Project Sweetie Pie’s Foster Green initiative aims to transform North Minneapolis into a greener community

Project Sweetie Pie’s environmental initiative, Foster Green, aims to make North Minneapolis greener. It will hit full stride on May 18 as Kimbal Musk’s Big Green environmental bus cruises into the Twin Cities. The green celebration will be part of the Rethos/Open Doors event at 1701 Oak Pak Avenue, Mpls.

“North Minneapolis is going Green. Give us a call and learn what we mean!” Michael Chaney, founder and director of Project Sweetie Pie, begins with one of his many catchy calls to action surrounding their Foster Green initiatives. “Where once was wide urban blight, now sits luscious garden sights; gardens without borders, classrooms without walls; architects of our destinies, access to food, justice for all. And now, like sweet potato vines, our missions and goals all intertwine,” said Chainey in poetic prose, painting a vivid and inspiring picture of the positive changes the initiative could bring to the community.

Chaney reflected on the origins of Project Sweetie Pie, emphasizing the crucial role of the community. “Me, Sam Grant, Setu Jones, Rose Brewer, and Rose McGee, we were all part of this Afro Eco environmental group. We were sitting and commiserating about the threat and possible closing of North High. We felt that the killing of the school was also a threat to killing the heartbeat of that community. So, in all good conscience, we couldn’t allow that to happen,” He explained. “So, someone told me that North had a green room. So, I approached and asked, ‘If I could get the neighborhood youth to start growing vegetables, would we be able to use the green room?’ – they agreed, and thus, with the community’s invaluable support, Project Sweetie Pie was born.”

“Project Sweetie Pie is the story of a community that came together and worked together for the common good of the youth and families of this community – for it takes a village to raise a child. We’re growing good in the neighborhood – good foods, schools, youth, and families. Education never tasted so good,” Chaney continued.

As part of his conversation around the organization’s mission, the term gardens without borders is often heard. According to Chaney, the whole world is our field of dreams. What triggered the environmental visionary was the sight of many abandoned lots throughout urban communities. “I’ll say it this way – if our children keep their rooms the same way we often keep our neighborhoods, we’d send them to bed without supper. And so, it’s not a good look, and it breaks down the fabric of the community. The way our communities are kept signals distress. And thus, our communities have become disheveled and marginalized. But I want to add, just because they say we are poor does not mean we have to live in those conditions.”

Chaney envisioned turning those garbage and dust-collecting empty lots into a beautiful oasis.

“Part of that,” says Carolyn Fleming, CFO, of Project Sweetie Pie, “is the education and training that we provide in the garden to the youths who assist us with the planting and growing the vegetables. So, it’s not just a matter of working in the soil, which is amazing. However, the kids are amazed by what comes from the efforts of planting and growing foods. Most of them thought the food just came from Cubs Foods. They had no concept of how food is planted and grown. So, it’s an educational experience for them.”

Fleming continued, “There is a cathodic effect on people working in the dirt. It changes how they feel; it changes their attitude.”

She spoke to the challenge of getting Black youth engaged in environmental efforts. “It has always been rumored that our kids wouldn’t be interested in matters of the soil. But that’s a misconception. We’ve touted to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture that the next wave of farmers will come from the urban areas,” she stated. “Our youth are interested. They are interested in the environment and how all of this works together. We initially had some pushback, but now we have walk-up kids who qualify through the Step-up Program.” 

Project Sweetie Pie’s environmental initiatives have worked with various age groups, from daycare to young adults. “We’ve had kids who, when they found their first worm, were so excited, we had to film it,” she continued.

Are the community and funding agencies behind Project Sweetie Pies’s efforts? Chaney says, “We are dealing with historical generational damage and misinformation. But there are numerous career paths they can tap into through what we offer and through agriculture.

Our proudest accomplishment is the creation of the Agri Grant through the Department of Agriculture. The support hasn’t always been there. I wanted to buy a greenhouse in North Minneapolis. It’s sort of like the Will Allen story in Milwaukee. I mean, the last remaining greenhouse in North Minneapolis, project Sweetie Pie, wanted to buy it – I went to the city, couldn’t get support, went to the county, and couldn’t get support. Someone suggested I take it to the legislators and try to get bonding funding. So, we approached Rep. Papi from Rochester and explained that we wanted to create urban farming. And, of course, I had to explain that urban farming is just as it sounds – farming in urban communities.

I was told it would take time before her fellow legislators could grasp the concept. But we were consistent, and finally, we got a meeting with the agriculture finance committee. They said, “Michael, this is cutting-edge legislation.” The language that caught their attention was when I said, “In life, you can either be first or you can be forgotten. Everybody knows who Jackie Robinson is—no one knows who is the second African American to play major league baseball.”

Today, Project Sweetie Pie has support in key circles as it has garnered proclamations from Mayor Frey of Minneapolis and Gov. Walz; both will be presented during the May 18 ceremony.