Agricultural Initiative/Rooftop Gardening

Through the CCI-sponsored St. Petersburg Rooftop Gardening Club, the Agricultural Initiative has developed techniques for urban residents with no access to dacha plots to grow more of their own fresh produce on rooftops in large Russian cities. CCI is providing consultations, teaching seminars, and furnishing technical and material assistance to urban residents and institutions who create rooftop gardens.

More Details About the Program's Operations in St. Petersburg
In 1998, CCI is continuing a program for sponsors to directly support a Rooftop Garden in St. Petersburg. Institutions such as orphanages, hospitals, schools and centers for Russians with disabilities have created rooftop gardens to supply food, teach horticulture and biology, provide horticultural therapy and vocational training, and improve the local environment.

Through a competitive grants process, CCI staff will select deserving recipient organizations who have a solid plan for developing their rooftops into productive gardens.

Your donation to CCI can directly sponsor one of these rooftop gardens! A donation of $200 will purchase 250 bags of soil and necessary garden tools (CCI provides the seeds) for a deserving institution. Your gift will continue to give, year after year, as bountiful harvests are collected and fed to hungry people.

Click here to see some photos of rooftop gardens that CCI has supported in the past. (This page is graphics-heavy, a good connection is recommended.)

In early 1998, we plan to have an online listing of approved applicants who need funding for their rooftop gardens. Meanwhile, if you are interested in sponsoring a rooftop garden, send your donation to CCI (Attn.: Rooftop Gardening Program) at PO Box 29912, San Francisco, CA 94129. CCI is a 501(c)(3) organization; donations are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.

If you would like more info about this exciting program, call Ag Initiative Director Will Easton at 415-561-7777, or email him at cciusa@igc.org.


Our popular Russian-language Rooftop Gardening guide is now online! (Unfortunately without many of the neat graphics...) If your browser can handle Cyrillic fonts, head to our Russian Pages and then choose the rooftop gardening section.


Rooftop Gardening Links

Educational Concerns for Hunger Organization has provided essential assistance to aspiring rooftop gardeners in Russia.

Toronto's Office of Urban Agriculture can tell you more about the benefits of urban agriculture. They have recently posted a profile of CCI's Rooftop Gardening Project, written by Sasha Gavrilov.

Alla Sokol directs CCI's Rooftop Gardening Program in St. Petersburg. Send her an email message.

Konstantin Ushanov is involved with Rooftop Gardening in Moscow. Send him an email message.

The Rooftop Gardening Resource Group web site is a great way to learn more about innovative gardening techniques.



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