On Sunday Nov. 5, the Mills Community Farm will partner with Oakland organizations Growing Together and Hip Hop For Change to plant a 55-tree fruit orchard from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Volunteers will plant citrus, plums, apple, nectarines and peach trees with breaks for demos, music, food and kids activities.
Farm manager Alisha Strater, says that the farm aims to collaborate with other nonprofits to get the community involved.
“In academia we do critical analysis, that’s the first step. The next step [is] how do we engage our community, to see ourselves in the community, to build change in the community,” Strater said. “Gardening, and organizing around healthy living in which synergies are constructed, moves us forward.”
Hip Hop For Change is a nonprofit that uses “hip hop as a tool and a positive cultural exchange,” according to their website. The past nine years, they have held a conference at Mills at the end of spring semester. This is the farm’s first collaboration with Hip Hop For Change.
Growing Together’s main goal is to “plant fruit trees in urban neighborhoods in order to improve the environment, build community, and create a long term source of local healthy food in neighborhoods with a lack of tree cover, and classified as ‘food deserts,'” their website says.
In addition, Mills’ very own musicians CHLORA, which is electronic music by Hannah Lu-Way, and Beefcake will be performing along with performers from Hip Hop For Change.
The schedule:
11 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Welcoming to the farm, getting into work groups and kids art & music.
Performances by:
CHLORA
Beefcake
12:30-1 p.m.
Planting demonstration and conversation.
1-2 p.m.
Food, and Hip Hop for Change performances by:
Khafre Jay
Honey Gold
KeliSun
2-4 p.m.
Planting the terraces.
Performance by:
DJ The Bum Genius
