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INTERNSHIPS
Current Status:
We have already selected our interns for the 2007 growing season. Thanks so much for the wonderful applications we received! Please check out our volunteer needs and do contact us next season. The earlier the better, as positions fill quickly!
General Farm Internship/Apprenticeship Information:
Internship starts: Mid May (flexible)
Internship ends: August 30th with possible extension
Application Deadline: April 30th for farm intern, none for project coordinator
Minimum Length Stay: 3 months
Number of Interns: 2
Contact Preference: email or phone
Stipend/Compensation: $50 a month
Housing: New Roots will provide housing free of rent
Meals: We will share a lunch on days worked. New Roots can also help take care of basic staples.
Details about General Farm Internship/Apprenticeship:
Work/Experience Desired: Those interested should have an understanding of or openness towards social justice, class-based inequality, and food security issues. Experience with organic farming or vegetable gardening is preferred. It is very likely that the chosen intern will manage some aspect of the project on their own and will have to be comfortable and able to work without full-time supervision (i.e. sprout production, CSA distribution 1x/week, chicken-care, possibly managing volunteers, etc.)
Education Opportunity: We are a non-profit, grant-based organization. This means that a significant amount of our funding comes through perpetual research projects. We are currently studying the viability of urban agriculture. We are experimenting with several composting techniques and soil bioremediation with worms and microbes (unfortunately, urban farming often denotes contaminated soil). There is also room to learn from a number of organizations we are involved with. This could be learning more about permaculture, urban ag., horticulture therapy (New Roots conducts weekly workshops with a homeless garden), working with the food pantry/social ministries project next door, or training and experience with youth farming programs. It is as educational as you make it.
Urban agriculture requires intensive planting, soil testing, and LOTS of amending/top-dressing of beds. We use all raised beds with a no-till technique. So, interns can expect to help with building beds, managing compost/vermicompost systems, amending beds and adding additional layers of organic material, and working on daily maintenance of crops (weeding!). We harvest twice a week for our CSA. Intern will help with harvest, washing, and distribution. This will be our first year having an internship program. There is room for much flexibility and feedback. We are a consensus-based organization. The selected intern will need to have the necessary communication skills for group decision-making and will be expected to attend weekly farm meetings. This means there will be a lot of room to contribute to the organization of the farm. Beyond the necessary farm chores, an ideal intern will find their passion and naturally focus on creating/managing an area of the project with the help and guidance of the group. It would be best to get on the internet and check out what urban agriculture is all about and get an idea as to what these sorts of projects can look like. A typical week will consist of 5-6 hours, 5 days a week.
Details about Community Organizer/Project Coordinator:
Work experience desired: Intern should have an understanding of social justice, class-based inequality and food security. Desired intern will be comfortable working in an inner-city urban environment. Experience with grant writing and/or community organizing is desired. Intern will take on any number of the following tasks: grant writing, book keeping, updating website, email correspondence, coordinating PR events, community organizing including surveying, identifying community leaders and volunteers, building relationships with neighborhood churches and organizations. This internship is designed for someone capable of working without supervision. Good communication skills are essential as we are a consensus-based collective. Intern will participate in the weekly meeting. This internship can work well with graduate requirements.
VOLUNTEERS
This project only exists because some of us, as neighbors, wanted our own local food source. Since then we have grown to 8 volunteer collective members; 5 of us live here in the neighborhood. Every season, we have attracted new and wonderful volunteers. We love volunteers. Thankyou! If you want to volunteer with us, the best days are Tuesday, Thursday or Friday. Every Tuesday and Friday volunteers work with neighborhood children harvesting vegetables. Thursday is a day we try and tackle larger projects on the farm. We have other volunteer needs beside farm work.
Some of these include: