EAT UPget ready, windy city!
Chicago‘s rooftop community will beam from October 17th to 20th, as the City of Chicago and Green Roofs for Healthy Cities host this year’s international green roof conference. Cities Alive is poised to attract design, policy, green roof, and agricultural professionals from around the globe, in celebration of the conference’s 10th anniversary.
Uncommon Ground rooftop farm || photo by Lauren Mandel
With a hunger for rooftop agricultural knowledge, several food-related technical sessions and site visits are on the docket. If you’re able to attend, be sure to stop by Session 2 on the 18th: Emerging Design and Technology Trends in Rooftop Urban Agriculture. This hot button panel will feature Helen Cameron, co-founder of Uncommon Ground (America’s first certified organic rooftop farm and winner of numerous restaurant and sustainability awards); Bradley Roback, Coordinator of Economic Development for Chicago’s Department of Housing and Economic Development (Brad focuses on food policy and land use planning); Mark K. Morrison, President + CEO of MKM Landscape Architecture PC (a New York-based landscape firm with a history of green roof design); and Lauren Mandel (yours truly). Sky Vegetables, Inc. founder Keth Agoada will moderate the session, and the conversation is sure to stimulate your imagination.
Rooftop agriculture is gaining steam at conferences like Cities Alive, and August’s Urban Agriculture Summit in Toronto. Sessions on the topic are routinely packed with curious, energized attendees. Will this trend continue as entrepreneurs, the media, and academia continue to explore the potential of rooftop food production? You betchya.
Check out the rest of the 2012 Cities Alive program, and stop by our panel to ask the experts your toughest questions!
Laur, Your panel is clearly not to be missed. And it looks like a great conference. I hope you’ll be able to stay for the whole meeting.
Dad