Keep Growing Detroit

Keep Growing Detroit
Name	Keep Growing Detroit
Formation	2010
Type	Nonprofit organization
Headquarters	Detroit, Michigan
Region served	Detroit metropolitan area
Focus	Urban agriculture, food justice, community development
Leader title	Executive Director

Keep Growing Detroit Keep Growing Detroit is a Detroit-based nonprofit focused on urban agriculture, food sovereignty, and community resilience. Founded in 2010, the organization works with neighborhood residents, community gardens, schools, and policy makers to transform vacant land into productive green space. Keep Growing Detroit engages with farmers, educators, and public health advocates to address food access, workforce development, and environmental stewardship across Detroit and the surrounding Wayne County, Michigan region.

History

Keep Growing Detroit traces roots to grassroots movements and municipal initiatives that responded to industrial decline and population loss in Detroit during the late 20th and early 21st centuries. The organization emerged amid efforts linked to the urban agriculture movement in the United States, local food policy discussions in Michigan, and networks such as the Detroit Black Community Food Security Network, Greenspace Detroit, and the Michigan Urban Farming Initiative. Early collaborations included projects with Michigan State University extension programs, Pew Charitable Trusts-supported studies, and neighborhood associations active after the 2008 financial crisis and the 2013 Detroit bankruptcy. Keep Growing Detroit developed programming influenced by models from the Green Bronx Machine, Farmers Market Coalition, and community land trust practices used by organizations like Detroit Land Bank Authority.

Programs and Services

Programs include garden incubation, seed distribution, tool libraries, training for growers, and technical assistance for urban farmers and market gardeners. Keep Growing Detroit provides services to community gardens, school gardens affiliated with Detroit Public Schools Community District, and urban farms connected to networks such as the Eastern Market and the Michigan Farmers Market Association. Educational programming aligns with curricula used by partners like University of Michigan School of Public Health, Henry Ford Health System, and youth initiatives modeled on the 4-H and AmeriCorps service frameworks. The organization operates a composting and soil health program informed by research from USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service best practices, and coordinates seasonal markets consistent with standards from the US Department of Agriculture and the Farmers Market Coalition.

Organizational Structure and Funding

Keep Growing Detroit is governed by a board of directors and staffed by program managers, outreach coordinators, and urban agriculture specialists with ties to institutions such as Wayne State University and Michigan State University. Funding sources have included grants from foundations like the Kresge Foundation, W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and Ford Foundation, municipal contracts with City of Detroit departments, and philanthropic contributions coordinated with community foundations such as the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan. Earned revenue streams include fee-for-service technical assistance, plant sales, and farmers market vendor support tied to SNAP/EBT processing programs administered in partnership with state agencies. Fiscal sponsorships and cooperative agreements have involved entities such as the Detroit Economic Growth Corporation.

Impact and Community Outcomes

Keep Growing Detroit's projects aim to increase access to fresh produce, create job training pathways, and promote environmental remediation in neighborhoods affected by industrial legacies like the Great Migration-era disinvestment and postwar deindustrialization. Measured outcomes include acres converted to cultivation within the footprint of initiatives in North End, Midtown, and Brightmoor, enrollment figures for youth gardening programs tied to partners including Detroit Public Schools Community District, and outcomes tracked with collaborators such as Henry Ford Health System and local public health departments. The organization’s interventions intersect with urban planning efforts led by the Detroit Future City framework and land stewardship strategies of the Detroit Land Bank Authority, contributing to neighborhood revitalization, small business development, and participatory land use practices.

Partnerships and Collaborations

Keep Growing Detroit maintains partnerships with regional and national organizations including the Eastern Market Corporation, Detroit Black Community Food Security Network, Grow Detroit's Young Talent, and academic partners like University of Michigan and Wayne State University. Collaborations extend to municipal agencies such as the City of Detroit planning offices and public health departments, philanthropic institutions including the Kresge Foundation, and networks like the National Young Farmers Coalition and the US Urban Agriculture Policy Coalition. These partnerships support joint grant proposals, policy advocacy, workforce development programs aligned with Michigan Works! initiatives, and community-driven research with institutions like Michigan State University.

Awards and Recognition

Keep Growing Detroit has received recognition from local and national entities for contributions to urban agriculture, community health, and food systems innovation. Awards and acknowledgments have involved civic honors from the City of Detroit, grant awards from foundations such as the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the Kresge Foundation, and inclusion in case studies published by academic partners including University of Michigan and Wayne State University. The organization’s models have been cited in reports by policy groups including the Brookings Institution and nonprofit networks such as the National League of Cities for work on food access and neighborhood-led revitalization.

Category:Non-profit organizations based in Detroit Category:Urban agriculture organizations in the United States