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Local Food as Community Economic Development
A vibrant local foods movement is sweeping across the U.S., and Crossroads
plays a key role as a national leader. We do this in several ways: Neighborhood Economic Development Crossroads
builds long-term partnerships with Community Development Corporations (CDCs) local business associations, neighborhood groups, NGOs,foundations and other stakeholders. We work to strengthen local communities by building wealth that stays in the locale.
(1) Our local foods systems studies focus on the economics of food in states and regions across the U.S.
See our Farm & Food Economy pages for more information. We follow up our economic findings with strategic consulting to local groups on how to implement their local foods strategies in ways that build health, wealth, connection and capacity for local residents. We are especially interested in working with local foods initiatives that include local economic development officials. For two years in a row, Ken Meter has served as keynote speaker for Rep. Collin Peterson's "Home Grown Economy" agriculture forum. He has also made more than 150 presentations across the country, working in 39 regions in 18 states.
(2) Crossroads serves as the convenor of a proposed Community Economic Development committee of the Community Food Security Coalition.
See our CFSC/CED pages for more information. We are responding to broad interest from all over the nation for tools to promote local foods as economic development.
(3) Ken Meter works with the American Evaluation Association, as part of its Systems Technical Interest Group, and serves as an Associate of the Human Systems Dynamics Institute, to develop best practices in systems thinking and food system analysis.
See Meter, Ken (2006). "Evaluating Farm and Food Systems in the U.S.," in Williams, Bob & Iraj Imam, eds. (2006). Systems Concepts in Evaluation: An Expert Anthology. American Evaluation Association monograph published by EdgePress of Inverness.
(4) Local foods work is often undertaken as part of a longer-term sustainability planning process. For results from Crossroads' sustainability work in Minneapolis, where we coordinated the public process for selecting indicators for the city's sustainability initiative, see
Minneapolis Sustainability.
You may especially want to read the "Fifty-Year Vision and Indicators for a Sustainable Minneapolis" - [PDF file] written by Ken Meter, that emerged from this process. This pioneering work in defining systems indicators engaged over 85 citizens blending their work with state-of-the-art technical work to create 30 measures of success for the city's sustainable future. The city went on to adopt 23 indicators that are integrated into the city's Comprehensive Plan and hard-wired to the annual budget process. At the time of its adoption, it was perhaps the most inclusive set of sustainability indicators in the nation.
Our work places us at the forefront of CED efforts nationally. Our thorough studies of local economies - Neighborhood Income Statement and Balance Sheet studies - offer a powerful tool for community groups to use to assess the strengths and limitations of their local economy.
In 13 lower-income Twin City neighborhoods studied so far, a total of $650 million EACH YEAR has been tracked flowing out of the neighborhoods as residents purchase daily essentials.
To read a Working Paper written for the American Planning Association summarizing these studies, follow the link below.
Crossroads also takes these themes to the neighborhood level, in a position paper showing how building local wealth may be part of planning for strong neighborhood commercial districts.
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Crossroads Resource Center / Minneapolis, Minnesota USA