About FarmEcology

Our History

Founded as an outgrowth of an Academically Based Community Service (ABCS) class, FarmEcology is a student-initiated endeavor that is raising awareness and educating Penn's campus about the benefits of local foods. The group's co-founders, Emma Kirwan and Rachel Meyer, spent the past semester exploring and researching opportunities for connecting the University with local farms, contacting regional food experts for advice, and researching similar programs that are developing across the country at similar institutions.

Currently, Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, and Yale are all in various stages of planning or have already implemented local food programs in campus-run dining halls. In the interest of maintaining a reputable standard with other peer institutions, Penn has undertaken its own campaign. FarmEcology is one step in an overall University effort to continue a "green campaign" which was launched in 2002 with the purchase of wind energy.

FarmEcology hosted its kick-off event in December of 2004 and attracted a diverse crowd of students, professors, staff, administrators, and community members. The event was a panel on bringing local food to Penn featuring three renowned speakers on the topic. More than 50 people attended the event and expressed enthusiastic support for the project.