California Women for Agriculture →

California Women for Agriculture (CWA) was formed in 1975, in the Coachella Valley. The name was chosen to develop a cross section of members. In fact, the nucleus of the first chapter was made up of consumers, as well as farmers and ranchers. Today our membership is as diverse as the industry we represent; bankers, lawyers, accountants, marketing professionals, consumers, AND farmers and ranchers. With 20 chapters and 1,600-plus members across the state, CWA is the most active, all volunteer agricultural organization in the state, and members are actively engaged in public relations, education, and legislative advocacy on behalf of agriculture.

California Women for Agriculture is proud to welcome you to our brand new website. Please browse the site, learn more about us, and find your local chapter. We hope you’ll consider becoming a member, sponsor, or contributor.

To read the most recent issue of Compass, our quarterly newsletter, please click here.

To learn about the Women’s Museum of California, please visit their website here.

American Community Garden Association →

The Mission of the American Community Gardening Association is to build community by increasing and enhancing community gardening and greening across the United States and Canada.

The American Community Gardening Association (ACGA) is a bi-national nonprofit membership organization of professionals, volunteers and supporters of community greening in urban and rural communities. The Association recognizes that community gardening improves people’s quality of life by providing a catalyst for neighborhood and community development, stimulating social interaction, encouraging self-reliance, beautifying neighborhoods, producing nutritious food, reducing family food budgets, conserving resources and creating opportunities for recreation, exercise, therapy and education.

ACGA and its member organizations work to promote and support all aspects of community food and ornamental gardening, urban forestry, preservation and management of open space, and integrated planning and management of developing urban and rural lands.

The Association supports community gardening by facilitating the formation and expansion of state and regional community gardening networks; developing resources in support of community gardening; and, encouraging research and conducting educational programs.

Farmers Market Coalition →

The Farmers Market Coalition is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to strengthening farmers markets across the United States so that they can serve as community assets while providing real income opportunities for farmers.

The Farmers Market Coalition is driven by three complimentary goals. We call it our triple bottom line. Farmers earn fair prices for the fruits of their labor by selling directly to consumers. Consumers gain access to fresh, nutritious, local produce. Communities regain a figurative “town square,” experiencing the many positive outcomes of foot traffic and animated public space. Throughout the USA, farmers markets are achieving these goals. Some are doing it better than others. While we too are dazzled by the bigger markets which assemble hundreds of vendors and thousands of shoppers, size is not our only measure of success. Sometimes, it is the smaller farmers market operating in a challenging neighborhood that achieves this triple bottom line.

The mission of FMC is “to strengthen farmers markets for the benefit of farmers, consumers, and communities.”

Toward that end, the priorities of FMC are:

• To serve as an information center for farmers markets.
• To be a voice for North American farmers market advocacy.
• To foster strong state and regional farmers market associations.
• To bring private and public support to the table to sustain farmers markets in the long term, for the benefit of farmers, consumers, and communities.
• To promote farmers markets to the public.
• To develop and provide educational programming and networking opportunities for farmers market managers and farmers market vendors.

Many agencies and groups support farmers markets – cooperative extension, food security advocates, departments of agriculture, and a host of nongovernmental organizations. The FMC supports these efforts in serving as a central hub from which to locate allies, identify and share best practices, and positively impact public policy pertaining to farmers markets.