Tucson residents will gather at a community garden Feb. 15 to dig into a question that affects everyone: how the local food system works and how to be part of it.

Food Systems 101, a collaborative event hosted by the Pima County Food Alliance, the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona and Community Gardens of Tucson, aims to connect curiosity with action by breaking down how food moves through the region and where community members fit in.

The event, held at Blue Moon Garden, is designed for everyone from seasoned growers to people just beginning to wonder where their food comes from.

The Pima County Food Alliance was created in 2011 as a collaboration between the University of Arizona’s College of Public Health staff and the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona.

Jen Thorn, who works with Community Gardens of Tucson, joined the alliance about two years ago.

“One (of our groups) is working on trying to get urban farmers better water rates, and one that is just starting is going to deal with food access and distribution,” she said. “There’s another group that is finishing, and that’s my group, which is dealing with helping local producers understand health code regulations and be better able to get their product to market.”

The alliance’s fourth group focuses on policy and advocacy.

“They’ve been doing a lot of education and training,” Thorn explained. “One of the overall goals of PCFA is to bring together people working with various areas of the food system so that they can have conversations, build connections and alliances, share resources, and make it easier for us to move our local food system forward.”

Like many other businesses and resources, PCFA was hit hard during the pandemic.

“Everyone was pulled in a lot of different directions, and (we were) kind of de-energized,” said Thorn.

But with support from a Thriving Communities Grant from the Environmental Protection Agency and input gathered through community interviews, the alliance began reassessing local needs and clarifying the role PCFA could play in meeting them.

That work intersects closely with Community Gardens of Tucson, an organization founded in 1990 by a member of the Arizona Cooperative Extension and a master gardener to expand access to food-growing knowledge in the desert.

“It was to bring people together and to teach people how to grow their own food in the desert,” said garden educator Lou Haiduk.

Since becoming a nonprofit in 2009, the organization has expanded its reach across the region.

“We have grown since then. Now, we have 21 community gardens throughout the Tucson area. And really, our goal is to bring people together to increase healthy food access and food resilience,” Haiduk said. “Our mission is to build community gardens where Tucsonans grow food, work and learn together, and nurture well-being in our communities.”

Organizers say the next step is inviting the broader community into those conversations, starting with a hands-on, introductory event designed to make the local food system feel accessible and relevant.

The goal of the Food Systems 101 event is to demystify local food systems and show how they connect to people’s daily lives. Speakers will include Thorn and Emmanuel Morales from the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona.

“We also want to talk about ways that people can get involved. We’re all consumers, so we’re all involved in one way or another,” said Thorn. “We want to figure out people’s skills and passions, what they want to learn about, what they want to be more involved in, then we can present local opportunities for people to be matched with.”

That inclusive approach is central to how organizers are shaping the event’s outreach.

“We’re not just looking to involve people that are already gardening, but also people that might just be curious or interested in this topic,” said Haiduk.

Attendees are invited to explore Blue Moon Garden before or after the class and learn more about community gardening.

Ruby Maldonado is a Pima Community College student and Tucson Spotlight intern. Contact her at rhmaldonado99@gmail.com.

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