FREEING PEOPLE FROM HUNGER
Growing To Give is a registered 501c3 non-profit that
develops projects and partnerships to free people from
hunger across the country and around the world.
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Once an oasis, the marshes were drained a century ago in favor of tourism and development. The artesian wells and springs are long gone, farms have disappeared, and the city depends on Lake Meade for its water supply, which is at its lowest level since the construction of the Hoover dam. Unless extreme water saving measures are adopted, the future of Las Vegas and its inhabitants look bleak. Las Vegas could run out of water in less than 10 years!
Dams along the Colorado River create great lake reservoirs that provide drinking water for 50 million people and irrigate more than 100 million acres of farmland across 7 states in the American South-West. The drain on water resources is beginning to show.
---California added nine counties to the current state of drought emergency, bringing the total to 50 counties that are required to reduce water use by 15%
---Las Vegas is considering legislating water restrictions for its residents to reduce their water use and curb the steady depletion of Lake Meade, the city’s primary source for drinking water
---As the U.S. declares the first-ever water shortage on the Colorado River, Arizona farmers are being cut off from much of the water they rely on, forcing them to cut food production by 20%
---The south-west also depends on the Colorado and its reservoirs for generating electrical power. Industry analysts predict rolling blackouts across the region if water consumption isn’t dramatically reduced
Initiatives to address the current water crisis are quickly being adopted by the city including a “grass for cash” program and tax credits for replacement of high water use toilets and showers with low use plumbing fixtures. The introduction of a 90% water saving local food production technology would likely be embraced by the city.
Over a Billion pounds of food is consumed each week in Las Vegas and most it comes from somewhere else. As supply chains break down, prices for food trucked in from outside the State are rapidly rising. A “perfect storm” for food insecurity is rapidly approaching.
The re-emergence of a farm on Las Vegas Boulevard after three quarters of a century would make a powerful statement for sustainability and support a vision to grow food locally and in a sustainable resource efficient way. Crop Circle Food Enclosures, a new advance in urban food production could make such a statement.
Growing To Give, in collaboration with New Leaf Technologies, has developed a low water use food growing system specifically engineered to grow food in the water challenged southwest United States. Referred to as a Miracle in The Desert, the technology grows food in even the harshest of environments including the unforgiving desert climate.
Patented Crop Circle Gardens use 90% less water than conventional watering systems in half the space. A minimal amount of fertilizer is needed and very little labor. A cup of water a day is all that is required to water plants so people can grow fresh produce and garden in the severest of water restrictions, which will be soon mandated in several states.
Populating the west with thousands of Crop Circle Gardens would save millions of gallons of water each day and bridge the food gap created by interrupted supply chains not to mention the cost savings for families, particularly those living in pooper neighborhoods struggling to feed their families.
We will be asking government and businesses to help create a UFO, the first unidentified food object on the strip.
The UFO will give us a glimpse into the future, a future of possibility and solutions for both the people of Vegas and the environment. Engineered to grow food in the desert, UFO’s are “grow anywhere” agricultural systems that can operate on or off the grid, grow food using less resources and provide live-in accommodation for live-aboards or workers.
Just a half-acre in size, UFO’s grow an impressive amount of food:
---65,000 pounds of fresh fruit, berries, herbs and vegetables
---45,000 pounds of fish
---20,000 pounds of mushrooms
---UFOs also generate clean, renewable energy; enough to power the entire facility including residence
Local businesses will be invited to sponsor the project; restaurants, casino properties, hotels, and others will be asked to participate. The produce grown will be shared; some by chefs, some by individual sponsors, however, the bulk of what we grow will be “gifted “to charitable organizations including local churches and food banks for distribution to those in need, particularly those living in “food deserts”.
The UFO may be open to the public for tours and will co-host sponsored events to increase awareness in the hope that it would be adopted by other cities across the country. The program will partner with the media to promote the idea of a “UFO” appearing almost overnight on the strip. Both tour and traffic night flight helicopters will “discover” the newest attraction in their city as we create a “Crop Circle” growing a crop displayed with accent lighting from below.
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