettlement capital” of the U.S. just before launch of the project, receiving more refugees for resettlement than any other area of same size in the country, up to approx. 90% of those newly arriving came from Iraq, helping create the second largest community of Iraqis outside Iraq in San Diego. A significant portion of Iraqi refugees resettled in San Diego possess an extensive background in agriculture. Consequently, outreach efforts for REAP, particularly in the final year of the project, focused on that community. As a result, 36% of the total number of project beneficiaries during the three year project period were Iraqi, compared to only 16% from Burma. Throughout the project period, REAP continued to serve beginning farmers from the Somali Bantu community, who began doing business collectively as “Bahati Mamas,” grossing more than $25,000 in agricultural sales in the final 12-month period of the project and thus accounting for more than two thirds of all sales achieved by project participants during that year. Second, project staff found that the level of economic stability of the majority of participants was severely compromised, with project beneficiaries un- or under-employed, living at or below federal poverty guidelines and often with little ability to navigate their new host communities linguistically and logistically. Project staff found that this may result in a situation where the generic risks inherent in farming enterprise could have disproportionately destabilizing effects on the beginning farmers in the absence of additional supports. Consequently, IRC provided a more comprehensive suite of “wrap-around” services to beginning refugee farmers participating in REAP, including ESL instruction, “work readiness,” and financial literacy trainings. The resulting expansion of the scope of the project, and time commitment required of participants, presented its own challenges: Aspiring beginning refugee farmers and those already engaged with the project had difficulties juggling their farming endeavor with their family commitments with often multiple children and other income-generating activities. This was particularly so due to the location of the main training farm utilized by IRC in year one of the project, located a 70-minute drive from most project participants’ residences, introducing additional challenges in transportation costs and productive time lost in transit. As a result, several participants had to discontinue their farming operation even during the three year project to search income generating opportunities closer to home, and with the intensive assistance of ancillary IRC services offered as part of REAP, 11 secured employment, with seven job placements in the agricultural sector, including one as site manager of an heirloom bean farm, and four in the food service sector. Third, access to land proved to be a significant challenge for the project and its beneficiaries alike. Just before the beginning of the project, the IRC’s project partner and landlord, Tierra Miguel Foundation, dissolved, jeopardizing plans for REAP and the timely launch of the project. While this situation was eventually remedied when IRC obtained a new lease agreement for the same farm site in Pauma Valley directly from the landowners, the Pauma Band of Luiseno Indians, the distance of that remote rural site to most participants’ homes in low-income urban neighborhoods proved to be a significant obstacle, even calling into question the viability of rural farming for beginning refugee farmers in San Diego, with the cost and time taken to reach this and other similar sites being prohibitive to aspiring refugee farmers. To mitigate this challenge, the program responded by focusing attention on urban farming and creating two new urban farm training and incubation sites (one in 2013, one in 2014), serving 25 beginning refugee farmers, 34% of the total number of project beneficiaries. It also adopted a much more nimble approach to training, allowing for flexibility in scheduling for the beginning farmers and for laser-like focusing of services to the specific needs of each participant in the project. This revised approach of a much more flexible structure and a focus on production in urban areas already proved to be the most viable approach for this target population: Luchia Lokonyen, for example, a single mother of five who participated in the REAP beginning farmer practicum during year one of the project, was unable to continue to the intermediate stage, having to juggle doctors’ and school appointments for her children while trying to make a living. She now receives assistance on a 600 square foot plot at the IRC’s New Roots Community Farm in the heart of City Heights, San Diego’s most densely populated neighborhood and a “hotspot” for refugee resettlement due to the abundance of affordable housing. During the first four months of calendar year 2014 (January – April), Luchia grossed $1,836 from sales at one local farmers’ market and through the New Roots Food Hub. Luchia also found a job as a garden assistant in a local restaurant’s kitchen garden with help from the IRC’s Center for Financial Opportunity to pursue an income-patching strategy, with farming providing a significant boost to her family’s financial wellbeing. This further demonstrates the potential of using “income patching,” the combination of wage-based and self-employment income to increase household income, for refugee farmers. This is particularly relevant in light of research by the Aspen Institute, which found that 84% of income patching entrepreneurs raised their household income above the Federal poverty line, compared to only 70% of non-income patching entrepreneurs. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?
Nothing Reported
How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? To recruit participants for REAP, IRC staff implemented comprehensive outreach campaigns, including a total of nine community outreach sessions (attended by more than 100 refugees interested in farming in the U.S. for the first time) and five tours to the farm sites of the REAP project and neighboring farms (attended by 48 refugees interested in farming in the U.S. for the first time). information disseminated via fliers (translated into four languages), direct communication (through IRC resettlement case managers), at the IRC offices, and via the listserv of the San Diego Refugee Forum, a mutli-stakeholder collaborative of all agencies serving refugees in San Diego outreach to several service providers in San Diego County who regularly interface with refugee and other socioeconomically disadvantaged clients display of fliers and posters at gathering places for refugees, such as places of ESL instruction, places of worship, and ethnic cafes, restaurants and grocery stores. an innovative social media campaign, utilizing recorded video messages on Facebook targeting the Arabic-speaking community. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? CHANGES/PROBLEMS CONTINUED: As a result of the experience outlined above, IRC delineated two core lessons of its experience during the three year Beginning Farmers and Ranchers Development Program period: Urban farming is a more viable approach for refugee farmers in San Diego. Since refugees live almost exclusively in San Diego’s urban core, the time and effort it takes to travel to rural farmland is prohibitive. In fact, transportation accounted for up to 80% of beginning farmers’ expenses in REAP (not including the opportunity cost of productive time lost). Unfortunately, relocation to rural areas is not an option for refugees, who have been traumatized already by being uprooted and who now rely on social support networks and employment opportunities that are culturally and linguistically accessible, but unavailable in San Diego’s rural hinterland. Beginning refugee farmers require a nimble approach to training. Refugees need to cope with many, and often competing priorities. These include at least part-time employment to stabilize often precarious economic situations, learning English, and navigating a complex set of new rules and regulations in their everyday lives (including an educational system for their children). Competing scheduling demands pose too great a challenge to successful participation in long-term, intensive training programs. Moreover, time comes at a premium for individuals who have lost everything and are eager to rebuild their lives. Consequently, and with a view to continuing and renewed assistance to beginning refugee farmers and ranchers in San Diego, IRC has adjusted its strategy around the following two core pillars: Focus on urban farming Focusing on farming in or close to the urban core, greatly enhancing the production possibilities for beginning refugee farmers. Meeting beginning farmers where they’re at Meeting farmers where they are at, both literally in terms of production site as well as figuratively in terms of their skill level, without lengthy upfront mandatory trainings. This would allow aspiring and beginning farmers to engage with the project when they are ready (without having to wait for a new “cohort” to start), at a production location that suits their needs (see Land Bank below), with a flexible scheduling options to fit their lives, and with an “a la carte” approach to respond specifically to their individual training and technical assistance needs. This revised, evidence-based strategy would be implemented through: Land Bank Through a Land Bank, new urban production sites would be identified and made available to beginning farmers Training schedule Trainings would be offered on an ongoing basis with flexible weekday/weekend, daytime/evening hours to accommodate various (and often changing) scheduling needs Technical assistance A pool of agricultural experts would be able to provide targeted and individualized technical assistance to participants in all aspects of farming Interestingly, in discussions with beginning and established farmers in San Diego, as well as other service providers working with beginning farmers, it has become clear that the nimble approach to training with a heavy urban focus is also what is needed by beginning farmers who are not refugees. IRC is therefore excited about exploring future opportunities to implement the new strategic direction for the benefit of beginning farmers in San Diego, and hopes to leverage its own expertise with the many collaborative connections made throughout the three year REAP period to benefit refugee farmers and other beginning farmers alike.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Increase awareness/education about and demonstrate farming opportunities in the urban setting to potential refugee farmers: During the three year project period, IRC broke ground on, developed and operated a new five-acre community garden in the City of El Cajon (the New Roots Fresh Farm, a collaboration with Kaiser Permanente) as an agricultural production site and community gathering space for 36 refugee community gardeners (in addition to 24 other community members). Since March 2013, IRC also operated a weekly certified farmers’ market in El Cajon, providing a nexus for refugees and aspiring refugee farmers to connect with established agricultural entrepreneurs and to earn income from farming themselves. Three community gardeners seized this opportunity and started selling their produce at the farmers’ market during the final year of the project. Increase the farming capacity and business skills of refugee farmers: The IRC served a total of 74 beginning farmers with training and technical assistance successfully completed three rounds of its Beginning Farming practicum for a total of 63 beginning farmers (the training was completed by 53 participants, for a completion rate of 84%), continued to serve 16 graduates from trainings in the previous reporting period with ongoing training and technical assistance at its farm incubator sites, developed two new urban farm training sites, one in the City Heights neighborhood of the City of San Diego, the other adjacent to the community garden in El Cajon; and All of the participating farmers were significantly socioeconomically disadvantaged (see “Target Audiences” section for detailed demographics). The Beginning Farmer practicum combined hands-on field training with classroom learning, over the course of 12 to 15 weeks. The production training components covered a full spectrum of topics ranging from starting seeds in a greenhouse to post-harvest handling, while the farm business training components provided instruction in basic farm business planning, record keeping, marketing and sales, access to land and food safety. Participants in the Intermediate Farming practicum received ongoing assistance in all of these areas. Throughout the three-year project period, IRC collaborated with partner agencies to offer workshops in innovative niche-market microenterprise strategies, including high-yield container crops suitable for urban growing, such as dragonfruit (by the University of California Cooperative Extension Small Farm Program), pastured poultry (by the Sustainable Agriculture Information Service/National Center for Appropriate Technology) and beekeeping (by a local beekeeper). During the three-year project period, IRC assisted one graduate of the first year’s Beginning Farmer practicum to obtain an independent lease. IRC provided help with site inspection and landlord negotiation, and partnered with California FarmLink in developing appropriate lease terms for the farmer. The participant proudly moved off the IRC’s incubator farm and onto his “own” land, where he started crop production in March, 2014. As a direct result of participation in the program, refugee farmers reported significant increases in knowledge. Evaluation for each new Beginning Farming cohort was based on pre- and post-tests measuring 15 agriculture-specific knowledge areas spanning the spectrum from horticulture to marketing, on a scale from one (lowest) to four (highest). The pre-test was administered at the beginning of the practicum, and the post-test was administered during the final classroom session at the end. Over the course of the three-year project period, only 23.6% of incoming new beginning farmers scored higher than 2 on the pre-test; following completion of the REAP Beginning Farmer practicum, that number had risen to 78.8%. This improvement in knowledge was aptly demonstrated by participants throughout the project period by changes in their actions. Participant farmers used drip irrigation, seeders for direct seeding, and the green house for seed propagation for the first time, as evidenced by weekly “field assessments” conducted by project staff. These are all techniques that the participating farmers had not previously used in their home countries and which they learned during the Beginning Farmer practicum. Similarly, all participants started using planting and farm activity planning calendar tools, and writing sales invoices for all produce sales made. Independent crop availability projections also significantly increased in quantity and quality across all participants throughout the project period. Further assessments introduced in the second year of the three-year project cycle using the IRC’s proprietary “New Roots Participant Survey,” also conducted at the end of the Beginning Farmer practicum, revealed that of all participants who completed the Beginning Farmer Practicum in years two and three: 98% noticed improvements to their physical health as a result of participation in this program (27% strong yes, 71% yes), 100% had better access to (or awareness of) healthy, culturally-desirable foods as a result of participation in this program (32% strong yes, 68% yes), 95% felt generally more positive about their lives as a result of participation in this program (43% strong yes, 52% yes), 98% felt more connected to their neighbors and their community as a result of participation in this program (23% strong yes, 75% yes), 95% saw this program as having a positive impact on their family (30% strong yes, 65% yes), 90.5% saw this program as having a positive impact on their neighborhood/ community (35% strong yes, 55.5% yes), 90.5% were saving money on groceries – and eating healthier – as a result of participation in this program (44% strong yes, 46.5% yes), and 67% believed that farming is a good business for them to pursue (38.5% strong yes, 28.5% yes). Introduce refugee farmers to innovative marketing channels: During the three-year project period, the IRC established a pilot Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program that quickly grew its membership from twenty in year one of the project to up to 70 in its final year. Additionally, IRC acquired several boutique restaurant accounts and facilitated direct meetings between chefs/restaurant owners and participating farmers. Further, the IRC cultivated productive relationships with produce retailers, with Whole Foods Market beginning to purchase beginning refugee farmers’ produce in May of 2014. This also provided REAP participants with opportunities to meet with Whole Foods produce “foragers,” produce buyers, and produce department “team members” as well as customers of that chain. As a combined result of all marketing efforts, project beneficiaries achieved sales of $122,923.36 during the three year project period. In addition, participants leveraged the skills obtained through the Beginning and Intermediate Farmer practicums to develop independent sales channels, including at farmers’ markets, to members of their community, ethnic grocery stores/restaurants, and “mainstream” third-party “farm box” aggregators. Since these sales are less well documented, the actual total sales number achieved by participants in REAP is even higher. To provide additional support to socioeconomically disadvantaged beginning farmers, the IRC also offered work readiness and job search/placement services for project participants. As a result, eleven REAP participants were hired by local farms and food establishments, allowing the participants to use their newly-learned skills in fostering economic self-sufficiency and stability for themselves and their families through wage-based employment, as they strive to rebuild productive lives in their new communities.
Publications
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Progress 09/01/13 to 08/31/14
Outputs
Target Audience: During its third year, REAP continued to serve limited-resource, socioeconomically-disadvantaged refugee and immigrant farmers and ranchers. Refugees are forced to flee their homes abroad due to war and persecution and survive against the greatest odds. Often after perilous journeys to temporary safety followed by long years in the uncertainty of refugee camps, they are resettled in the U.S. with little more than the clothes on their backs. As soon as they arrive, the clock is ticking for them to become economically self-sufficient within the eight months of federal assistance available to them. For most refugees, the majority of whom arrive with little or no formal education or knowledge of English, this is a formidable challenge. During this reporting period, the project served 46 individuals. Of those, 20 had been enrolled during the previous reporting period and continued their participation in the project, and 26 participants were newly enrolled. Two of the participants who had received ancillary support in previous reporting periods were enrolled into the core training program for the first time during this reporting period, for a total of 28 participants trained. At the time of their enrollment, of these 28 participants: - Twenty-two (79%) were unemployed, three (11%) had part-time employment, and three (11%) had full-time employment - Seventeen (61%) had monthly earned income of less than $500, five (18%) had between $501 and $1,000, three (11%) between $1,001 and $1,500, two (7%) between $1,501 and $2,000, and one (4%) greater than $2,500. - Fourteen (50%) received Temporary Assistance to Needy Families and fifteen (54%) were enrolled in the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program - Eleven (39%) had arrived in the U.S. less than two years ago, eight (29%) between two and five years ago, and seven (25%) more than five years ago, and two (7%) preferred not to provide this information. - Six (21%) were women The countries of origin of project beneficiaries are as follows (first number indicates newly enrolled participants during this reporting period, second number is cumulative for all 46 individuals served during this reporting period): Afghanistan: 0/1 Bhutan: 0/1 Burma: 0/1 Cambodia: 0/1 Democratic Republic of Congo: 0/1 Iraq: 21/22 Liberia: 0/1 Mexico: 0/1 Somalia: 0/8 Sudan: 1/1 Uganda: 0/1 Uzbekistan: 0/2 Zimbabwe: 4/5 Changes/Problems:
Nothing Reported
What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?
Nothing Reported
How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? To recruit participants for the new cohort to be trained during this reporting period, IRC staff conducted three community outreach sessions (attended by 55 new prospective participants) and three tours to the farm sites of the REAP project (attended by 34 new prospective participants). Information about the community outreach sessions was provided via fliers (translated into four languages), direct communication, and at the IRC offices. Moreover, IRC staff reached out to several service providers in San Diego County who regularly interface with refugee and other socioeconomically disadvantaged clients and also disseminated project-related information via the listserv of the San Diego Refugee Forum. Additionally, fliers and posters were displayed prominently at gathering places for refugees, such as places of ESL instruction, places of worship, and ethnic cafes, restaurants and grocery stores. Further, IRC engaged in an innovative social media campaign, utilizing recorded video messages on Facebook targeting the Arabic-speaking community, which has comprised the vast majority of newly arriving refugees in San Diego over the past five years. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Increase awareness/education about and demonstrate farming opportunities in the urban setting to potential refugee farmers: During this reporting period, IRC continued to operate its new five-acre community garden in the City of El Cajon (the New Roots Fresh Farm, a collaboration with Kaiser Permanente) as an agricultural production site and community gathering space for 36 refugees (in addition to 24 other community members). Similarly, IRC’s certified farmers’ market operated every week (with the exception of Thanksgiving and Christmas weeks) in El Cajon, providing a nexus for refugees and aspiring refugee farmers to connect with established agricultural entrepreneurs and to earn income from farming themselves. Three community gardeners seized this opportunity and started selling their produce at the farmers’ market during this reporting period. Increase the farming capacity and business skills of refugee farmers: The IRC successfully completed one round of its Beginning Farming practicum for 28 aspiring farmers (the training was completed by 23 participants, for a completion rate of 86%), continued to serve 16 graduates from trainings in the previous reporting period with ongoing training and technical assistance at its farm incubator sites, developed a second new urban farm training site adjacent to the community garden in El Cajon; and continued to serve two additional beginning farmers at additional production sites. All of the participating farmers are significantly socioeconomically disadvantaged. The training comprised 83.5 core hours of hands-on field training and classroom learning, over the course of 12 weeks. In addition, the training provided eight hours of financial literacy education for participants to provide the necessary foundation for sound farm business management. For this training round, IRC partnered with the “School for Sustainable Farming” operated by the “San Diego Roots” project at their “Wild Willow” farm and education center (please also see “Changes/Problems” for details). As in past iterations, the production training components covered a full spectrum of topics ranging from starting seeds in a greenhouse to post-harvest handling, while the farm business training components provided instruction in basic farm business planning, record keeping, marketing and sales, access to land and food safety. Continuing participants received ongoing assistance in all of these areas. As was the case during the previous reporting period, IRC again collaborated with partner agencies to offer workshops in innovative niche-market microenterprise strategies, including high-yield container crops suitable for urban growing, such as dragonfruit (by the University of California Cooperative Extension Small Farm Program). During this reporting period, IRC assisted one graduate of the first year’s Beginning Farmer practicum to obtain an independent lease. IRC provided help with site inspection and landlord negotiation, and partnered with California FarmLink in developing appropriate lease terms for the farmer. The participant proudly moved off the IRC’s incubator farm and onto his “own” land, where he started crop production in March, 2014. As a direct result of participation in the program, refugee farmers reported significant increases in knowledge. Evaluation for the new Beginning Farming cohort is based on pre- and post-tests measuring 15 agriculture-specific knowledge areas spanning the spectrum from horticulture to marketing, on a scale from one (lowest) to four (highest). The pre-test was administered at the beginning of the practicum, and the post-test was administered during the final classroom session at the end. Of the 26 participants in the new cohort, 23 participants completed the entire practicum, and project staff obtained the post-test scores for 20 (87%). Of those, the average score on the pre-test was 1.77. On the post-tests, the average score had risen to 2.96, an overall increase of more than one full point, with nine participants (45%) scoring above three. Further assessments based on the IRC’s proprietary “New Roots Participant Survey,” conducted at the end of the Beginning Farmer practicum, revealed that: 95% of newly-enrolled participants in the Beginning Farmer practicum noticed improvements to their physical health as a result of participation in this program (29% strong yes, 67% yes), 100% had better access to (or awareness of) healthy, culturally-desirable foods as a result of participation in this program (52% strong yes, 48% yes), 90% felt generally more positive about their lives as a result of participation in this program (62% strong yes, 29% yes), 95% felt more connected to their neighbors and their community as a result of participation in this program (33% strong yes, 62% yes), 90% saw this program as having a positive impact on their family (43% strong yes, 47% yes), 81% saw this program as having a positive impact on their neighborhood/ community (24% strong yes, 57% yes), 81% were saving money on groceries – and eating healthier – as a result of participation in this program (43% strong yes, 38% yes), and 81% believed that farming is a good business for them to pursue (52% strong yes, 29% yes). Participants also demonstrated significant changes in their actions. Of the previous year’s cohort, those who continued on the IRC’s 20-acre training farm used drip irrigation, seeders for direct seeding, and the green house for seed propagation. These are all techniques that the participating farmers had not previously used in their home countries and which they learned during the Beginning Farmer practicum. Similarly, during this reporting period, all participants started using planting and farm activity planning calendar tools, and writing sales invoices for all produce sales made. Independent crop availability projections have also increased in quantity and quality across all participants. Introduce refugee farmers to innovative marketing channels: During this reporting period, the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program first piloted and then established during previous reporting periods grew its membership to up to 70. Additionally, IRC staff acquired new boutique restaurant accounts and facilitated direct meetings between chefs/restaurant owners and participating farmers. Further, the IRC’s efforts to cultivate productive relationships with produce retailers culminated during this reporting period in the successful application to Whole Foods Market as a new vendor, facilitating refugee farmers’ produce sales to one of that national chain’s natural food stores in San Diego. Sales commenced on May 17, 2014. This also provided REAP participants with opportunities to meet with Whole Foods produce “foragers,” produce buyers, and produce department “team members” as well as customers of that chain. As a combined result of all marketing efforts, project beneficiaries achieved sales of $68,724.08 (up from $45,592.28 during the previous reporting period, a 34% increase year-on-year). Of those, IRC directly facilitated $54,204.58 through the CSA and direct sales to restaurant and retail customers, with the remainder generated by project beneficiaries at certified farmers’ markets operated or co-operated by IRC. In addition, participants leveraged the skills obtained through the Beginning Farmer practicum and ongoing assistance to develop independent sales channels, including at other farmers’ markets, to members of their community, ethnic grocery stores/restaurants, and “mainstream” third-party “farm box” aggregators.
Publications
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Progress 09/01/12 to 08/31/13
Outputs
Target Audience: During its second year, REAP continued to serve limited-resource, socioeconomically-disadvantaged refugee and immigrant farmers and ranchers. Refugees are forced to flee their homes abroad due to war and persecution and survive against the greatest odds. Often after perilous journeys to temporary safety followed by long years in the uncertainty of refugee camps, they are resettled in the U.S. with little more than the clothes on their backs. As soon as they arrive, the clock is ticking for them to become economically self-sufficient within the eight months of federal assistance available to them. For most refugees, the majority of whom arrive with little or no formal education or knowledge of English, this is a formidable challenge. During this reporting period, the project served 37 individuals. Of those, 21 had been enrolled during the previous reporting period and continued their participation in the project, and 16 participants were newly enrolled. At the time of their enrollment, of the 16 newly-enrolled participants this reporting period: - Twelve (75%) were unemployed, two (12.5%) had part-time employment, and two (12.5%) had full-time employment - Ten (63%) had zero earned income, one (6%) had between $501 and $1,000 monthly earned income, two (12.5%) between $1,001 and $1,500 monthly earned income, two (12.5%) between $2001 and $2,500 monthly earned income and one (6%) declined to state - Nine (56%) received Temporary Assistance to Needy Families and nine (56%) were enrolled in the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program - Nine (56%) had arrived in the U.S. as refugees less than two years ago - Nine (56%) spoke little English, one (6%) spoke no English, one (6%) spoke proficient English, two (12.5%) spoke conversational English and three (18.5%) were fluent - Four (25%) were women The countries of origin of project beneficiaries are as follows (first number indicates newly enrolled participants during this reporting period, second number is cumulative for all 37 individuals served during this reporting period): Afghanistan: 1/1 Bhutan: 2/2 Burma: 0/7 Burundi: 0/2 Cambodia: 1/1 Democratic Republic of Congo: 0/1 Ethiopia: 1/1 Iraq: 4/5 Liberia: 1/1 Mexico: 1/1 Somalia: 1/10 Uganda: 0/1 Uzbekistan: 2/2 U.S.: 1/1 Zimbabwe: 1/1 Changes/Problems: During this reporting period, the REAP project experienced two modifications. First, the breadth of curriculum for the Beginning Farmer practicum was vastly expanded, which is reflected in its increase from 20 hours per week of instruction to 32 hours. This was in direct response to the assessment of the graduates from the previous year’s training. IRC staff had learned that the refugee participants’ high degree of social disadvantage based on ethnicity, gender, lack of language proficiency and formal education and the resulting tenuousness in terms of economic stability and above-average vulnerability greatly compromises their ability to adequately mitigate the risks that are inherent in agriculture. Consequently, the project was modified to incorporate additional support elements for a stronger basis of core skills for each participant, such as ESL, work readiness, financial literacy and stable part-time employment for at least one member of each participant’s household. This was implemented through incorporating a customized ESL component as part of the training, specific work readiness/financial literacy/life skills trainings, and one-on-one job search and job placement services. All of these ancillary curriculum components were open to the previous year’s cohorts as well as the cohort enrolled during this reporting period, as well as all adult members of the participants’ households. To support the curriculum expansion and delivery of additional supportive services, IRC expanded the staff capacity of the REAP team during this reporting period to include expertise in ESL, work readiness, financial literacy training and employment placement, as follows: Meheret Gebrekristos, Vocational English as a Second Language Instructor, developed and implemented customized farming ESL curriculum for REAP participants. Sedrick Ntwali, Work Readiness and Financial Education Trainer, provided basic life skills training for REAP participants. Faisal Ali, Employment Specialist, provided job search and placement services for REAP participants and members of their household. As during the previous reporting period, the REAP core team comprised the following team members: Anchi Mei, Food Security and Community Health Program Manager, serves as overall project director and is responsible for project implementation, project staff supervision, and project reporting. Ralph Achenbach, Food Security and Community Health Supervisor, coordinates the day-to-day programming of REAP, oversees the development of curriculum materials, and coordinates the marketing/sales activities, such as CSA administration, wholesale aggregation, and customer procurement. Claude Payton, Farm Resource Coordinator, develops and implements production-based curriculum, instruction and technical assistance for REAP participants. Bilal Muya, Farm Educator, supports the Farm Resource Coordinator and the Farm Business Counselor (see below) in on-site field trainings and classroom sessions. He also acts as a special liaison to the participating Somali Bantu farmers. To increase its capacity to provide individualized one-on-one technical assistance during and following participation in the farming practicums, IRC hired William Burke as the Farm Business Counselor. He develops and implements farm business/sales curriculum, instruction and targeted technical assistance for REAP participants. As during the previous reporting period, Juja Kovacevic, Finance Coordinator, provided financial administration support to REAP. Second, the project expanded its geographical scope beyond the 20-acre training farm in the Pauma Valley. IRC developed the land surrounding its aquaponics demonstration site (a registered aquaculture site with the State of California) in San Diego’s urban core as a second training site for the Beginning Farming practicum. IRC staff adapted the production-focused curriculum components to the urban environment and trained two of the twelve participants in the Beginning Farming practicum at the second training site in the densely populated San Diego neighborhood of City Heights. Further, IRC staff started to provide assistance to beginning farmers at other, independent sites of production. Four of the 16 newly enrolled participants this reporting period were supported at their own production sites with individualized technical assistance focusing on permitting and licensing (certified producer certificate, WIC vendor authorization) and marketing/sales (particularly farmers’ market sales). The development of the second urban training site makes it possible for the participants to walk to their production-focused trainings as well as to the farm business classroom sessions held at the IRC’s offices only a short distance away. This directly addresses the challenges in transportation logistics and time many aspiring refugee farmers face. With production sites close to home, it reduces transportation time and complexity and allows aspiring and beginning farmers to maintain stable, at least part-time employment in an overall strategy of income patching. Moreover, these modifications allow the project to increase its reach and amplify its impact beyond its immediate Beginning and Intermediate Farming practicums and provide training and technical assistance services to aspiring refugee farmers who have independent access to land. This will be of particular importance as IRC increases its efforts around a healthy community food system in the City of El Cajon by leveraging its certified farmers’ market and New Roots Fresh Farm community garden there to create additional opportunities for socioeconomically disadvantaged farmers. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?
Nothing Reported
How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? To recruit participants for the new cohort to be trained during this reporting period, IRC staff conducted three community outreach sessions (attended by 26 new prospective participants) and two tours to the farm site of the REAP project (attended by 12 new prospective participants). Moreover, IRC staff reached out to several service providers in San Diego County who regularly interface with refugee and other socioeconomically disadvantaged clients and also disseminated project-related information via the listserv of the San Diego Refugee Forum. Additionally, flyers and posters were displayed prominently at gathering places for refugees, such as places of ESL instruction, places of worship, and ethnic cafes, restaurants and grocery stores. Further, IRC staff continuously announced the REAP project at the IRC’s newest food/farming project, the El Cajon Farmers’ Market, which is a local gathering point for newly arrived refugees. The El Cajon Farmers’ Market is a certified farmers’ market designed to facilitate access to affordable, healthy food choices to refugees from Iraq, who have comprised some 90% of refugees resettled to San Diego County in the last four years and who predominantly settle in the City of El Cajon in East San Diego County, where they join an established Middle Eastern community. Additional word-of-mouth activities in refugee communities throughout San Diego has resulted in a waiting list for the next REAP training session with 33 names at the end of this reporting period. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? During the next reporting period, IRC staff intend to enroll at least one additional cohort of aspiring farmers in the Beginning Farmer practicum, while continuing to provide trainings and technical assistance at the intermediate and advanced levels to graduates from previous cohorts. It is likely that the new cohort will be made up, in the majority, of Iraqis. This contrasts with the initial prediction of a primary focus on refugees from Southeast Asia toward the end of the project and responds directly to the trends for recent arrivals of refugees in San Diego County, which have seen a low numbers of refugees from Southeast Asia and much higher numbers (approximately 90% of all arrivals) of Iraqis.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
To increase awareness, educate and demonstrate urban farming opportunities to potential refugee farmers: The IRC broke ground on its new five-acre community garden in the City of El Cajon (the New Roots Fresh Farm, a collaboration with Kaiser Permanente) this reporting period. Both an agricultural production site and community gathering space, the New Roots Fresh Farm provides opportunities for 36 refugees (in addition to 24 other community members) to cultivate crops in an urban setting. It will also serve as an outreach tool for future Beginning Farmer practicum iterations and tie into the IRC’s larger-scale efforts to help build a robust community food system in the City of El Cajon. These efforts also incorporate IRC’s certified farmers’ market in El Cajon, which directly yields income-generating opportunities for local refugee farmers. Additionally, IRC developed a new urban training site as part of its Beginning Farming Practicum (see below and "Changes/Problems" section for details). To increase the farming capacity and business skills of refugee farmers: The IRC successfully completed one round of its Beginning Farming practicum for 12 aspiring farmers, continued to serve 21 graduates from trainings in the previous reporting period with ongoing training and technical assistance at its 20-acre training farm, developed a new training site in San Diego’s urban core; and expanded its services to four beginning farmers at additional production sites. All of the participating farmers are significantly socioeconomically disadvantaged (see “Target Audiences” section for detailed demographics). The Beginning Farming practicum was revised from last year to even more effectively address the unique needs of refugees in the U.S. (see ”Changes/Problems” section for detailed discussion). As a result, the training comprised 450 hours of hands-on training, classroom learning, ESL and life skills training over the course of 15 weeks. The production training components covered a full spectrum of topics ranging from starting seeds in a greenhouse to post-harvest handling, while the farm business training components provided instruction in basic farm business planning, record keeping, marketing and sales. Continuing participants received ongoing assistance in all of these areas. As was the case during the previous reporting period, IRC again collaborated with partner agencies to offer workshops in innovative niche-market microenterprise strategies, including pastured poultry (by the Sustainable Agriculture Information Service/National Center for Appropriate Technology). The training also included field trips to local certified farmers’ markets and produce departments of two local produce retailers, and a farmers’ market training booth for Beginning Farming practicum participants at the IRC’s certified farmers’ market in El Cajon. As a direct result of participation in the program, refugee farmers reported significant increases in knowledge. Evaluation for the new Beginning Farming cohort is based on pre- and post-tests measuring 15 agriculture-specific knowledge areas spanning the spectrum from horticulture to marketing, on a scale from one (lowest) to four (highest). The pre-test was administered at the beginning of the 15-week practicum, and the post-test was administered during the final classroom session at the end of the 15 weeks. Of the 12 participants in the new cohort, nine participants completed the entire 15-week practicum. For those 9 individuals, the average score on the pre-test was 1.98, and only three participants (33%) scored above two. For the nine post-tests, the average score was 2.97, an overall increase of nearly one full point, with five participants (56%) scoring above three. Further assessments based on the IRC’s proprietary “New Roots Participant Survey,” conducted at the end of the 15-week Beginning Farmer practicum, revealed that: 100% of newly-enrolled participants in the Beginning Farmer practicum noticed improvements to their physical health as a result of participation in this program (25% strong yes, 75% yes), 100% had better access to (or awareness of) healthy, culturally-desirable foods as a result of participation in this program (13% strong yes, 88% yes), 100% felt generally more positive about their lives as a result of participation in this program (25% strong yes, 75% yes), 100% felt more connected to their neighbors and their community as a result of participation in this program (13% strong yes, 88% yes), 100% saw this program as having a positive impact on their family (13% strong yes, 88% yes), 100% saw this program as having a positive impact on their neighborhood/ community (13% strong yes, 88% yes), 100% were saving money on groceries – and eating healthier – as a result of participation in this program (50% strong yes, 50% yes), and 53% believed that farming is a good business for them to pursue (25% strong yes, 38% yes), while 25% were not sure and 13% did not believe that farming was a good business for them to pursue. Participants also demonstrated significant changes in their actions. Of the previous year’s cohort, those who continued on the IRC’s 20-acre training farm used drip irrigation, seeders for direct seeding, and the green house for seed propagation. These are all techniques that the participating farmers had not previously used in their home countries and which they learned during the Beginning Farmer practicum. Similarly, during this reporting period, all participants started using planting and farm activity planning calendar tools, and writing sales invoices for all produce sales made. Independent crop availability projections have also increased in quantity and quality across all participants. To engage refugee farmer in innovative niche-marker microenterprise programming: During this reporting period. IRC staff conducted extensive outreach efforts for the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program it piloted during the previous reporting period, doubling the membership base to an average of 40 across up to 10 pick-up points over the 15-week CSA “season.” Additionally, IRC staff acquired new boutique restaurant accounts and facilitated direct meetings between chefs/restaurant owners and participating farmers. As a result, during this reporting period, project beneficiaries achieved $45,592.28 in sales, of which IRC directly facilitated $31,397.78 through the CSA and direct sales to 23 restaurant/catering/retail customers. Participants had additional sales at farmers’ markets they now attend without direct staff involvement and to neighbors, which are less well documented, resulting in an actual total sales number that is even higher. During this reporting period, graduates from the previous Beginning Farmer practicum organized themselves into two collectives and two individual farmers. To provide additional support to socioeconomically disadvantaged beginning farmers: The IRC began to provide employment readiness and job search/placement services for project participants. As a result, five participants from the first year’s Beginning Farmer practicum cohort were hired by local farms during this reporting period, allowing the participants to use their newly-learned skills in fostering economic self-sufficiency and stability for themselves and their families through wage-based agricultural employment, as they strive to rebuild productive lives in their new communities.
Publications
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Progress 09/01/11 to 08/31/12
Outputs
OUTPUTS: During this reporting period, the IRC in San Diego's Refugee Entrepreneurial Agriculture Program (REAP) successfully completed one round each of a Beginning Farming and an Intermediate Farming practicum. Combined, the trainings served 32 aspiring farmers (12 Intermediate, 20 Beginning), all of whom are significantly socially disadvantaged (see "Target Audiences" section for detailed demographics). The Beginning Farming practicum comprised 217 hours of hands-on training over the course of 13 weeks combined with 20 hours in the classroom. The field training covered a full spectrum of topics ranging from starting seeds in a greenhouse to post-harvest handling, while the classroom sessions provided instruction in ESL and basic farm business. The Intermediate Farming practicum covered a similar range of topics over the course of five months with 57 hours of instruction in the field and an additional 10 hours in the classroom. IRC collaborated with partner agencies to offer workshops in innovative niche-market microenterprise strategies, including pastured poultry (by the Sustainable Agriculture Information Service/National Center for Appropriate Technology) and bee keeping (by a local bee keeper). IRC staff provided a range of technical assistance services to strengthen the technical expertise and develop the business acumen of the participating farmers. These include direct marketing and sales support (procurement of marketing/sales outlets such as farmers' markets, the creation/administration of a 20-member pilot CSA, wholesale aggregation and distribution to several restaurants and a value-added food producer) resulting in total sales of $8,607 in the first project year, as well as support in business planning, resulting in the formation of the "Bahati Mamas Produce" worker-owned farm cooperative, comprised of 11 participants of the REAP Intermediate Farmer practicum, as an independent farming business with a notarized general partnership agreement, fictitious business name statement and business bank account. To support the REAP training and technical assistance activities, IRC developed the following project-related products: program outreach flier; program application form; program enrollment form; pre- and post-test; and a 13 week Beginning Farming curriculum geared to non-native English speakers and pre-literate populations with topic-specific student worksheets. To recruit participants, IRC conducted four community outreach sessions as well as several one-on-one meetings with interested aspiring farmers, resulting in the receipt of 29 applications. Additionally, IRC met with several collaborating agencies, including the refugee welfare-to-work service provider in San Diego County (Arbor E&T/Rescare) and disseminated information via the listserv and meetings of San Diego Refugee Forum, thus ensuring maximum reach into ethnic, community-based and mainstream service providers. Additionally, IRC has identified a five acre plot and began work on building a new community garden for up to 80 refugee families, which will, in part, serve as a recruitment tool for the following project periods (see also "Project Modifications" section). PARTICIPANTS: Anchi Mei, Food Security and Community Health Program Manager, serves as overall project director and is responsible for project implementation, project staff supervision, and project reporting. Claude Payton, Farm Resource Coordinator, plans and implements the day-to-day programming of REAP for its participants. Bilal Muya, Farm Educator, supports the Farm Resource Coordinator in the on-site field training and acts as a special liaison to the participating Somali Bantu farmers. Ralph Achenbach, Food and Farming Marketing Coordinator, develops the ESL and farm business curriculum materials, conducts the classroom trainings for participants, provides technical assistance and/or appropriate referrals to IRC's other programs, and coordinates the marketing/sales activities, such as CSA administration, wholesale aggregation, and customer procurement. Daniel Nyamangah, REAP Assistant, provides logistical support to all program staff and assists in the transportation of REAP participants to the training farm as well as in the produce delivery. He also acts as a special liaison to the participating Swahili-speaking farmers. Juja Kovacevic, the IRC in San Diego's Finance Coordinator, provides financial administration support to REAP. Additional IRC staff not directly sourced to this project support REAP in critical ways: Lina Shalabi, Microenterprise Coordinator, acts as a business counselor for the graduates of the Intermediate Farming practicum and their fledgling business. She is also a liaison with the Microenterprise Program and the first point of contact for REAP participants referred there for additional technical assistance. Jason Jarvinen, Center for Financial Opportunity Program Manager, provides consultation to REAP staff on financial literacy for REAP participants. TARGET AUDIENCES: REAP is designed to benefit limited-resource, socially-disadvantaged refugee and immigrant farmers and ranchers. Refugees are forced to flee their homes abroad due to war and persecution. Often after perilous journeys to temporary safety followed by long years in the uncertainty of refugee camps, they are resettled to the US with little more than the clothes on their backs. As soon as they arrive, the clock is ticking to become economically self-sufficient within the eight months of federal assistance available to them. For most refugees, who have little or no formal education and no knowledge of English, this is a formidable challenge. Of the 32 participants during this project period: - 25 (78%) are below 100% of the federal poverty line, 5 (16%) between 100 and 150% and 2 (6%) between 150 and 200% - 22 (69%) receive cash aid and 25 (78%) receive food stamps - 16 (50%) are women and 11 (34%) are single parents - 11 (35%) speak no English and 11 (35%) speak little English The participants hailed from the following countries: - Burma: 12 (38%) (from the Chin, Karen and Karenni ethnic minorities) - Somalia: 11 (35%) (from the Bantu ethnic minority) - Burundi: 4 (13%) - Iraq: 2 (6%) (from the Chaldean Christian minority) - Democratic Republic of Congo: 2 (6%) PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: One initial challenge encountered in the start-up of REAP was the dissolution of the Tierra Miguel Farm, the intended site of the farm training activities, prior to the start of project activities. However, this situation was remedied by securing an independent lease for the land directly from its owner, the Pauma Band of Luiseno Indians. Despite the slight delay to project commencement due to the additional time required in finalizing the lease agreement, REAP is well on track for realizing - and, in fact, exceeding - its projections for key numeric impact indicators, as illustrated by the comparison below of goals established for the three-year life of the project compared to accomplishments achieved within the first year: - Beginning Farming practicum: Goal over three years: 50 participants each receive 80 hours of training; Total to date: 20 participants received 217 hours of training - Intermediate Farming practicum: Goal over three years: 45 participants each receive 40 hours of training; Total to date: 12 participants received 57 hours of training Also, the new lease actually greatly improves the infrastructural environment for REAP compared to the initial projections, since this lease covers a total of 20 acres for the REAP training farm, thus vastly increasing the amount of land available to REAP participants. One slight project modification that occurred during this reporting period concerns the location of the new community garden to be created for refugee families. This modification is in direct response to recent changes in refugee resettlement trends in San Diego County and promises to greatly increase the impact of REAP: Since FY2008, nearly 95% of all newly arriving refugees in San Diego have been resettled in the City of El Cajon in the east of the County. While IRC already operates a range of farming and other programs in City Heights and has great "reach" into the refugee communities there, the community in El Cajon is currently relatively less well served. As a consequence, the IRC now operates a satellite office there, and it became clear that a new community garden in that community would have much greater outreach potential for REAP - in addition to, for the first time, providing space for refugee families in El Cajon to grow their own food. For that reason, IRC began its efforts to start a new community garden in El Cajon and succeeded during this project period in securing a site there. In doing so, IRC will be able to significantly increase its outcomes for REAP: the community garden site measures 5 acres, compared to the projected half acre, and will be developed into a thriving community garden serving up to 80 refugee families, compared to the projected 20. In that process, IRC will be able to draw on the successful model of its in San Diego's New Roots Community Farm in City Heights.
Impacts
REAP provides a unique opportunity for aspiring refugee farmers in San Diego County by providing culturally appropriate and linguistically sensitive training and access to a 20-acre training farm. As a result of their participation in REAP, the farmers have experienced the following benefits/impacts: - Change in environment: -- 100% of the participating refugee farmers have been resettled in densely populated urban neighborhoods with no arable land; through REAP, they now have access to a 20-acre training farm; -- Previously, residents of the City Heights neighborhood in San Diego, a low-income culturally diverse community and resettlement hub for refugees, had no access to a local CSA; during this fiscal year, REAP developed a drop site in the heart of City Heights for its pilot CSA, which will be expanded significantly in the following project periods. - Change in knowledge: -- Evaluation for change in knowledge in the Beginning Farming group is based on a pre- and post-test measuring 15 agriculture-specific knowledge areas spanning the spectrum from horticulture to marketing on a scale from 1 (lowest) to 4 (highest), which was administered in weeks one and 13 of the practicum (with oral interpretation into the participants' first language). Of the pre-tests, only 5.8% scored an average of higher than 2, while 65% scored lower than 1.5. The post-tests demonstrated a significant knowledge increase. Of post-tests, only 12.5% scored an average of below 2, with 87.5% above 2, including 19% over 3. Overall, 100% of participants who completed both the pre-and post test registered an increase in their average score, with 57% showing an increase in 10 or more of the 15 knowledge areas. Assessment of the Intermediate Farming group took place with the help of externally moderated focus groups (with an oral interpreter), which provided ample evidence of increased knowledge, as summarized by the statement that "back home we planted differently. We learned how to plant here." - Change in actions: REAP Intermediate Farming practicum participants participated in a CSA for the first time, while the participants in the Beginning Farming practicum made plans for laying drip tape once they obtain their own land assignments on the training farm following practicum completion. A noteworthy finding from this reporting period is the non-quantifiable impacts of REAP: The opportunity to "be on the land" provides a tremendous relief coupled with benefits in both physical and mental health for the participants, who have only ever known life in rural areas but are resettled into the anonymity of large apartment complexes in the center of the most densely populated neighborhood of the second largest city in the most populous state of the Union. As one of the participants from Burma said of the experience: "We feel free." This translates directly to improved outlooks for the future, as evidenced in this statement of a Somali Bantu participant from the Intermediate Farming practicum in a focus group carried out during this reporting period: "We see the future more brightly, and we want to continue to progress."
Publications
- Achenbach, R. 2012. Micro Producers and Income Patching - Collective Marketing at City Heights Market, Workshop presentation at the Institute for Social and Economic Development Refugee Agricultural Partnership Program annual workshop.
- Brown, P.L. 2011. When the Uprooted Put Down Roots, New York Times.
- Payton, C. 2012. Concurrent session workshop presentation, the Institute for Social and Economic Development Refugee Agricultural Partnership Program annual workshop.
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