BLISS Meadows, Baltimore, Maryland
BLISS Meadows creates access to green spaces & builds access to healthy foods in urban spaces.
Project Summary
BLISS (Baltimore Living in Sustainable Simplicity) Meadows is a land reclamation project geared toward food justice and creating equitable access to green space in northeast Baltimore City. BLISS Meadows is located in the predominantly Black and low income neighborhood of Frankford, where the local community is in need of nutritious food, educational opportunities, opportunity to connect with nature, and community building. This project in partnership between Ridge to Reefs and BLISS Meadows will enhance capacity to provide an accessible community green space for the community to utilize and enjoy, and will expand the urban forest of Baltimore. BLISS Meadows began when Founder and Executive Director, Atiya Wells, came across the vacant property in her Frankford neighborhood in Northeast Baltimore. She envisioned a space for community dinners, environmental education, nature play spaces, and gardens. Her dream has become the thriving BLISS Meadows; with this project we are combining efforts to support her work!
Problem
Nature is critical to human health and happiness; there is a direct link between numbers of trees on city blocks and the health and well-being of the people who live there. Historically urban and low-income areas are usually less green, and have less opportunity to connect with nature. These urban areas also often lack access to local nutritious foods, known as “food deserts.” High concentrations of concrete unbroken by the buffering of vegetation also trap heat, causing extreme thermal stress for the people who live there.
Solution
Urban green spaces address all of these issues, particularly when they include community farms. Reclaiming green spaces and building them into beautiful, ecological and agriculturally productive places, supports community nutrition and access to nature. In the words of BLISS Meadows, “We provide culturally relevant environmental education because we know there is a difference in saying ‘This place was made for you’ as opposed to ‘This was made for all.’”
Implementation
1) Perform long-term ecological restoration and remediation to provide a green space and urban farm for the community and improve the overall resiliency and sustainability of the land at BLISS Meadows
2) Expand the urban farm
3) Increase community access and enjoyment of the land
4) Educate and engage the community
Outcomes
This project directly aligns with several existing community greening strategies. It will improve environmental literacy, promote urban agriculture, connect people in cities to nature, restore habitat of native species, and increase biodiversity by planting pollinator gardens. Tree planting will assist with healthy local watershed management. This project will help build safe green spaces where children can play and develop a deeper relationship with nature, which fulfills goals put forth by the Baltimore Children’s Outdoor Bill of Rights and support the Cities Connecting Children to Nature Initiative.
Funders and Partners BLISS Meadows, Frankford Improvement Association, Inc., Farm Alliance of Baltimore, Volunteering Untapped, Baltimore Office of Sustainability and Henry Scott of The Mission Continues
Special thanks to project funder Chesapeake Bay Trust! CBT has been working since 1985 to engage and empower communities supporting a healthy Chesapeake Bay watershed.
