What Happened?
New innovations in connectivity and agriculture technology are supporting sustainability projects that connect consumers to local farmers.
Computer Programming
In cities nationwide, computer programming experts from Code for America are teaming up with local governments and industry leaders to solve problems with customized, civic technology. Code for America sends fellows to communities throughout the country to meet with local governments, identify areas of inefficiencies and develop solutions to benefit public agency efficiency and economic growth, as well as quality of life for residents. This year, Code for America is sending fellows to:
- Albuquerque, NM
- Indianapolis, IN
- Miami-Dade, FL
- Pittsburgh, PA
- Richmond, VA
- Somerville, MA
- Vallejo, CA
- West Sacramento, CA
The West Sacramento project combines officials from the Sacramento Area Council of Governments with technology experts to solve food supply-chain issues while supporting sustainable growing in the region. Code for America is collaborating with the city’s food industry to develop solutions that make it easier for residents to improve their dietary choices and access fresh foods more easily, the Sacramento Bee reported.
The collaboration aims to address community challenges including:
- Food access for all
- Dietary and health improvement
- Innovative business, regulatory and customer processes for the food industry
- Supply chain issues
Because West Sacramento is a hub for manufacturing, distribution and logistics, it will be a prime location to development and pilot civic technology to improve government efficiency, specifically related to food production and distribution.
Data Collection
In New York City, the Design Trust for Public Space collaborated with Farming Concrete to develop the Five Borough Farm Data Collection Toolkit in an effort to measure the yield of the city’s public gardens. The free set of protocols collects key data sets on urban agriculture to gain insight on operational success and obstacles standing in the way of sustainable gardening projects, Next City reported.
The toolkit encourages gardeners to track food being grown, people working on the project and other inventory-type figures. The resource also offers a standardized format for lawmakers and community-based organizations to use when assessing the economic value of urban farms when seeking grant funding or altering municipal codes to support agricultural initiatives, Next City reported.
Currently, more than 215 gardens in North America are using the toolkit to better manage the 46,600 pounds of food being grown in these community farming initiatives. The toolkit aims to provide urban agriculture organizations with specific performance data demonstrating their value to the community, which in turn could assist in boosting performance and reach, Next City reported.
Drones
A drone startup company in Colorado is experimenting with strategies to use the flying devices to monitor farmland and improve agriculture efficiency. Drones with high-resolution cameras attached can snap photos every few seconds while flying over large spans of land. The images can be stitched together to create detailed footage of farmland to help growers identify problem areas or opportunities to increase savings, NPR reported.
Farmers can peruse their lands with a bird’s eye view using drone technology to see where crops are vulnerable to disease, insects or other threats, and then proactively combat these hazards to preserve production and returns, NPR reported.
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