The National Urban League (NUL) has selected the Louisville Urban League (LUL) as one of two affiliates to receive a federal grant through the U.S. Department of Food and Agriculture (USDA) to develop a National Black Farmer Apprenticeship Program. The USDA has committed to tackling food and nutrition insecurity by focusing on strengthening and building new partnerships with community-based organizations. Health is one of the core pillars of the National Urban League, and this two-city pilot program will support the NUL’s Health and Quality of Life team, specifically on efforts to initiate an urban agriculture fellowship. 

“As an economic first responder that is at the forefront of equity and justice issues in the community, the Louisville Urban League will make the most of this exciting initiative to create new opportunities for urban farmers and address food insecurity,” National Urban League President and CEO Marc H. Morial said. “We’re excited to work with LUL to advance the Biden-Harris Administration’s whole-of-government equity agenda.”

“It is incredibly exciting and an honor to be chosen by the National Urban League and the USDA for this opportunity,” said Lyndon Pryor, Interim President & CEO of the Louisville Urban League. “Their confidence in our ability to deliver on this important work means a great deal, and I can’t wait to see how we can help grow the amazing network of already established urban farmers in Louisville.”

Project Kilimo, LUL’s Urban Farming Initiative, will work with technical assistance partners, Sankofa Community Farm at Bartram’s Garden in Philadelphia, to support Black urban farmers in Louisville’s West End community in building space, land access, cultural education programming, and resources for food sovereignty. LUL aims to work with neighbors to rebuild and reconnect communities via an emphasis on land and farming, develop the skills necessary to create their own community-based food businesses and projects, or assist them in shaping and entering the emergent urban food system. Though the initial grant period is short, the Louisville Urban League has committed to at least two years of programming.

“Far too often, we see investments in community short-changed before any meaningful work is ever done,” Pryor said. “And while we are confident the USDA will renew its commitment, it was important to me that the League guarantee some stability for an extended period of time.”

Access to healthy, local nutrition and chemical-free food is a human right. Agriculture in a city is not just about growing food to provide better access to communities that historically and systematically have been separated from their right to culturally relevant, affordable produce. It is also about the spiritual and cultural connection of people to the land. Their food. Their communities. Their culture. It is about healing wounds and celebrating the victories of 400 years in the Americas, and it’s about communities having control of their food systems. To be a farmer in a city, you need not just know best practices in production, but be intimately connected to the community you are serving and be accountable to the community in recognizable ways. 

LUL is recruiting up to six experienced farmers and educators to serve as fellows to create and grow opportunities for Black urban farmers in the West End, aid and support Louisville’s urban farming community, and provide cultural and educational opportunities for community members and volunteers. Find more information about these contract positions at Louisville Urban League Jobs in Louisville, KY | Indeed.com. Applications are due mid-September. 

About the Louisville Urban League
The Louisville Urban League assists African Americans and those at the margins in attaining social and economic equality and stability through direct services and advocacy. For more information, go to lul.org or follow us on Facebook, Twitter  (@louisvilleUL), or Instagram (@louisville_ul).