The team wants to uncover how Asian communities responded to racial violence, the complex interactions between Asians and other communities of color, and how certain violent events might have prompted Asians to move out of Detroit neighborhoods to form new ethnoburbs.

Dana Thompson, clinical professor of law and director of the Community Enterprise Clinic, said the food security network’s values, importance to Detroit, and wide range of legal needs has resulted in a long and mutually beneficial relationship.

“One thing I found very beneficial was the exposure our young people received in the communications training and the opportunity for them to have something they crafted come to life. With the young people we serve, many of them have said they don’t feel that their voices are heard. Being able to have a platform to elevate their voices and their brilliance has been immeasurable.”
~ Courtney Smith, founder and CEO of the Detroit Phoenix Center

“Hazen Pingree was mayor of Detroit around the turn of the (20th) century and one way he addressed hunger in the city was to encourage people to grow potatoes in their back yards and in community plots the city set out. They were called ‘Pingree’s potato patches.'”
~ Jason Hawes, U-M PhD candidate

As a child, Annica Cuppetelli watched her grandmother sew, and it inspired her to pursue an undergraduate program in fiber and textiles.

The survey found that 75% of unemployed Detroiters expect to return to work in the next month. This is in line with DMACS findings from November 2021 when a similar proportion of unemployed Detroiters expected to quickly return to work.

Malika Pryor grew up taking part in Detroit-based arts advocacy programs led by women family members and Black community leaders. She’s highlighting these women in a new exhibition, which runs through December at the Charles H. Wright Museum in Detroit.

Researchers plan to apply spatial modeling and geospatial technology to highlight new insights that could help planners and policymakers consider natural urban edible food resources to alleviate food insecurity in Detroit.

Now in its concluding year, the project is evolving into an Urban Humanities Initiative at the University of Michigan, which will continue to connect humanities researchers, planners, and architects, along with community leaders outside the university, as they work toward a fairer future.