SCANDIA, Minn. — Members of the East African farming community and area landowners are invited to a special networking event Sunday, Oct. 22, from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., at the Scandia City Hall Community Center (14727 209th St. N.). This Land Stewardship Project (LSP) event is free and food will be provided. Children are welcome and accommodations will be made for those with accessibility needs. To reserve a spot, see landstewardshipproject.org/community-land or contact LSP’s Robin Moore at 320-321-5244 or rmoore@landstewardshipproject.org.

The goal of this event is to give landowners and farmers an opportunity to get together and discuss options for providing access to farmland for local food production. In recent years, a thriving community of East African farmers has gotten established in Minnesota. However, according to LSP organizer Robin Moore, these farmers are running into a major barrier when it comes to long-term success: access to affordable, quality farmland. LSP, working with other members of the Farmland Access Hub, has been helping put on a series of networking events to connect farmers and landowners.

“We know that land access often comes down to who you know, and we need more opportunities to get to know each other,” said Moore. “This event is a chance to share stories about ourselves, our visions and opportunities we see, as well as a chance to build familiarity between emerging farmers and retiring landowners.”

The Land Stewardship Project is a private, nonprofit, membership-based organization founded in 1982 to foster an ethic of stewardship for farmland, to promote sustainable agriculture and to develop healthy communities. It has offices in the Minnesota communities of Lewiston, Montevideo and south Minneapolis.

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