Fresh Roots Urban Farm Society
5050 Wales Street V5R3M6 Vancouver, BC, Canada

#ThrowbackThursday to 1927, during the construction of Vancouver Technical Secondary School, home to one of Fresh Roots’ Vancouver schoolyard farms. Take a history lesson with our Experiential Learning Manger, Kat, in the latest EL blog: https://freshroots.ca/van-tech-history/

We’ve cooked up a great opportunity for chefs along with our partners Growing Chefs! We’re hiring TWO part-time Community Eats Chef Educators ready to share their passion for food with teens while supporting their personal and leadership growth. Learn more and apply: https://freshroots.bamboohr.com/jobs/view.php?id=35... #food #hiring #community #chefs #share

We’re excited to put the spotlight on Dr. Hasina Samji, the first scientist to be featured for our Science Odyssey blog series, Spotlight on Scientists! As we mark the first day of #MentalHealthWeek, read all about her journey as an epidemiologist during COVID-19 supporting mental illness prevention in youth #GetReal #OdySci https://freshroots.ca/science-odyssey-surprising.../

ATTENTION All Teachers, Educators, and Science Lovers of All Ages! Today is the FIRST DAY of Science Odyssey, Canada’s largest celebration of #STEM Fresh Roots has 2 great ways you can join in the adventure from May 1-16, 2021: 1 Sign up for our Sky, Sun, Seasons & Shadows" workshop: https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/sky-sun-seasons-shadows-tickets 2 Follow along our exclusive #OdySci blog series, Surprising Scientists... Stay tuned for more info!

An exciting #FarmFriday as we witness the Suwa'lkh Learning Centre salmon release in the stream through the forest Due to invasive species and pollution, very few salmon spawn there, so this has become one of the ways Suwa’lkh students have supported rehabilitation and reindigenization of this forest. Hoping to see the youth’s salmon from 2019 return to the Suwa’lkh stream to spawn this fall, as dreamed about in this #throwback blog here: https://freshroots.ca/salmon-at-suw...alkh/ #justkeepswimming

Love you a bunch Wishing you a Happy Valentine’s Day from all of us at Fresh Roots!

TODAY is the day! Fresh Roots Summer Day Camp registration for kids ages 4-11 is OPEN for the 2021 season!!! Every day will be full of play, learning, good food, great friends, and caring staff to make sure your camper has the best camp experience ever. To learn more and register visit https://freshroots.ca/education/camp/

Did You Eat Yet? A Lunar New Year Reflection Thanks to Vivian, our new operations coordinator, for sharing her thoughtful perspective on Lunar New Year. ? which loosely translates to Did you eat yet? is more than just a literal inquiry about dinner. If a parent asks this to their child, it implicitly displays a deep concern and readiness to care for their well-being mostly commonly referred to as the Asian code for I love you.... https://freshroots.ca/did-you-eat-yet-a-lunar-new-year-ref/

Program Lead - Suwal'kh School, Coquitlam Fresh Roots is looking to increase #Indigenous knowledge and perspectives in our programming and leadership at #Suwa'lkh! We're looking for a young person (due to Canada Summer Jobs restriction they will have to be under 30) with a significant connection to Indigenous peoples, who is ready to grow their leadership skills with the program. For more information visit https://buff.ly/3cWU5sJ

*Open for input until Feb 17th!* Help us tell the government of Canada that it's time to include a National School Food Program in #Budget2021. Visit https://buff.ly/3cYeTQs to add your submission-it really only takes 2 minutes! #NationalSchoolFood #NourishKidsNow @C4HSchoolFood

We are in such great company with this stellar group! You just can’t go wrong with any of the options Scout Magazine kindly put together. There’s something for everyone

Fresh Roots is online TODAY and TOMORROW participating in the West Coast Virtual Fair: Career, Volunteer & Graduate Schools 2020. Schedule a 15 minutes one-on-one session with us at our virtual booth on the 17 & 18, from 9 am to 6pm to learn about upcoming job opportunities with Fresh Roots. Curious about what we do? Just ask us! We will be happy to answer your questions and share our experiences working at Fresh Roots with you. To register visit: https://www.westcoastvirtualfairs.com/students

Today @ 9am (PST), join in for a conversation on Lessons from Indigenous-led school food programs as a part of #CultivatingChange2020 Moderated by Ioana Radu from Food Secure Canada, with Terri-Anne Larry from Natoaganeg Community Food Centre- Pistamune'kemk, Melanie Bennett and Katherine Alexandre from the Yukon First Nation Education Directorate, our own Gray Oron from Fresh Roots & Suwa'lkh Learning Centre Coquitlam School District International Education - SD43 and Tanya Sank from Urban Indigenous Education Centre & Kapapamahchakwew - Wandering Spirit School. You can still register here! -> https://foodsecurecanada.org/content/cultivating-change #SchoolFood #Indigenous

Happy Diwali to those who are celebrating! Now more than ever feels like a good time to celebrate light. May the lamps of Diwali illuminate your life. May the colours of rangoli usher in happiness, may the delicious Diwali desserts add sweetness to your life, and may Goddess Lakshmi shower you with all that you have wished for. Suggested greeting by a good friend and neighbour

Fresh Roots schoolyard farms are part of our local ecosystems and support a wide variety of plants, animals, fungi, and other living things. How many different bird songs can you hear at our David Thompson Secondary farm? @vsb39 #experiemtiallearning #urbanfarm

We are excited to welcome Jaimie to the Fresh Roots team as program lead at Suwa'lkh Learning Centre School District 43 - Coquitlam City of Coquitlam - Municipality! Jaimie has been volunteering at Suwa’lkh since 2018 and brings invaluable knowledge and experience to programming and projects. They have memorized the Fresh Roots salad dressing recipe which they add to pretty much everything. Jaimie shares that Being able to see the entire process from seed to consumption makes me happy and helping the crops thrive puts a huge smile on my face. I hope to share the excitement of growing, harvesting, and eating all that we grow with the youth at Suwa’lkh School." #farmfridays

If you haven’t already sent an email to your MLA candidates, now is your chance! With only 10 days left before we go to the polls, now is the time to ask your candidates to invest in #BCSchoolFood and to commit to #NourishKidsNow to make sure all students have daily access to healthy food at school. *Use this super-quick (like 30 seconds quick) and easy email template here: to share your views.* Did you know Canada is the ONLY G7 nation without any form of universal school meal program? Let's change that!

We honour the sacrifices made by Canadian veterans this Remembrance Day.

We love our community. Check out this sweet thank you note! Although the 2020 Veggie Box CSA season is finished for the year we are planning and dreaming for 2021. Thanks to super-valuable feedback from members through our wrap up survey we’ll be tweaking our offerings (less radicchio!) beefing up our weekly CSA newsletter and thinking about ways to offer more add ons like stone fruit. . . . Standby for updates and how to sign up for ultra local produce grown on schoolyard f...arms all in support of getting kids and youth outside learning, leading and growing! #schoolyardfarm #experientiallearning #localproduce #community See more

What a treat to have the crew from Little Nomads visit us at the schoolyard farm Vancouver Technical Secondary School last Friday! The rain didn't stop this hardy group from exploring and having fun. We can't wait to have them back in the spring when the farm starts to wake up! #experientiallearning

Happy thanksgiving. We are grateful to harvest beautiful veggies like these gathered with Foods 9 students at David Thompson Secondary just last week. Sharing these spaces with kids, youth and the community on schoolyard farms on the unceded and traditional territory of the Kwikwetlem, Katzie, Sto:lo, Musqueam, Tsleil Waututh and Squamish Coast Salish peoples fills us with gratitude and respect for those who have inhabited these lands over many millennia. Thank you. #ancestrallands #givingthanks

Well, this looks like a fun and tasty way to spend a few hours! We hear there might be some farm-y questions in the mix!

Holy kohlrabi!!! It’s our LAST market of the year, how’d that happen! Thank you so much more all the love and support y’all showed this summer. We couldn’t have done it with out you. As we hunker down for the winter we wish you health and happiness and we can’t wait to see you again next year. Until then ! #vancouverfarmersmarket ... #vancouverurbanfarming #urbanfarming #schoolyardfarms @vanmarkets See more

@vanparkboard Norquay Park with @bosafoundation enjoying this gorgeous fall day and the fall-y-est of activities-pressing apples into juice! Thanks so much to @bctreefruits for the uber-fresh ginger gold apples! #teambuilding #autumn #harvest

Yesterday we were so pleased to host 12 students + 1 teacher from VCC - Vancouver Community College Awareness Program outside on the schoolyard farm at Van Tech Secondary. The program focuses on providing access to meaningful employment for students of all abilities. Even more exciting was reconnecting with two alumni from our SOYL program! Maintaining connections with past participants and witnessing their growth is what it's all about. #experientiallearning #schoolyardfarm #youngadults

Another winding down the season on a schoolyard farm shot. Taking down the tomato trellis brings us right back to where we started in May. Until next year... #schoolyardfarm #fall #fullcircle

Join us for our Wednesday weekly pop up market tomorrow @ilcentrovan from 3:00pm-7:00pm with @localchickinn and @ritchies.bread . !! We've got your Thanksgiving needs covered! Featuring...parsnips (you've been asking for them!)

*POSTPONED* Rescheduled date TBD! TEACHERS! Today is the LAST day to register for the FREE Growers to Sowers professional development workshop TOMORROW, October 7th from 4PM-6PM at David Thompson Secondary. Space is limited, so reserve your free ticket today! As part of the Growers to Sowers series, the workshop will include a tour of Fresh Root's David Thompson Secondary farm site, hands-on farm work, and activity resources to use on the farm or in your classroom. After co...mpleting the workshop, participants will be eligible to sign up to book and use the farm to lead their own programming with their students. Vancouver School Board Farm To School BC Join us! (the forecast is for clear skies!) https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/growers-to-sowers-fresh-roots-u

@suwalkhlearningcentre and Fresh Roots are thrilled to announce that we were awarded a #Farm2School Canada Grant from FarmtoCafeteria Canada. We’ll be bringing more #healthy #localfood to the school population! The grant supports a weekly salad bar program created by the youth and for the youth, to bring in culturally appropriate knowledge keepers and teachers to teach the youth about traditional foods. Thank you to Farm To School BC! #Farm2School #Farm2Schoolgrant #healthype...ople #healthyplanet #localfood #saladbar #Farm2schoolgrants See more

Our own Interim Executive Director Alexa Pitoulis will be speaking at the Fall General Meeting of BC Council of Garden Clubs this Saturday, October 24th! It's free to attend and of course on Zoom:) Register via link in post.

Happy World Teachers' Day! To all the teachers out there going above and beyond and beyond even that to keep everyone learning during this wacky time. We appreciate you and your dedication today and every day. #WorldTeachersDay

Monday morning filming with our friends Growing Chefs! @vsb39 Vancouver Technical Secondary! We are so grateful for partnerships like these that amplify our vision of good food for all. Urban farm spaces are full of life which makes capturing sound pretty dynamic! (cue ball hockey and a skytrain:)) #experientilearning #community

What a way to end the week! So much fun hosting Harjit Sajjan at our David Thompson Secondary farm site. Some of the summer and fall Canada Summer Jobs hires were on-site and super-excited to share their experiences over the past season. Thanks so much to Employment and Social Development Canada and Minister Sajjan for making it possible to provide kids and youth with opportunities to learn, lead and build confidence and so many skills. This year more than ever spending time outside in a safe, nurturing environment is a simple and powerful antidote to these challenging times.

Our growing season is wrapping up like a spool of driptape! A sure sign that the growing season is coming to an end. As the beds clear out and the days grow shorter we can start putting areas of the farm to bed including cleaning up the irrigation. #harvestmoon #fall #autumn #schoolyardfarm

Today is #WorldFoodDay! Join us to call for global solidarity to help people recover and make food systems more sustainable, stronger, and resilient. Let's also take a moment to recognize all the #FoodHeroes who have worked tirelessly to ensure food makes its way from the farm to our tables during these challenging times. Our actions are our future. #grownourishsustaintogether

Yesterday, students and staff Suwa'lkh Learning Centre harvested red and yellow Autumn Olive (non-native to the area) that will be made into jam by foods class today. We picked the last dwarf Choujou Asian Pear of the season - so delicious! And propagated Stella and Desert King fig trees! Fall is in full swing on the schoolyard farm sites! City of Coquitlam - Municipality Coquitlam School District International Education - SD43

We made the list! "Like the idea of mucking about outside on a schoolyard farm? Fresh Roots schoolyard market farm is looking for volunteers to help with a variety of farm tasks including weeding, moving compost, and spreading wood chips to help protect gardens for the winter. A little fresh air, some elbow grease, and a dose of community spirit sounds like a good way to get grounded! There are three volunteer work days this month. In order to manage numbers to meet with social distancing protocols, volunteers are asked to register in advance."

Calling teachers!! We're excited to partner with Farm To School BC to offer a *FREE* professional development workshop. As part of the Growers to Sowers series, the workshop will include a tour of Fresh Root's David Thompson Secondary farm site, hands-on farm work, and activity resources to use on the farm or in your classroom. After completing the workshop, participants will be eligible to sign up to book and use the farm to lead their own programming with their students. The workshop will be held on Wednesday, OCTOBER 7th from 4PM-6PM at David Thompson Secondary. Space is limited, so reserve your free ticket soon! Vancouver School Board https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/growers-to-sowers-fresh-roots-u

Vancouver’s Aisha Kiani is forging the way for Black, Indigenous, queer, and transgender children to be written into the B.C. education system, with the introduction of I Dream Library. The initiative connects students, their caregivers, and educators with access to diverse, anti-racist literature and resources that fit into K-12 lesson plans which were designed in collaboration with B.C. educators, authors, and activists. The idea for Kiani came when her young son faced ...ongoing racism, erasure, microaggressions at a Vancouver school. "For me what I decided to do was not to take that story as a lead. It was to create new stories," excerpted from Vancouver Is Awesome https://www.gofundme.com/f/qtbipoc-diversity-education-reso

Another LAST market of the season post! Visit Jaimie from 4-7pm @suwalkh in @cityofcoquitlam to stock up produce grown on schoolyard farms harvested by and in support of youth. #experientiallearning #localproduce #schoolyardfarm

We are really looking forward to hosting some amazing teachers for the Growers to Sowers series on October 23rd for a FREE Pro D Day session!! Join us! Fall is such a magical time on the schoolyard farms.

Join us for our LAST market of the season @ilcentrovan! We are feeling incredibly grateful for this weekly pop-up market and for the overwhelming support for schoolyard farms and all of the programs we run on them with kids, youth and the community! Drop by for some hot apple cider (pressed from 700lbs of apples just last week thanks to @bctreefruits!) and enter for a chance to win a bag of uber-local produce and a snappy Fresh Roots apron. Special thanks to @localchickinn, @ritchiesbread and of course a huge air hug for the @ilcentro crew for making us feel so welcome each and every week.