Grand Rapids Focus

Elizabeth Koetje, Ashley Fuller, Joshua Johnson


Urban Roots Pres.pptx

Ashley Fuller

I decided to do my case study on the Urban Roots located on Madison Avenue in downtown Grand Rapids. Urban roots is a non-profit community farm and an education center. The location of the farm allows for quick access by car, bus, bike, or walking for community members. Urban roots originally opened in 2013 but moved to its current location in 2015. The mission of the farm is to cultivate healthy communities. This organization does a great job of hitting the "Three Bottom Line" aspects of sustainability.

Environmental Aspects

One of the big ways that the farm helps the environment is through its composting program. They provide the community with a pick-up and drop off program for a small fee. Their service area includes 12 different neighborhoods and they are now accepting compost from commercial businesses as well. Composting decreases the amount of waste that goes into the landfill and the soil that is produced is used on-site for their garden and is available for members as well. Not only does composting help reduce the amount of waste that enters our landfills it also helps sequester carbon. I volunteered at the farm a couple of summers ago and I worked in the compost area. It was a great environment to work in and I really learned a lot about the dos and don'ts of composting. They keep chickens on-site and they get to run around and eat out of the compost so it really has universal uses. Another way that they are being environmentally conscious is that they collect rainwater that is used in the garden and inside the building to wash dishes.

Social Aspects

Urban Roots offers an abundance of community education classes. They have resources on their website for people who want to learn more about gardening and they also offer actual classes. Schools have the option of partnering with them as well for field trips and they show the kids the basics of gardening and it is a very hands-on experience. This organization also partners with other local businesses such as WMEAC and Harmony Hall. One thing I noticed when I volunteered there is that it really is a safe space for people of all backgrounds and ages to come and learn and have fun.

Economic Aspects

This year was a very challenging year for everyone due to the pandemic. In response to this Urban Roots started a Pandemic Program to help out its community members. This was a 6-week grant from United Way COVID-19 Relief Fund that allowed them to provide YourShare boxes on a weekly basis. In total, they provided 210 boxes that were valued at $48 to their neighbors every Friday. There is also a market inside their main building where they sell the produce that they grow which provides the community with fresh fruits and veggies.

As a whole, this organization is doing really well when it comes to hitting the three pillars of sustainability. They bring a lot of great things to the community and the environment. They have really amazing volunteer and education programs that really anybody can participate in. One way they could improve would be to get their name out there a little more, I have noticed when I talk about them that not many people know who they are or what they are about. The only other improvement I can really think of for them is to invest more in the energy sector to help power their main building.

Brewery Vivant
ENS case study powerpoint 2.0.pdf
Elizabeth KoetjeThe Grand Rapids Art Museum (GRAM) is a center for art appreciation and education. It is a central object and a tourist destination in Grand Rapids. The museum is a center for community engagement for all adults and children alike. The GRAM, surprisingly, also has a huge emphasis on sustainability. It has a rich and interesting history with sustainability and environmental efforts that one might not expect from an art museum.Art museums are not usually sustainable or especially environmentally friendly. This is because of the massive amounts of energy they must consume to keep the humidity, circulation, and temperature at a certain place in order to preserve their art exhibits. In fact, the Grand Rapids Art Museum is the first art museum in the world to be certified by LEED. The GRAM opened its doors in 2007 and received gold certification in 2008. So, when the GRAM got its gold certification by LEED some myths were disproved, and a challenge was issued to other museums around the world.The road to sustainability and becoming green began with the design and construction of the building. Much of the materials used for construction were locally sourced, harvested, or manufactured. This cut down on the environmental impact that trucks have when shipping materials. The GRAM was designed to be energy efficient. It was built to maximize natural lighting from large windows. The temperature regulation and lighting systems are 30% more efficient than traditional systems were at the time of its construction. It even has a power purchase agreement with Consumers Energy so that 50% of its electricity comes from renewable energy sources. The GRAM is also water efficient. Rain and snow water is collected, stored, and recycled to be used in things like plant irrigation, toilets, and water in the outside water well. By doing this, the GRAM has limited water waste and utilized natural water recycling.When it comes to the everyday running of the GRAM, it is just as sustainable. The employees recycle and compost. They even banned paper coffee cups and everyone uses washable reusable mugs instead. The Gram demonstrates that art and nature are not mutually exclusive and that they can share the same space and coexist in peace. In this way, the beauty of art and sustainability can be appreciated simultaneously. All in all, they have very sound sustainability practices that come from great planning and passionate employees. The only improvements I would make to their sustainability practices regard promotion, their gift shop, and information distribution. The GRAM recycles paper, but if they were to replace paper pamphlets with QR code links to online pamphlets, they could further limit their paper usage. I was not able to find much information on the materials used in their gift shop. However, I would recommend a review of the materials for the items sold there. They could limit the environmental impacts of shipping if they used items that use locally sourced materials. They could also not sell any items that are exclusively made of plastic or other non-biodegradable materials. Finally, finding information about their sustainability practices on their website was difficult. Moving forward, I would suggest expanding the small section that was there to be more comprehensive. By doing this, they would promote sustainability, educate people on its importance, and maybe inspire others to do the same.


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