In a new age where everyone is an environmental activist and the planet is on the verge of irreversible catastrophe, what else can we do to save our home? Many turn to cleaning the oceans, recycling, and driving electric cars. However, not a lot of people think about farming as an opportunity for conservation. Most see farming as a simplistic process: plant the seed, water it, and watch it grow. This is the nuts and bolts of what farming is. Most of the farming in the 20th century is planting the product you need and then selling it to the consumer, but there is a give and take with everything.
Margaux Sellnau is the lead intern at the Grand Valley Sustainable Agriculture Project, or SAP. The phrase “sustainable agriculture” is thrown around a lot, but what is it? Sustainable agriculture focuses on planting a variety of crops so as to not to remove so many necessary nutrients from the soil. Say for instance a farmer grows broccoli, broccoli takes away a lot of iron and magnesium from the soil in order to grow. If the farmer wants to grow more broccoli, they must find a way to put more iron and magnesium back into the soil. This is usually done with chemicals that are detrimental to the ecosystem, but the SAP is using natural techniques to avoid this.
“The SAP started as just a community garden around 10 years ago, so it was actually birthed out of a philosophy class. Now it’s turned into something that I don’t think anyone would have anticipated.” The SAP is now a farm completely run by students to teach their peers about farming and how to use sustainable techniques to produce quality crops.
At the end of the growing season, the whole club gets together for a big potluck called the harvest party. The students use all the crops they grew themselves for one big collaborative dinner. “The main goal of the SAP is to spread awareness about good farming techniques and how they are used.” The harvest party is a great opportunity for students to get involved and spread the word.
“The SAP currently has around a hundred and thirty members and is always looking for more to join.” The house where the SAP is built off of (Wesley House) is home to four interns every year, Margaux included. Students can join the SAP by just typing in a quick facebook search for “GVSU Farm Club” to take a look at all their events and workshops or by going to the SAP’s volunteer hours which vary semester to semester. These can be found on the same facebook group, or on the GVSU website.
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