Ethnography

Because this project is heavily focused on community outreach, I plan to make use of ethnography. I began this weekend by doing a very initial observation of the Buchanan Mall area. It was drizzling a bit and overcast on the day I went, so I did not observe very many actual people, but I did take some photos of the area itself and made some initial observations.

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Buchanan Mall is a section of Buchanan Street that was closed off for green spaces and community gathering areas. There are many green areas separated by asphalt. There are also playgrounds on almost every block. I was surprised to see that this area was so under-utilized by members of the community, and thought that maybe this was because of the weather, but I've been told that there is rarely anyone using these common spaces. I will continue to research this, by visiting the area at different times of day / days of the week.

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Much of the asphalt is used as parking spaces. Will these spaces still be available to residents after NBC is established? If not, how will the residents feel about this?

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The residential housing along BM is all government housing projects.

"During the executive mandates for urban renewal in the 1940s, thousands of livable, Victorian-style homes and businesses owned by the city's working class African American residents were seized by the government under eminent domain and razed to make room for government sponsored housing projects."

- wikipedia.com

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Evidence of community outreach is easy to find in the BM area, with many murals and community centers. As stated in an NBC grant proposal, "Many non-profits service the community but a recent community needs assessment by Mo’ MAGIC highlights gaps in education, youth service, workforce, and family support."

These are a few of the community organizations along BM:

- African-American Historical & Cultural Society
- Ella Hill Hutch Community Center
- St. Paul's Lutheran Church
- Rosa Parks Senior Center
- Rosa Parks Elementary School

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"Ethnography is a systematic process. While useful ideas can emerge during casual observation, the most powerful insights come from a rigorous analysis of systematically collected data. During research, a trained ethnographer will collect photos, video, audio and other contextual data. These photos or images may look “unpolished” or “rough.” However, the beauty of ethnography is that what one observes is visually compelling, real and meaningful without being staged."

- An Ethnography Primer, AIGA / Cheskin

Successful New Direction

This past week I had a phone meeting with Margaretha Haughwout, one of the major organizers of the Hayes Valley Farm, as well as a key player in the transition of the farm to the Buchanan Mall (BM) area of San Francisco's Western Addition. This new community farm will be called the New Buchanan Commons (NBC).

My hope up to this point was that I could focus on NBC for my 505 project, specifically focusing on community outreach in the BM area. This is an underserved area of the city and the concern is that it may be difficult to get the BM community excited about the farm and to feel ownership of it.

In talking with Margaretha, it was decided that I would be folded into the team working on the NBC project. The team members are as follows:

Margaretha Haughwout: xmargarethax@gmail.com
- HVF Energy Consortium / Resource & Finance Council
- Resource Coordinator at HVF
- Artist / Graphic Designer

Zoey Krull: edibleoffice@gmail.com
- HVF Root Council / Board Member

Janelle Fitzpatrick: janellefavia@gmail.com
- HVF Energy Consortium / Resource & Finance Council
- Youth Education Coordinator

Ron Stanford: rstan1122@gmail.com
- HVF Root Council / Board Member
- Architect

London Breed: AAACC / london@aaacc.org
- Executive Director of the African American Art & Culture Complex (AAACC)

I also have a new problem and purpose statement, as my focus has shifted from the original project relating to Hayes Valley Farm.

Problem Statement:

New Buchanan Commons (NBC) is a recently proposed community farm whose organizers need to find ways to promote excitement and a sense of ownership among the existing community.

Purpose Statement:

The purpose of this study was to develop the necessary tools to enable the NBC organizers to create this level of excitement in the Buchanan Mall community.

Meeting with Hayes Valley Farm

This past weekend I met with a few members of the Hayes Valley Farm (HVF). I described to them the project I've been tasked with in DAI 505 and opened up the discussion to their particular needs. I told them that my initial problem statement reflected the need of HVF to attract more volunteers and donors. Through this conversation, it came to light that the HVF will actually be closing within the next year, as they were only granted the plot of land where they reside for an interim period.

They mentioned a few other areas where my help might be more needed. The HVF will not end all together when the city reclaims the plot of land, but will instead be transitioning to a new space in the Western Addition, called the Buchanan Mall.

Buchanan Mall

The members expressed that with the transition will come a need to outreach to the community in that area. On top of this, all the resources currently housed at the HVF will not fit in the smaller area of the Buchanan Mall. Because of this they will need to communicate with other community gardens and farms in the area to see who can use the excess equipment they will be left with. An additional issue is keeping the energy level high at HVF to complete existing projects and begin new projects, which is somewhat waning with the impending closure.

Keys to Transition:

• Generating excitement and ownership among the existing community around Buchanan Mall
• Informing people about what will become available to them (ability to grow their own food and learn more about sustainable urban farming and permaculture)
• HVF to be a generator of energy for the transition in intangible and tangible ways (tangible forms including soil, seeds, physical resources)
  

Fears:

• Existing community will not be receptive
• Existing community will not care
• Existing community will be upset due to loss of parking spaces, etc.

Hopes:

• The community farm will be embraced by existing community

Realities of having a community farm in your backyard, as proven by HVF:

• Anyone can grow food
• It's possible to grow food anywhere
• It can be done in the Western Addition as it can be anywhere else

Challenges of having a community garden at Buchanan Mall:

• Space is not enclosed by fencing, as HVF is, which can lead to theft / vandalism
• Existing community is for the most part not involved as yet in permaculture projects and knowledge or interest of which does not currently exist in the culture of the Western Addition

Other areas of HVF that might be able to use my help:

• Further web site development (the current site is very well-done, but they have some ideas for expanding it)
  
• Finding ways to convey the HVF organizational/ governance structure to the community and outside world.

The members I spoke to are as follows:

Jessie Raeder: jessieraeder@gmail.com
Curtis Schofield: curtis@ram9.cc
Natasha Zuhur: nzuhur@gmail.com

The HVF has a Root Council which consists of a board of directors. They also have an Energy Consortium which is more concerned with managing resources and on-site management of the farm. There also exists a loose transition team that I may be able to join efforts with.

root-council@hayesvalleyfarm.com
energy-consortium@hayesvalleyfarm.com

I was also given contact information for Margaretha Haughwout (title needed) and have been in contact with her.

Next steps:

• Meet with Margaretha
• Talk to more people in the HVF organization
• Settle on one problem to address
• Research other community gardens, especially in areas where permaculture is not a part of the existing culture (West Oakland / OBUGs, Bayview Hunter's Point)
  
• Brainstorm design solutions

"Hope is not something you hear. Hope is not something you feel. Hope is something you Do."
- Curtis Schofield

Revised Problem & Purpose Statement

Problem Statement:

Hayes Valley Farm is a community driven farm that needs volunteers and donations to serve the community and encourage San Francisco residents to learn about sustainable ecological systems.

Purpose Statement:

The purpose of this study was to develop the necessary tools to attract the volunteers and donors necessary to continue to grow the farm.