Food Access and Garden Engagement Intern

SCOPE OF INTERN WORK: New Roots brings refugees together to share their agricultural skills and connect with their new home and community by placing families in community garden sites across Salt Lake Valley. In addition to creating the opportunity to produce supplementary food, community gardens can also act as access points for health, nutrition, and other educational services. The Food Access & Garden Engagement Intern will work across New Roots garden sites to assist with community engagement programming and promote food access opportunities.

COMMITMENT: 4-6 months, 10-15 hours per week. Starting January 2021

RESPONSIBILITIES:

.Assist with development of materials and curriculum and facilitate logistics for garden orientations that cover season rules, gardening basics, and seed distributions.

.Assist in placement of new and returning gardeners into 13 New Roots garden locations.

.Assist in garden outreach and gathering of applications from interested clients.

.Assist in gardener communications and coordination of garden-based events to facilitate cross-cultural interaction.

.Assist in development and management of garden infrastructure.

.Collect information on local community needs and promote garden activities through door-to-door outreach and surveying.

.Evaluate effectiveness of community programming on increasing healthy food access, engaging neighborhood residents, and changing food consumption behavior.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

.By the end of the internship, the Intern will demonstrate knowledge about the benefits of community gardening and related programming for refugee and New American populations.

.By the end of the internship, the Intern will demonstrate an ability to communicate with limited English speakers and people from different cultures.

.By the end of the internship, the Intern will show an increased knowledge of best gardening practices including irrigation systems, planting and plant health, and soil preparation.

.By the end of the internship, the Intern will demonstrate knowledge of the New Roots program and how best to promote the program to potential new clients.

.By the end of the internship, the Intern will demonstrate knowledge of community food systems in Salt Lake City.