GRANT AWARD

1/28/16 Reno, Nevada.
Awards a $5000.00 URBAN HOMESTEAD GRANT to the Be the Change Project; managed by Katy and Kyle Chandler-Isacksen of Reno, Nevada. The urban homestead is dedicated to permaculture, service, community building, climate and social justice work - particularly at the neighborhood scale.  The heart of THC is the half-acre urban homestead located in a socio-economically diverse part of Reno where Katy and Kyle host classes, workshops, tours and field trips.  The Be the Change urban homestead is electricity, fossil fuel, car-free, and is an example of simple living that highlights permaculture principles in action.
With  support, Be the Change will be improving both their urban homestead and the development of an Urban Folk School.  This re-skilling and permaculture learning center will become a food forest, urban intensive garden, and research site for “permanent culture”. The food forest and garden will be powerful hands-on learning tools for neighbors, young urban farmers in training, school groups, Reno’s permaculture guild, City officials/commissions, visitors, etc. The Urban Folk School provides a location for community gathering and organizing toward improving quality of life in the neighborhood and city. The site is also a wonderful public space to demonstrate permaculture’s capacity to take barren urban land and make it a beautiful and productive habitat for neighborhood humans and wildlife alike. 

Funds will be used for;
Food, Plants, and Habitat Development:

1. food forests and nursery (bare root plants and seeds, mulch, extra compost and amendments)
2. Intensive gardens (low/mid tunnels, row covers, soil building and planting tools, scale, food cleaning/sharing station, green house shelves/trays)
3. integrated animal systems (fencing, animal tractor materials)

Drip irrigation materials for food forests, intensive gardens at both sites. seasonal  growing under row covers, and poly tunnels.

Reno Rot Rider Compost System

1. Bike and trailer parts, bins, buckets, tools
2. hitch, and hitch connector kits, tires, rims and tubes, hardware
3. aluminum ladder for a frame, EMT conduit, steel signage and learning/sharing materials

  a non-profit service organization directed by Daniel Halsey,  Rhamis Kent, Owen Herbutzel, and Neil Bertrando.
Grants are awarded as beneficiaries apply, show resilient permaculture practices, and demonstrate a commitment to raise awareness of permaculture principles. Grants range from $5000 to $10,000.