Growing Places Indy
Growing Places Indy is a non-profit organization committed to cultivating the “Culture” of food and urban agriculture in the Indianapolis marketplace.

Our mission is to cultivate the culture of urban agriculture and healthy lifestyles, empowering individuals and communities to Grow well, Eat well, Live well and Be well. When we have access to food that is grown well; when we embrace a culture of eating well; when we are empowered within our community to live well; then we greatly enhance our capacity to be well.

Our vision is a full-circle vision for healthier communities, a sustainable future for urban and farm land ecology, a burgeoning local food economy, and a vibrant and diverse food culture in Indianapolis - all supported by and a strong local food and farm network. 

We are working to promote models for urban agriculture, to introduce individuals in the skills necessary to operate successful urban farms/gardens, to engage community in local food systems, and to grow leaders in the local food community. In so doing, we hope to inspire new farmers and food entrepreneurship, and to nurture the cultural, institutional and economic vision required to commit to a healthier future for our communities.

History
Growing Places Indy was founded by Laura Henderson in the fall of 2009, with the farming expertise and encouragement of Matt Jose, owner and founder of Big City Farms. Laura and her husband, Tyler Henderson, had been approached with the idea of a creating a vegetable garden at White River State Park in May 2009. Laura immediately saw the unique opportunity that having a vegetable garden in a highly visible, public thoroughfare in downtown Indianapolis presented to re-engage people in their relationship with food, community and life-long health.

In July 2009, Henderson and Jose, with assistance from the local Slow Food Indy chapter, applied for a USDA Specialty Crop Grant through the Indiana State Department of Agriculture. After learning they would receive the full $30,000 grant, the two set about to securing the additional funding required to seed the White River State Park vegetable garden project.

In November 2010, Henderson presented in the first Spirit & Place Pecha Kucha event on the theme of Inspiring Places – the Next Indianapolis. Henderson captured the attention of the crowd and ultimately won the hearts of the judges, as she opened with an enthusiastic call, “Let’s get growing places.” The project secured an additional $10,000, and the new organization found it’s name – Growing Places Indy.

The Slow Food Garden was established in Spring 2010. The garden concept was designed to capture the attention of passers-by, to invite them to observe and thus think about where food comes from and how it is grown, and to offer additional information about the Slow Food Movement and Indianapolis’ own local food movement.

In 2011, the garden was renamed the Wishard Slow Food Garden, and Growing Places Indy began working with Wishard Health Services to explore how urban and sustainable agriculture contribute to community wellness.

In addition to offering regular opportunities for volunteers to do everything from turn the soil, spread the first aged manure and lay the first walking paths, to weekly summer Work & Learn sessions, Growing Places Indy offers a ten-week summer internship. Interns learn all the basic skills of planning, maintaining, harvesting and distributing produce from an urban “market garden,” as well as exploring how urban and sustainable agriculture contribute to healthier and more robust communities, ecological systems, local economies, educational and recreational opportunities, and individual wellness. More information about the Growing Places Indy Summer Internship will be available soon.

Slow Food
Slow Food represents a collective vision of farmers, producers, consumers, educators, students, health care providers and policy makers locally, nationally and internationally. The Slow Food vision is for a food system in which food that is “Good, Clean and Fair” is an accessible option for everyone.

Food that is Good is healthy, nutrient dense, fresh, seasonal and delicious: capable of pleasing the senses as well as nourishing the body.

Food that is Clean is produced using methods that support human health and ecological balance by nurturing living soil systems, healthy waterways and clean air, and preserve our natural resources.

Food that is Fair is grown by farming systems that are respectful of human and animal rights, promote social justice and equal access, and provide fair pay and working conditions for everyone in the supply chain from production to consumption.

Five Ways to Eat Local
The Wishard Slow Food Garden offers visitors the opportunity to learn about five simple ways to eat local. The produce grown in the garden becomes part of Indianapolis’ local food supply in these same five ways.

1)Grow your own backyard, school, church, workplace or community garden. We donate some of our produce to the Near West Neighborhoods for community events.
2) Buy direct from local farmers at Farmers Markets. We sell some of our produce at Wishard Farmers Market.
3) Become a member of a local farm CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program to receive a “share” (subscription) of fresh, local produce weekly. We offer a ten-week veggie share program with a weekly pick-up at the garden.
4) Patron local food establishments that purchase produce direct from local farms. We sell produce to Duos Indy, a food truck that offers “Slow Food Fast.”
5) Become a member of a Food Coop or shop at neighborhood grocers that sell products direct from local farms. We sell produce to Pogue’s Run Green Grocer, Indy’s first food coop located at 10th and Rural on the Near East Side.