Lower Ninth Ward Center For Sustainable Engagement And Develop

FOOD SECURITY:Food Security is a vital element of a sustainable community. It is a return to the traditions of urban farming and independent living rooted in the Lower 9th Ward. CSED works to promote this initiative through community gardens, local markets and ongoing education and outreach about the importance of urban agriculture to community revitalization. The CSED supports the Backyard Gardners Network to promote food security, the Guerrilla Garden located at Chartres & Charbonnet, and the Ernst Community Garden located at Chartres and Forstall. The CSED Food Planning Community, in response to the communitys poor access to fresh food, is currently organizing Lower 9th Ward community leaders and residents to create a Neighborhood Food Action Plan. Also, the CSED is developing a local Urban Farm that will provide local quality food to residents and New Orleans area restaurants with a community hiring component to include an apprenticeship in farming.

SUSTAINABLE COASTAL RESTORATION: To increase and strengthen collaboration between local and national efforts in order to advance innovative policies and mechanisms forcomprehensive coastal restoration and community protection efforts in coastal Louisiana. The health and well being of the Lower 9th Ward is deeply intertwined with the Mississippi River to the south and the Bayou Bienvenue Wetland Triangle to the north. This geographic relationship continues to inform coastal sustainability and the critical role of wetlands throughout New Orleans, across Louisiana, and along the Gulf Coast.