Centre for Studies in Food Security

Upcoming Talks

From Food Desert to Food District: Local Economic Development Planning for the Revitalization of London's Old East Village.

Friday, February 10th, 2012

 12:30pm-2pm
7th Floor Heaslip House, Ryerson University

297 Victoria Street, Toronto, ON

Speakers:
Jason Gilliland (Director of the Urban Development Program; Associate Professor of Geography, Health Sciences, & Paediatrics, Western U.)
Michael Clark (Researcher, Old East Village Business Improvement Area)
Sarah Merritt (Manager, Old East Village Business Improvement Area)

The Old East Village is one of the oldest and most culturally-rich neighbourhoods in London, Ontario; however, like other communities across Ontario, OEV has experienced a downward spiral of commercial, economic and social disadvantage since the mid-1980s.   The OEV Business Improvement Area (BIA) and partners are currently working on a Local Economic Development Plan (LEDP) to help retain, expand, stimulate, and diversify the business environment in the neighbourhood.   One of the most exciting areas of economic activity in the OEV over the past few years has been the appearance of a burgeoning local food district.  In 2008, a study co-authored by Dr Jason Gilliland of Western University identified the Old East Village as a ‘food desert’, i.e., a socio-economically disadvantaged neighbourhood without easy access to retailers of healthy, affordable food.  Due to the abandonment of the neighbourhood by major grocery chains, healthy foods were expensive and hard to find.  However, in a follow up study, Gilliland and graduate student Kristian Larsen revealed how the opening of a farmers’ market in the Old East Village in 2008 greatly improved the variety and price of healthy foods available in the OEV.   Further collaborative research by the OEVBIA and Western (led by Michael Clark) has also identified how the farmers’ market has had a considerable economic impact on the local community. One of the core objectives of the OEV LEDP is to generate the nucleus of business growth through innovative partnerships (both local and regional) and ‘kick-start’ projects.  Building upon the measured success of the OEV farmers’ market as a food business incubator, one of these projects will be targeted at an emerging sector in which the community has a comparative advantage:  a local agri-food hub. 

'Food for Talk' provides a place for conversations to take place between people who work with communities, government and universities to explore the emerging and challenging issues around food security, agricultural transformation, and local food alternatives/networks. This series is jointly sponsored by the University of Toronto Department of Geography, York University Faculty of Environmental Studies, the Ryerson Centre for Studies in Food Security, and the Toronto Food Policy Council.

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