Urban Growers Collective Brings Food Sovereignty to Obama Center

Running through September 20, 2026, the Garden Gatherings series invites Chicagoans to engage with food production as an act of civic participation. While the space is operated by the Chicago Botanic Garden, the Collective provides the programming framework, connecting the site to a broader mission of dismantling systemic inequities. Erika Allen, CEO of Urban Growers Collective, views the initiative as a way to scale community-led agriculture, emphasizing that teaching residents to manage their own food systems is democracy from the ground up.

The programming features bi-weekly sessions covering topics from soil resilience and pollination to traditional food preservation and seed saving. These workshops are designed to leverage sensory learning to address urban trauma while promoting the Community Food Navigator, a digital network that links growers and mutual labor boards across the city. With a track record of producing over 89,000 pounds of fresh produce and training 850 apprentices, the organization intends to use this high-profile partnership to highlight how localized food production can shift urban narratives from scarcity to abundance.