Integrative Development Initiative

The Pomona Community Farmer Alliance (PCFA) offered 50 weeks of community programming through the Pomona community market which is a collaborative between community volunteers and local and regional farmers oriented towards bringing higher quality foods into low-income communities through intentionality and relationships (as opposed to conventional market mechanisms, which we have observed do not work to bring high quality food into underserved communities). We supported 10+ local and regional farmers to distribute their organic and chemical free fresh foods directly to low income and underserved community members in Pomona. As a result of our efforts we have been able to create access at our local farmers market to a greater diversity and higher quality of food, grown using regenerative & ecological methods, including pasture raised meats, chemical free mushrooms, heirloom beans & grains, organic almonds, olives/oils, fruits, and seasonal hyper-locally grown vegetables, with these items selling 30-80% of their typical retail costs. We also supported a food access booth distributing produce at no cost as well as supported weekly food security bag deliveries to vulnerable community members, such as those with disabilities and significant health challenges, elderly individuals & limited support networks. In 2023, our food access programming continued to reach over 1000 people with approximately 250 individuals receiving food each week through the PCFA's community market programming.

Food Cycle Collective is a collaborative initiative rooted in Pomona that centers composting, bikes, food, and community-building. We come together as a collective to care for the earth and the people on it. This takes many forms. Our group collaborates weekly to collect food scraps from local restaurants, cafes, food pantries, and grocery stores and deliver them to local gardens where we help compost these materials into healthy soil (to grow more healthy food locally). In addition, we host a food scrap drop off at the PCFA's community market and rescue unsold food to prepare into a hot meal which we deliver--along with other needed supplies such as snacks, drinks, hygiene items, harm reduction supplies, and clothing--to about 60 people living in the streets every week. In 2023, we supported 14 local businesses, 10 gardens, and diverted 500,000+ lbs of food scraps through local composting. We also served 3000+ hot meals to people living in the streets, offered 50+ group rides through the community, and hosted 50+ hands-on community composting workshops. Beyond this, we also supported knowledge sharing through tours & demos for several national community composting workshops and offered additional support to community members living in the street such as employment, emergency housing, court accompaniment, hospital transportation, and rehab visitation.