Place Making with Residents: Land & Water Projects
Revealing the pride and resiliency of Southwest Detroit
SDEV’s Land and water-based Programs focus on expanding Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) and Urban Agriculture to enhance publicly accessible spaces and improve public health. Our projects engage youth, community, and other volunteers in a collaborative fashion to improve their Southwest Detroit neighborhoods and enhance their environmental stewardship.
Congratulations to our partner, Cadillac Urban Gardens! This year, Cadillac Urban Gardens spun off to become their own 501C3 organization! We are excited to support their growth and new direction. To contact Cadillac Urban Gardens, please see their social media here.
In 2023, SDEV with residents of Southwest Detroit planted 147 trees to reduce dust, absorb water, and increase property values.
SDEV was awarded a 2023 DTE Foundation Tree Planting award for a Spring 2024 Tree Planting project to plant an additional 89 trees.
Charge-Up Detroit!
We are excited to announce a partnership between SDEV and the North Toledo Block Club to co-create a resident-led and community-owned development centered on mobility and clean energy. Planning begins in 2024.
For more information, email info@sdevweb.org
Ongoing Projects
Our Urban Gardens (Scarcyny Park and Cadillac Urban Gardens)
Learn more about the history of our urban gardens, both located in Southwest Detroit here. Find out about hours each one is. Specifically, Cadillac Urban Gardens offers free, organic produce for residents in southwest Detroit for pickup.
Green Storm Water Infrastructure
SDEV was awarded $300,000 from the Southeast Michigan Resilience Fund, a partnership between the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) and private corporations, foundations, and federal agencies for the project entitled Expanding Green Stormwater Infrastructure and Enhancing Public Space through the Southwest Detroit Eco-D Collaborative Team.
Research and Youth Projects
Community and youth engagement:
Grow Detroit’s Young Talent (GDYT)
GDYT is a citywide summer jobs program that trains and employs young adults from Detroit between the ages of 14 and 24 for up to 120 hours. Last year, over 8,000 local youth received employment through the GDYT program. Since 2015 SDEV has been a proud partner of the program where we have hosted over 54 youth at our site. SDEV’s youth work on a variety of environmental placed-based projects including but not limited to:
Urban Agriculture
Community development
Stormwater management and mitigation
Fundraising
Environmental justice initiatives
Community-based research
Media development
Garden Leaders
At Cadillac Urban Gardens we just don’t grow produce, we grow leaders. Cadillac Urban Gardens youth garden leaders are youth and young adults between the ages of 10-22 who strive to create and promote food sovereignty across Southwest Detroit. Through this youth are able to participate in the development and implementation of agricultural-based activities which in turn not only promotes place-based learning but will also provide residents with access to fresh fruits and vegetables through teaching youth and young adults where their food comes from, and how it is grown.
Garden Madrinas
Community is the foundation of every project we do. Cadillac Urban Gardens garden madrinas are the foundation to which we build a system of equitable access and availability of culturally relevant food across Southwest Detroit. Our garden madrinas are composed of women in the community from a variety of age ranges that act as our “godmothers” of the gardens where they help educate, inform, and develop best practices and methods to ensure healthy crop development. Our madrinas also serve as mentors to our garden leaders and community members who are interested in learning more about urban agriculture and how to promote community sustainability and retention to ensure the garden continues to reach not only its full potential but the residents who need it the most.