news updates

On Saturday, August 1, 2009, at the corner of Magazine and Girod Streets, freshly harvested green beans will change hands for cash, as they have on so many Saturday mornings since the Crescent City Farmers Market opened in 1995. On this particular Saturday, the organizers of the farmers market, marketumbrella.org, will also share news of how green beans impact greenbacks, with the release of their 2009 Economic Impact Study.

Neighborhood Exchange Evaluation Device measures farmers markets' impact on social capital. Part of the presumed appeal of farmers markets is that they deliver a triple bottom line: one that benefits farmers, consumers, and the larger community.

We are happy to report that trans•act has been moving forward at a steady clip since June. The work this year is building towards the establishment of a trinity of market evaluation tools which we hope will ultimately deliver a picture of a market's larger economic impact (SEED), its potential to create social capital (NEED), and its ability to narrow a community's food disparity (FEED).

trans•act has been moving at full speed since last summer. We are excited to announce the launch of our second round of fellowships for trans•act 2008, lead by our senior fellow, J. Robin Moon. This summers goals: to research and revamp the existing SEED v.2.0 and to develop and construct a working version of NEED. 

A lecture by Roy Priest, chairman of the trans•act Advisory Board, is now available online. Roy shares lessons learned in cultivating social capital during his 17-year tenure with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).