If summer 2020 had been normal, students in the University of Minnesota chapter of Engineers Without Borders (EWB) would be returning to the United States, having just installed a solar-powered cooker in a community in Ethiopia. However, with the COVID-19 pandemic putting their travel plans on hold, the students turned their attention to the Twin Cities community.
UMN EWB is partnering with Urban Farm and Garden Alliance (UFGA), a local organization that promotes environmental and racial justice by giving residents the opportunity to grow their own produce and manage community gardens in St. Paul’s Rondo and Frogtown neighborhoods.
The EWB students will renovate UFGA’s Aurora/St. Anthony Peace Garden, adding a solar-powered greenhouse to extend the growing season and paved pathways to make the garden more accessible. The students will work on the garden design in the fall and hope to implement these initiatives in spring of 2021.
