Addressing the issue of local food access, especially in low-income communities within Philadelphia, Growlots seeks to re-define the system in which we get our food.

Growlots, with the pooled information from UNI (Urban Nutrition Initiative) and PHS (Pennsylvania Horticultural Society), introduced the concept of Green Resource Centers that would supply outlying community gardens with supplies and services in exchange for a portion of the satellite gardens’ crop output.

Growlots is the name of a project begun in September 2009.  The group included Victoria Perez, Megan Braley, John “Woody” Woodburn, Kim Forsythe, Elissa Meyer, Adam Rusiski, Jared Delorenzo, John Pender, and myself.

As this process builds and strengthens gardens, it also has the capability to strengthen communities, while simultaneously providing them with fresh food and vitality.

Megan Braley and Victoria Perez have continued to develop this project