Lessons from NYC: Days 2 & 3

Every-other-day journal entries chronicling my reflections & recollections from my class at Barnard College, which examines the food system of NYC and the broader region through a sustainable farming, policy-forward lens.

07.23.2026

My class visited Harlem Grown: a prominent community garden existing within the greater Food Aparthaid of the Harlem Area. After that experience, we cooked pesto pasta, a salad, and roasted bread together out of locally-produced ingredients.

"Today, I had the privilege of learning directly from certain innovators, academics, and farmers in the realm of sustainable agriculture. I was particularly impressed by the extent of their job and how it relates to the overall effort in preserving organically-supported food

During the team’s visit to Harlem Grown, a community garden in a “Food Apartheid” area in the city, there was a focus in involving animals and bug life into the agricultural system to alleviate some of the risks that come along with not using pesticides; a trend that continued from my class’s tour of Barnard’s Greenhouse system yesterday. Whether it be chickens or ladybugs- using natural predation inarguably introduces more biodiversity into non traditional environments and provides symbiotic relationships for the plants/animals involved.

Moving forward, I want to learn more about the economic side cycle of these farms. Although I asked a few questions about the funding methods used by Harlem Grown, I recognize that grants or subsidies are not a sustainable form of funding that makes the entity autonomous— the business ultimately depends on someone else. I’m still a little confused about how the public-private partnership operates: are the employees officially city employees? Is there any part of their economic model that relies on market-driven factors or a payment (i.e. CSAs, etc.)? These are all questions I hope to answer not only for this specific garden, but also more innovative business models moving forward. I seek to think critically about how to grant not only control over the what and how of the growing to these companies, but also the financial agency and freedom to carry out projects/ideas without going through layers of red tape.

I truly enjoyed the meal the team enjoyed at the end of the day. It was nice to cook and laugh with my peers and professors and build connections with people I would not otherwise interact with as regularly. I’m glad we were able to discuss various topics at the dinner table, identify personal experiences, and bond over the meal we had created. The process of creating, enjoying, and learning in the process was one of the best parts of my day"