+1 (888) 899-4UGI
URBAN AGRICULTURE + VETERANS
Urban Agriculture is one of the fastest growing industries worldwide and has proven to be a growing success for urban community redevelopment, youth career opportunities, and alternative therapies and business opportunities for military veterans. At Urban Growing Institute (UGI) we offer training, financial and support programs for anyone who wants to become active in revitalizing their urban communities through vertical farming, with a special emphasis on our military veterans and at-risk income-disadvantaged youth.
Providing opportunities for
income-disadvantaged youth
Empowering our Veterans
Protecting and ensuring
urban food security
OUR MISSION
ABOUT
UGI, is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to providing training and certification, advanced careers, mentoring and business development opportunities through a coalition of public and private, profit and non-profit government agencies, foundations and companies, including Miami Job Corps Training Center, UFI, Crop't Farms Cooperative, USDA, Veterans Administration, Wounded Warriors, Missing in Action, VFW and American legion, to name a few.
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Our goal is to provide a customized set of education, placement and business development services to anyone looking to develop a career or a business in urban agriculture. UGI believes that urban agriculture offers the goal-oriented, community-focused, physical and psychological benefits today's inner-city youth and military veterans need to see and believe they are making a difference for themselves and the world around them.
Becoming a certified hydroponic indoor vertical farmer means you’ll get the opportunity and gain the skills for an advanced career or be an entrepreneur, as well as equipment repair specialist, technology expert, horticulturalist, and a valued community member all rolled into one.
You’ll be an Urban Grower!
GET CERTIFIED
Career Opportunities
For any inquiries, questions or commendations, please call: +1 (888) 899-4UGI or fill out the following form
CONTACT
Urban Growing Institute
Get in Touch: +1 (888) 899-4
Inquiries
Are you a Veteran interested in a Career with UGI? Want to join our Internship program? Get in touch with HR
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Or you can E-Mail your inquiry to:
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© 2018 Urban Growing Institute
3029 NE 188th St #1107
Aventura, Florida
PROTECTING AND ENSURING
URBAN FOOD SUPPLY
VETERANS AND YOUTH
Many of our young people and military veterans face challenges with getting a career education, finding a job, living in a stable environment and adjusting (transitioning back) to life and careers at home. Training and opportunities are available in many industries, but resources and programs to support and provide guidance are often over-burdened and incomplete in what they can offer or not coordinated with other programs to deliver a complete set of services.
WE ARE DELIVERING ON OUR PROMISES FOR THE FUTURE GENERATIONS
The willingness of America's veterans to sacrifice for our country has earned them our lasting gratitude.
Jeff Miller
BUSINESS PARTNERSHIPS
Do you have the desire to open and run your own business, but weren’t sure where to start or didn’t think you had all of the skills? With UGI’s assistance and commercial partners, it couldn’t be easier! In cooperation with UGI, Crop’t Farms offers business development partnerships to those Urban Growers that have the aptitude and drive to open their own successful urban vertical farming business. Services in the partnership include business and financial planning support, grant and loan identification and submission, business and grower mentoring services, product planning, and marketing and distribution partnerships direct with Crop’t Farms.
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Requirements & Prerequisites
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Successful program completion and certification as an Urban Grower
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Disabled veterans or Job Corps graduate (preferred)
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Desire to serve the local urban community
INTERNSHIPS
Graduates from the Urban Growers program have the opportunity for a paid 3-6 month internship in the culinary arts, hospitality or urban farming industry with one of our growing list of commercial partners, including Crop’t Farms and LocaNut.
The internship program will provide real-world experience working in an actual commercial kitchen, greenhouse or urban vertical farm for real-world pay. As a Job Corps graduate or disabled veteran, subsidies will be paid to the commercial partners to ensure that what you are paid and the hours you work is commensurate with what you would be offered on the open market. Additionally, participants would gain the experience to pursue additional culinary and hospitality certifications, which will increase their opportunities for advanced career placement and business development partnerships.
Requirements & Prerequisites
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Successful completion of the Job Corps Culinary Arts training area
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Successful program completion and certification as an Urban Grower
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Disabled veterans or Job Corps graduate
URBAN GROWER PROGRAM
The first of many programs being developed by UGI, the Urban Grower Program is a pilot program designed to work together with existing government and privately funded programs, Like Job Corps, to provide hand-on training and certification to program participants in all aspects of indoor vertical farming that can being quickly and easily deployed in urban inner-city areas as part of an areas urban revitalization efforts. The program last approximately 24 weeks and consists of a certified horticulture and vertical farming curriculum taught in an operating indoor vertical farm and interactive lab initially located in the Miami Job Corps Training Center and provided under the Job Corp Culinary Arts training area.
Participants will learn all aspects of greenhouse and indoor vertical farming, including plant biology and crop cycles, nursery and seed germination, seedling transplanting, hydroponic systems and strategies, water quality and nutrient dosing, lighting cycles and airflow, CO2 and humidity management, environmental management and measuring systems, harvesting and packaging, and grow are hygiene and disease management. Program graduates will be able to run almost any small greenhouse or indoor vertical farm operation with minimal oversight or assistance, although mentoring is always provided.
As the Urban Grower Program is currently provided as part of the Job Corps Culinary Arts training area, graduates from the program will be certified as a commercial hydroponics grower and vertical farmer, as well as have culinary training, and be provided advanced career placement assistance, either with UGI’s partner Crop’t Farms, a vertical farm cooperative, or another hydroponic growing operation, business development partnership and financial support opportunities for those with the desire and aptitude to build their own vertical farming business, as well as additional support for participants that are at risk financially or socially or who have a disability.
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Requirements & Prerequisites
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Currently offered to youth that qualify for Job Corps and service disabled military veterans
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High school diploma, G.E.D. or equivalent required
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Good reading, writing and communication skills
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Attention to detail and ability to deal with stressful environments
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Desire, drive and teamwork
For youth participants: at-risk and income disadvantaged participants receive on-site housing, training and certification at no cost from Miami Job Corps Training Center.
For disabled veterans: UGI is working with the VA, Wounded Warriors, USDA, and local veterans organizations to fund local housing, transportation and training subsidies.
