SEED Wayne is dedicated to building sustainable food systems on the campus of Wayne State University and in Detroit communities. It works in partnership with community-based organizations promoting access to healthy foods, urban agriculture, farm-to-institution, and food planning and policy development. 

In a recent study of 22 urban public universities, including Wayne State University, two-thirds have led at least one activity offered by SEED Wayne. But few of these campuses are as comprehensive as Wayne State in community and campus initiatives geared towards building sustainable food programs.

The study, led by Kami Pothukuchi, Ph.D., director of SEED Wayne with research assistance by Sam Molnar, a 2012 graduate of Wayne's political science program who will pursue graduate studies at the University of Michigan's School of Natural Resources and Environment, found that some of the schools host multiple sustainable food programs such as community gardens, specific dining hall elements of interest, farmers markets and related curricula, although no campus matched the number of initiatives of Wayne State. 

Potuhukuchi found that few universities made significant progress in dining hall sustainability other than easy efficiencies such as removing trays, offering meatless days, water conservation, and composting kitchen waste. A handful of universities in the study served fair trade coffee, offered cage-free eggs or sourced specific products such as dairy or produce from within their state or other geographies designated "local." 

Students play important leadership roles in the development and implementation of sustainable food system activities on university campuses, although faculty initiative and the connections they provide to academics and the institution are generally more crucial. Campus sustainability and community engagement offices play important supportive roles in these initiatives in the linkages they facilitate, respectively, to campus operations and community partners. 

SEED Wayne has inspired the campus community and others across Detroit, Michigan and around the United States to consider sustainable alternatives that benefit the health of individuals in the community and our environment. The end result is a greater commitment to economic viability, environmental responsibility, social equity and community engagement.

For more information about SEED Wayne, visit clas.wayne.edu/seedwayne/ or visit the Wayne State farmers market located on Cass Avenue across from the Detroit Public Library every Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. through October 30.

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Wayne State University is one of the nation's pre-eminent public research institutions in an urban setting. Through its multidisciplinary approach to research and education, and its ongoing collaboration with government, industry and other institutions, the university seeks to enhance economic growth and improve the quality of life in the city of Detroit, state of Michigan and throughout the world. For more information about research at Wayne State University, visit http://www.research.wayne.edu.