Cole Burnham, 2025

Green Bronx Machine: Student Experiences

Visiting the Green Bronx Machine in New York over Spring Break truly provided a new level of clarity on the need for food production and visibility within academic institutions of all levels, from kindergarten through graduate school. Interacting with the partner organizations and our host Stephen Ritz immersed us in a world of academic nutrition for a week straight, getting to see hands-on examples of programming and crop production, as well as different schools and how they uniquely approach the challenge themselves. While the trip was, at times,
unorthodox in its execution, it was extremely worthwhile to be a part of the discussions and activities that occurred throughout our time there.

What I Learned

As per my internship with the Food and Nutrition Innovation Institute, I’ve done a lot of research, writing, and brainstorming around how hydroponic technology could be utilized in an academic setting. Most of this research, inspired by my own experience as the flex farm manager, has been focused on higher education, or the university settings across the country. However, this experience brought me into a an elementary school, where I got to see first hand how the technology could be utilized by young kids as a way to increase knowledge and acceptance of vegetables in areas stricken by high rates of food insecurity and obesity. As Stephen
exemplified, kids, famously, dont like vegetables.This distaste and lack of access at home leads to higher rates of chronic illness and food insecurity, harming children in the long run as they fall behind developmentally. By bringing hydroponics and hands-on experiences with growing vegetables into the school system, Stephen managed to break the stigma in their minds and introduce them to a food group they actually wanted to eat. Once this mindset was established, he also ensured that the food in the cafeterias was healthier for their sake as well, making children learn about veggies they like, and then ensuring that they have easy access to them in the school setting. Before this, I had little to no experience in the K-5 educational area, and
didn’t even think about how I could learn from experiences coming out of those institutions. However, afterwards, I’ve definitely seen how powerful work in that sector can be.

The other place that we had went, which was completely unrelated to most of the other curriculum, was Hunts Point Produce Market, one the US’s largest distribution centers for produce. Being in Friedman, many of our students (and myself) either come from backgrounds in the production side of our food systems (agriculture, farm work, etc.) or the consumer-side of
our food systems (restaurants, policy work, etc.). Very few of us have experience with the middleman, or even know what a distribution center looks like within the country. Getting to visit and get a guided tour was truly one of the most amazing educational experiences I’ve ever been
a part of, as it brings together everything else we’ve talked about in class and in my own work to complete the food system path. It was one of the best experiences I could’ve honestly asked for.

How it Relates to Friedman

This experience was highly adjacent to what occurs and is discussed in Friedman, as while we’re a institution of higher ed, a lot of what we discuss can also apply to a K-5 program. Recently, as per my own work with FNII, we’ve started utilizing hydroponics, providing students
with free produce, and building community and understanding around food production. What’s going on in the Bronx is practically the same, except for the age demographic and them just starting their journey understanding food and crop production. Stephen’s organization is
definitely a large expansion of our small hydroponic system we have, both in actual output and in the lesson learned through its utilization. What we can both agree upon is that hydroponics is a tool for learning and access, but is not the whole story. Hydroponics itself is not a solution, but
a tool to utilize in the creation of one. As we talk about at Friedman and in joint classes with UEP, urban food access requires unique approaches to get fresh, nutritious produce and food production operations into these city settings. The Green Bronx Machine is a prime example of how some of these discussions are turned into actionable programs, and a program that actually works at that.

The Green Bronx Machine is an example of innovation that can directly assist communities in nutrition-based intervention, and also act under the banned of ‘Food is Medicine’.With Tufts spearheading the Food is Medicine Institute, the organization can be seen as a way to incorporate food-based medicinal practices into an academic setting. By partaking in this program, children will have better chances of not developing chronic diseases, falling behind in development, or being malnourished in essential vitamins and minerals. The purpose of the organization directly aligns with the Food is Medicine Institute, and could definitely foster an amazing partnership with Friedman (expanding upon the one already established with FNII).

Impact on Future Career Interests

A lot of my future career interests have been focused on creating food-system change on a community level, so getting to be a part of the Green Bronx Machine’s Spring Break trip provided me with an example of what one of these programs look like in action. While my aim is
moreso in higher education and general non-academic community work, a lot of what I had experienced or researched was more policy or hypothetical, rather than actionable, hands-on work. Getting to witness, engage with, and understand how an in-community organization
operated gave me ample information to help guide me in how I want to make a change in my near-future career, and what I can look for when engaging with potential employers.

Overall, this experience was beyond any expectations I could’ve had, and truly immersed me in the life of the Green Bronx Machine and the work they’re accomplishing. While our schedule
with Stephen was extremely last minute and we had no idea what we were expecting going in, I was thrilled with what was accomplished at the end of the week, and would highly recommend anyone else interested learning about community-focused food solutions, academic institutions, or urban food production, to take part in an experience with the Green Bronx Machine in the future.