View Milwaukee Urban AgCon 2026 Program flipbook.
Monday, October 26, 2026 Harold S. Vincent School of Agricultural Science Milwaukee Urban AgCon 2026 Growing Resilience
Rhianna Dye is Cover Artwork Provided By: Rhianna Dye
Welcome to Milwaukee Urban AgCon 2026! We’re so glad you’re here to celebrate the people, ideas, and partnerships growing a stronger local food system across Milwaukee and beyond. This year’s theme, Growing Resilience, recognizes that urban agriculture is about so much more than growing food. It’s about nurturing our land, strengthening our neighborhoods, sharing knowledge across generations, and building communities that can adapt, recover, and thrive through change. Resilience grows when we come together, learn from one another, and turn shared challenges into opportunities for renewal. Today, we invite you to connect with fellow growers, educators, conservationists, community leaders, and curious minds. Explore new ideas, discover practical skills, celebrate local leadership, and imagine what we can accomplish when we work together. Whether you tend a garden, farm an urban lot, advocate for food access, teach the next generation, or are simply curious about where your food comes from, you have a place in this community. Thank you to our speakers, presenters, sponsors, volunteers, vendors, and everyone who helped bring AgCon to life. Your time, generosity, and commitment make this gathering possible and help keep urban agriculture and conservation education accessible to all. May you leave today with new connections, fresh inspiration, and ideas that take root long after we leave this room. Together, let’s keep growing resilience - one garden, one neighborhood, and one community at a time! Welcome!
Land & Water Acknowledgement We respectfully acknowledge that the land and waterways of Milwaukee County are the ancestral homelands of the Potawatomi, Ho-Chunk, and Menominee peoples. We recognize that this land holds deep significance for these Indigenous nations, who have cared for it throughout generations. Additionally, we honor the presence of the Kickapoo, Myaamia, and Peoria peoples, who have also contributed to the rich tapestry of history and culture in this region. As we gather and engage with this land, we commit ourselves to learn from its history and the teachings of its original stewards. We express our gratitude for their enduring connection to this place and our responsibility to uphold justice, respect, and recognition for the Indigenous peoples who continue to thrive here today. Let us work together to build a future that honors their legacy and supports their rights to land, culture, and community. We will be using slido for our panel Question & Answer segments. Join at www.slido.com by entering the code #4039834 Participate in live polls and text questions for our panelists to answer.
Sip Sustainably Join us in making a positive impact on our planet - one sip at a time! Bring your reusable water bottle and stop by the Plastic Free MKE Water Refill Station to refreshed throughout the conference. Plastic-Free MKE, a dedicated coalition focused on reducing unnecessary single-use plastics in Milwaukee and surrounding communities, has prevented the use of over 6,500 plastic water bottles since 2020 through their Water Refill Station Program. By choosing reusable, you help protect our waterways and reduce plastic waste. Take the pledge and learn more about how you can reduce your plastic footprint. Together, we can sip sustainably and support a cleaner, healthier Milwaukee. Lake Friendly Conference We are proud to host a Lake Friendly Conference that actively contributes to preserving Milwaukee’s precious waterways. With the support of Plastic-Free MKE and the Lake Friendly Program, Milwaukee Urban AgCon is committed to minimizing plastic waste and reducing our environmental impact. In fact, we've invited all of our vendors to take the Plastic-Free Pledge - committing to reduce plastic use by avoiding single-use and plastic-wrapped items, supporting local makers, and minimizing printed materials. We encourage you to join us in making a difference too! Take the pledge and learn more about how you can help protect our lakes and waterways. Did you know that 80-90% of trash along Wisconsin’s riverbanks, beaches, and shorelines is plastic? Each year, 22 million pounds of plastic enter the Great Lakes, breaking down into microplastics that threaten our food and water. Let’s work together to turn the tide on plastic pollution and foster a more sustainable future for Milwaukee. A healthy lake starts with us!
Celebrate science throughout Wisconsin at the Wisconsin Science Festival! #WiSciFest http://wiscifest.org Celebrate science throughout Wisconsin! Discover science behind the scenes in your community, take part in a statewide BioBlitz and enjoy the wonder and fun of science. Held throughout the state on October 16-26, 2025, the festival welcomes people of all ages for hands-on science, performances, demonstrations and conversations with leading researchers and creative thinkers. Unleash your curiosity!
Our Moderators Rebecca Colby Meg Bruzan Your paragraph text
Kickoff Speaker
Our Moderators Rebecca Colby Meg Bruzan Your paragraph text
Thank You! A heartfelt thank you to our incredible co-organizers and volunteers for their dedication and hard work. Your passion, effort, and support have been essential in making this event a success. We couldn’t have done it without your teamwork and commitment - thank you for helping us create a meaningful and inspiring experience for everyone involved! We extend our sincere gratitude to our sponsors for their invaluable support of this year's conference. Your commitment to fostering community engagement and promoting sustainable urban agriculture has made this event possible. Without your generosity and dedication, we would not have been able to bring together such a diverse group of participants to share knowledge, resources, and inspiration. Thank you for believing in our vision and helping us cultivate a brighter future for urban agriculture and sustainability in Milwaukee.
City of Milwaukee Community Garden Program – FREE! Did you know you can start a community garden on a City-owned lot? The City of Milwaukee has a program where you can sign up to use City land, with a free permit, to grow vegetables, fruits, or flowers! How it works: 1. Contact City of Milwaukee staff to find a good lot for your garden. An ideal vacant lot for a long- term community garden is one that is not a great fit for new housing to be built, or a commercial development site. City staff will help evaluate your proposed location. 2. Team up with 4+ people who live or work within a one-mile radius of the proposed garden site, or connect with a sponsoring local organization. 3. Fill out the paperwork and agree to the City’s land use rules. 4. Wait 2-3 weeks for garden approval, and start planting! Gardeners must agree to: Plant all food crops in raised garden beds, with a root barrier, and fill beds with clean soil brought in from off-site. Maintain the entire lot during the time of their permit, including mowing the grass and shoveling snow from the sidewalks. Keep garden site neat and tidy, and free of debris. All compost must be kept in a closed container with a lid. Treat everyone at the garden and in the surrounding neighborhood with respect. Gardeners may: Sell whole, unbagged produce grown at the garden, on site or at a farmer’s market. Fence the garden in, with an appropriate fence permit. Place accessory structures on the garden such as a storage shed, water collection system, or hoop house. Gardeners may not: Park any vehicles, or bring any animals, on City land. Play loud music or host gatherings that would disturb the peace of the neighbors. Cultivate any invasive or illegal plant species. Interested in starting your own community garden?: Contact Tess Wynn with the Department of City Development, by phone at 414-286-5838, or by email at tewynn@milwaukee.gov