bristol, ri __ over the duration of the spring 2015 semester, i set out to meet city dwellers committed to agriculture. my search brought me to a young urban farmer in providence, ri. laura brown-lavoie is a 27-year-old farmer who has dedicated her livelihood to growing her own food and providing fresh produce in a setting that is not widely recognized as farm-friendly.

i spent time with brown-lavoie to get to know the process of bringing life to a garden in an environment that is continuously overlooked as a place for agriculture. it all started with the beginning stages of the seeding process in a makeshift growing box that was located in brown-lavoie’s one bedroom apartment in providence. i took a camera with me to capture the essence of brown-lavoie’s commitment to agriculture and closeness to her food.

weeks later, after rhode island melted its way out of its second snowiest winter on record, brown-lavoie and a few other farmers arrived ready to clean up their planting site on the east side of providence. i was there to capture the first day of preparation at the headquarters of sidewalk ends farm.

situated on a plot of land between the busy streets of providence, sidewalk ends farm breaks the block of cityscape with a lively garden.  this neighborhood garden not only acts as a growing point for the city, it also provides a meeting place for the community to be in touch with the environment and get connected to their food.

this video shows a place where sidewalk meets soil. brown-lavoie represents one of the many urban farmers who overcomes the limits of their surroundings. the video exhibits a greener side to all of the pavement and structure of a cityscape. above all, the package discloses a thriving side of providence that shows it its possible to produce sustainable food that tastes good and enhances the nutritional security of the city as a whole.