UrbanREAP
Published on July 02, 2024
We are excited to introduce the first Sustainable Story featuring Emily Hills and Maricela Cruz Arredondo from UrbanREAP!
UrbanREAP is a Mission Waco urban project initiative born from the Green Mountain Energy Sun Club grant. Founded around the time Jubilee Food Market was acquired by Mission Waco, the idea behind the project was to create a food ecosystem where fresh produce and garden plants are grown, providing food, nature, and education to the community.
Emily Hills is the director of UrbanREAP, a Mission Waco project focused on renewable energy, composting, and sustainable agriculture. She grew up in Waco and left town soon after graduating high school to pursue her interests in environmental education, environmental conservation, and community engagement. Thirteen years later, she moved back to Waco and took over her current position at UrbanREAP.
Maricela “Mari” Cruz Arredondo is UrbanREAP's primary coordinator; along with Emily, they form the backbone of Mission Waco’s sustainable initiative. Mari grew up on her grandparents' farm in Cruz de Guerrero, Mexico. Her mom’s side of the family comes from a lineage of farmers who taught her the importance of being connected with nature and mindful of where our food comes from. At the age of seven, her immediate family moved to Groesbeck, Texas, where she grew up and later continued her education, graduating from Baylor University. After an internship with the World Hunger Relief Institute, Mari joined UrbanREAP in 2022.
What inspired you to take action?
Emily: I first got into the field because I really love nature. I find nature, animals, and ecosystems very cool and beautiful, and I want to help inspire others to love them as well.
I got involved with UrbanREAP after spending a year traveling and working on farms. During this time, I found myself in a UNESCO heritage site with beautiful crystal clear water, yet it was significantly covered in litter. Seeing the trash floating through this beautiful site made me realize how many environmental problems I had encountered during my travels, so coming back to Waco, I wanted to take action and generate an impact. Part of that action was volunteering at UrbanREAP. As I became more involved at REAP and the position came over, I decided that this was something I wanted to stick out and contribute to Waco’s sustainability movement.
Mari: Growing up in a rural setting, I was very much in touch with my physical environment. I fondly remember the complete farming cycle, from seeding and planting to cultivating and harvesting, reaping all those benefits, and having delicious meals with my family. Then, when I moved to the States, everything completely shifted, and everything we ate came from a grocery store. I could not see where my food was coming from, which was a huge cultural shock. For a long time, I thought this was just how things were done in the United States. Yet, after reading more about the agricultural system, the meat industry, and the history of food in the U.S., it was heartbreaking to discover what environment and conditions our food comes from. This reading taught me more about the organic foods movement and sustainable or regenerative agriculture, which helped me connect to my farming roots and inspired me to retake agriculture work.
How did you start?
Emily: I came on board after 2020, officially starting in February 2021, and at this time, the pandemic had interrupted a lot of the flow at UrbanREAP. Although I was building on the foundation of my predecessors, I was building a lot from scratch. At the time, I was the only full-time staff member, and on and off, I was the only staff member. I did a lot of building, creating standard processes, finding interns and volunteers, and overall letting people know we existed. Since then, I’ve leaned into the educational programming and outreach aspect to engage the community.
Mari: While completing my internship at World Hunger Relief, there was a day dedicated to going into the community and seeing different areas similar to what the farm was doing in the realm of agriculture. We went to different places and farms, and one of our trips was UrbanREAP. Emily gave us a class in aquaponics and all that it entails, as well as a tour of the grounds here. I found the project very interesting and cool, so after completing my internship, I applied to various farm-related jobs in Waco and other towns, including REAP. After hearing back from all the places, I had to decide which job to take, and I just felt like I still had something to learn from Waco or something more to do. Seeing other sustainable initiatives popping up in Waco made me realize I wanted to become part of this community effort, so I decided to take the job at REAP. Having Emily as a colleague was definitely a bonus!
What has been the most rewarding and challenging aspect of being an ecological advocate?
Emily: The really rewarding aspect has been seeing the impact. It is always nice to see that changes make a difference and create a positive impact. It’s actually really encouraging!
One of the biggest challenges is how large a task addressing climate change is; It is a complex issue that is wrapped up with many emotions, beliefs, and individualism, which can leave us feeling discouraged. So, one of the nice things about being involved in Waco’s ecological movement is that things are really possible here.
I used to live in New York City and have traveled around the world, seeing different initiatives on a global and regional scale. When you see things from a global perspective, it can get quite overwhelming, but to be able to make changes locally and have them make a difference is very uplifting. It has been exciting to see how change can happen in Waco, which is not small by any means, only a smaller context. Experiencing how the community comes together at this scale to create positive changes in our space is really encouraging!
Mari: There’s always ups and downs. I think a challenge has been teaching others the importance and the differences that small and individual changes can have. There are many things that we can’t control, like our air quality. It’s collective. Wherever we are, it takes everybody to impact our air. However, the issue of food waste, which we all produce, is somewhere where we can all take individual tangible actions like composting. So, it’s a challenge when many people don’t see the importance of individual change and instead fall back to convenience.
I understand that many barriers need to be removed before more people can join the movement. But even if you take three steps forward and one or two steps back, you’re still going in the right direction, which brings me to many of the great things that I have really enjoyed.
Anytime someone comes into the Garden Center to purchase plants, especially native plants, they are likely new to them. They are considering switching their annuals for native plants, thinking about long-term water conservation and food sources for pollinators. Seeing how this makes an impact on the environment is very rewarding. I love that UrbanREAP can be a resource for learning that provides great native plants and a unique community, creating a safe space for like-minded people and those with sustainability endeavors. I think that’s the most rewarding.
What is some advice you could give to anyone who wants to be more ecologically friendly in their daily lives?
Emily: My best advice is to start small. Pick something that is doable and doesn’t feel overwhelming to try. Maybe something like collecting food waste, but if that’s too much, maybe look at your water use, try driving less, or carpool whenever possible. Pick whatever is doable for your unique situation and try to get that done. Once you have accomplished that, feel good that you have made a positive change, and then pick something else!
The second thing is to find people who are willing to support you. Find a community that you already have that is willing to either help you be accountable or help you by cheering you on as needed.
Lastly, one of the biggest things we don’t always think about when making changes is simply talking about the issues. Many people don’t talk about environmental problems because of how politicized they have been. Unfortunately, the topic has been distorted by that arena, but I think everybody can agree on the idea of having a healthy and safe environment to live in. Being able to talk about things has been shown to have a difference in how people view topics, so if we talk about environmental protection and how it makes sense for us and why we think it is important, we might find that there are more people that agree with us than those who don’t.
Mari: It’s difficult just to list something because everybody is in different locations or has different barriers, whether financial or geographical, that others may not have. So, like Emily said, it’s about starting the smallest that you can start and working on that. I recommend getting plugged into a community that is already working on small changes and can encourage you or even serve as someone to vent to. Whether it’s only you becoming more aware of sustainable actions like composting, see what is already happening in Waco, and if you can’t do it at home because of any limitations, try getting involved in organizations who are doing similar work and help out there.
Overall, for anyone trying to be more ecologically friendly, I suggest finding something you really care about and tying it to sustainability in any way or format. For example, if you like baking bread, you can learn how wheat is grown, exposing you to farming practices and more. If you are very into makeup, you can see how products’ ingredients are grown and derived from plants. So, finding something that you really like and growing your awareness of its link to nature and the Earth can help inspire the start of your ecological efforts.
Do you have any pertaining book, film, or media that you would recommend to the readers?
Mari: Yes, a book by journalist Michael Pollan. The Omnivore’s Dilemma was one of his first books that I read. It dives into the origins of our food system, how food is made, and the response of the organic movement (also available as a documentary). That’s the main book that comes to mind.
Emily: One of the books I really liked by Michael Pollan was Botany of Desire, which talks about our relationship with plants and how humans have survived by domesticating plants. Another book that keeps popping into my mind is Entangled Life by Merlin Sheldrake. It is about fungi and how they rule our lives. It is so fascinating. I really recommend this book because it is a really good read. I think it is a great example of why I find nature so cool and worth loving. In terms of films, watch any of the cool nature documentaries like My Octopus Teacher. For more agriculture-minded people, Kiss the Ground is a really good documentary about soil, highlighting its functions and importance.