Capacity Building Program: Community Learning Project for Food Justice

WhyHunger

The Community Learning Project for Food Justice (CLP) works to support, connect, and grow a peer-to peer grassroots, shared-learning community. The program matches mentoring partners for a year of relationship building, knowledge and skill sharing, and networking. Through regional gatherings, facilitated distance learning, and customized site visits partners act as resources to each other providing technical assistance, teaching skills, sharing information, and giving peer consultation for developing programs and initiatives.

Each participating organization receives a general stipend to offset the overhead costs of their participation. Travel expenses to conduct site visits and attend regional and/or national gatherings are covered by WhyHunger.

CLP Goals:

Build and support communities of practice to facilitate learning, innovation, leadership and strong networks in the food justice movement;
Build infrastructure and capacity for community-based projects in the food justice movement.

Benefits to Participating Organizations:

Gain practical skills and relevant resources from current practitioners;
Engage in sustained peer training and technical assistance resulting in tangible project improvements and increased resources;
Experience and learn from impactful projects and leaders in the food justice movement through experiential site visits, regional gatherings, and facilitated distance learning;
Receive training and technical assistance from WhyHunger and partnering capacity building organizations.

The 2011-2012 Community Learning Project for Food Justice peer mentoring organizations are:

Oyotunji African Village (Sheldon, SC)
Black Oaks Center for Sustainable Renewable Living (Pembrooke Township, IL)
Community Services Unlimited, Inc. (Los Angeles, CA)
Community to Community Development (Bellingham,WA)
Detroit Black Community Food Security Network (Detroit, MI)
Dill Pickle Food Co-Op (Chicago, IL)
Gardening Matters (Minneapolis, MN)
Huerto de la Familia (Eugene, OR)
Jones Valley Urban Farm (Birmingham, AL)
Mandela MarketPlace (Oakland, CA)
Mississippians Engaged in Greener Agriculture (Shelby, MS)
Nuestras Raices (Holyoke, MA)
Pedal Co-op (Philadelphia, PA)
People’s Grocery (Oakland, CA)
Social Justice Learning Institute (Inglewood, CA)