A new non-profit group is looking to bring community members together through good food and connection.

Cultivate Cochrane is hoping to educate the community at large and possibly even create a community greenhouse hub where all residents can learn ways in which to feed ourselves in relation to the climate we live in.

Not to be confused with a community garden, Jackie Skrypnek, Board Member of Cultivate Cochrane shares the greenhouse hub will be more of a gathering place where young and old Cochranites can spend time learning, connecting, and building skills around food-growing. "From seniors to school groups, and everyone in between; we can all learn how to feed ourselves in our climate and what to do with that food. The idea for a community hub is where connections can happen, where we can meet each other in person, and learn skills together."

Cultivate Cochrane was really born after last year's long winter and spending some time identifying a couple of big needs in the community, including in-person connection and how to extend our short growing season in the Cochrane climate. Looking at the concept of creating a passive solar greenhouse, Skrypnek says the design makes the most sense for our climate. "It is a smart way of designing something in our climate because there is minimal energy required to keep it warm and cool it."

While the bigger picture could also include classroom space as well as a community kitchen for all to enjoy, Skrypnek says at this point they are still really open to ideas and input. "We are still quite open to all the ideas of how all the food is going to be used, and all the different connections that can happen. But we do think it can fulfill the needs for a lot of different people and groups in town."

Not looking at the greenhouse hub to be a production centre, but more as an educational space where participants can then turnaround and share their learnings with others.

To help launch their new society, Cultivate Cochrane thought what better way than to host a spring talk and field trip.

On May 5th, Rob Avis, a highly-respected and internationally-recognized teacher and practitioner of natural systems design with extensive experience in passive solar greenhouse projects, will share his wealth of information with interested community members.

The free one hour talk from noon to 1 p.m. at the Cochrane Public Library, will delve into the need for food-growing solutions in our climate and how to approach this in a practical and environmentally-responsible way. While the field trip from 1 to 4 p.m. will see participants hop on a school bus and take a guided tour of three Calgary greenhouses that use passive solar technology."

Hoping the talk and field trip will be informative and inspirational, Skrypnek says while they are limited to the number of people they can take on the field trip, she is hoping the talk portion, which is free, attracts many interested community members. "As far as the talk, it will really explain what passive solar is, why it is a sustainable and appropriate design for this area, and how it is a solution to our short and difficult growing season. You will learn a little bit about us, but also leave with some concrete information and case studies."

If you would like to purchase a ticket to the field trip portion for $49.95 you can do so by going HERE.