Healthy soil means healthy plants which means healthy people and a healthy planet. In this episode, Jeff Ishee, Eric Bendfeldt, and Sarah Koth speak with Kathy Yoder, the Education Outreach Program Director at Vine and Fig in Harrisonburg, Virginia, about the nonprofit’s local programs to strengthen local food systems, ensure access to wholesome nutrition for underserved communities, and educate youth on food production and sustainability.

Kathy digs into the importance of empowering young minds to understand the connection between the life in the soil and a sustainable environment, specifically as relates to compost production and use. Listen to learn how Vine & Fig and the New Community Project are sowing the seeds of positive change to cultivate a healthier, more sustainable future for all from the soil up.

To learn more about Vine and Fig and the New Community Project please visit https://www.vinefigeducation.org/ and https://www.vinefigncp.org/.

Learn more about the Virginia Soil Health Coalition and pledge your support for soil health at https://www.virginiasoilhealth.org/ and https://www.4thesoil.org.

4 the Soil: A Conversation is made possible with funding support from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and The Agua Fund. Other partners include the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service; Virginia Cooperative Extension; Virginia State University; Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation; and partners of the Virginia Soil Health Coalition.

Disclaimer: Views expressed on this podcast are those of each individual guest.

To download a copy of this, or any other show, visit the website 4thesoil.org. Music used during today’s program is courtesy of the Flip Charts. All rights reserved. 4 the Soil: A Conversation is produced by On the Farm Radio in collaboration with Virginia Tech. The host and co-hosts are Jeff Ishee, Mary Sketch Bryant, and Eric Bendfeldt.