Gardens & Farms

SEARCHING FOR a healthful, delicious lunch place in the University District? Look no farther than the bright, modern restaurant Cultivate (1218 N.E. Campus Parkway) where the wait staff are University of Washington students and the fresh, seasonal food is as local as it gets.

The University of Washington is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2014 Green Seed Fund, sponsored by UW Sustainability. The Fund awards money to select projects that advance sustainable research and contribute to campus sustainability goals. The 2014 winning proposals are:

On an overcast fall afternoon, UW Farm Manager Sarah Geurkink pulls bright red radishes from the ground at the UW Center for Urban Horticulture (CUH), and bands them into tight bundles. The radishes, along with mixed greens and carrots, are harvested to be sold at Alder Hall’s District Market. Geurkink, who moved to Seattle from Michigan, became interested in farming food after seeing the poor diets of inner city youth. She saw local and sustainable food production as a means to better peoples’ diet and lifestyle.

A recent grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services has enabled the UW Botanic Gardens to update and digitize the Washington Park Arboretum’s maps and histories, allowing for a new level of access for the students and the public.

The goal is to allow access to the original paper maps and plant histories on a digital platform. The project started when Sarah Reichard, director of UW Botanic Gardens and associate professor in the UW School of Environmental and Forest Services, noticed a national trend of creating greater digital access to park information.

Environmental Stewardship & Sustainability is pleased to announce the launch of the new UW Sustainability Map—a web-based application showing the locations of over 25 types of sustainability resources.

When you visit the Charles L. Pack Experimental Forest, you are not just taking a walk through a forest, you’re seeing sustainability in action. Through spacing trials, selection thinning, fertilizer treatments, and ecosystem-value services research, the Center of Sustainable Forestry demonstrates that sustainability and active forest management are not mutually exclusive.

Recognizing excellence in campus tree management, Tree Campus USA engages both the student body and the wider community in the establishment and maintenance of community forests. Since 2010 the University of Washington has held the proud distinction of Tree Campus USA recognition.

Tree Campus USA is a national program created in 2008 to honor colleges and universities for effective campus forest management and for engaging staff and students in conservation goals. Toyota helped launch the program and continues its generous financial support this year.