“City Slicker Farms (CSF) transforms underused city lots in Oakland that would otherwise become magnets for illegal dumping and contribute to contaminated runoff. Our programs use organic gardening methods and educate community members on how to avoid use of toxic pesticides and herbicides that pollute our waterways and groundwater. We also aid them with incorporating ecologically sound cultivation methods, facilitating pollinators, creating balanced ecosystems of pests and predators, and using naturally occurring fertilizers. Our methods reduce runoff by using drip irrigation and mulch to transform compacted soils into gardens that absorb and conserve water. Since inception, CSF has trained over 4,000 youth and adults in agro-ecology, built over 375 gardens at the homes of low-income residents and institutions serving them, and produced 282,000 pounds of food.”