User:Megdeitz/sandbox

Week One: Notes on Community Development Article - Succeeded at showing the many different approaches of community development by linking other articles - The see also page is very helpful in articulating smaller aspects to community development - Does not simply define community development from a policy perspective (i.e. personal empowerment) -Article is neutral -Facts are properly referenced -Subjects are merged and key words are linked to provide further information -Would be interesting to add in a sub section or link to community development through food access to address the food deserts and their effect on community development

Week Two: Critiquing My Article vs Community Development Article: Both the Community Development and Community Gardens age succeed in describing their main topic. Both articles have subtitles. However, the community gardens page lacks links to other pages that relate to community gardens. I also think the page could use more relevant information. Most of the info on the talk page was last updated in 2012. Also, not all of the links listed as citations work. So, I think the page could definitely be cleaned up and generally updated. Especially with the current rise of urban agriculture and community gardens.

Week Three: What Can I Contribute? I think it would be interesting to add a subcategory to the community gardens page which describes the relationship that community gardens have to food access and community development while also linking the article to non-profits and current community gardens where readers can get involved or inspired by work that is being done. Though accurate, a lot of the information on the Community Gardens page is not current, the latest update was made in 2012. I think that this page would benefit greatly from current research and information as community gardens and urban agriculture become more prominent aspects to community development and food access throughout the world. Also, I think that including links to other pages like urban agriculture, food deserts, and vacant lots could also help the topic of community gardens become a viable solution to social issues, rather simply a small community project. 

added this sentence to the community gardening in the United States page: Community gardens benefit community food access by enhancing nutrition and physical activity as well as promoting the role of public health.

Week Four: Lead Section/ Article Draft To address the issues of inequality in the food system, the food justice and food sovereignty movements have emerged for communities to exercise their right to grow, sell, and eat food that is fresh, nutritious, affordable, culturally appropriate, and grown locally with care for the well-being of the land, workers, and animals. The tendency for organizations at the grassroots level to assert their and the community’s right to define their own food and agriculture systems has led many individuals to develop community gardens and urban farms. The efforts of local organizations utilizes a place-based approach to community development that links the producers and consumers of food which in turn facilitates social capital and creates the potential for local economic growth and better health outcomes.

I plan to add a section in the community gardens in the united states article about community food access and how it benefits from community gardens in the united states. I hope to convey this topic through book resources and maybe articles found online. Books are listed below:

Alkon, A. H., & Agyeman, J. (2011). Cultivating food justice: Race, class, and sustainability. MIT Press. Guptill, A. E., Copelton, D. A., & Lucal, B. (2013). Food and society: Principles and paradoxes. John Wiley & Sons. Twiss, J., Dickinson, J., Duma, S., Kleinman, T., Paulsen, H., & Rilveria, L. (2011). Community gardens: lessons learned from California healthy cities and communities. American journal of public health.

Week Five: Drafting Article-- Community gardens benefit community food security by providing residents with safe, culturally acceptable, nutritionally adequate diet through sustainable food system that maximizes community self-reliance and social justice. Community garden initiatives have inspired cities to enact policies for water use, improved access to produce, strengthened community building skills, and created culturally appropriate education programs that help elevate the community's collective consciousness about public health.