Meet the 2025 BrewGether Grantees
Richmond, VA – BrewGether is excited to celebrate the latest cohort of BrewGether grantees who represent a dynamic range of Black farmers—from urban gardeners to regenerative agriculture educators—playing a role in shaping a more inclusive, sustainable, and interconnected agricultural ecosystem.
Black farmers—like black craft brewers—make up less than one percent of agricultural producers in the U.S. Yet, these producers play a vital role in shaping local food communities and sustainable farming practices. By supporting these growers, BrewGether is helping to ensure that Black farmers have the resources they need to thrive, while also strengthening the relationship between agriculture and craft brewing—growers and brewers.
Each year, BrewGether provides general operating support grants to nonprofits tapping into innovative solutions for community engagement. The 2025 BrewGether grant recipients are Southside Community Farm (Asheville, VA), Healing Hope Urban Gardens (Petersburg,VA), ECO-PARADIGM (Atlanta, GA), PolyCulture Production at Gaia Gardens (Atlanta, GA), Historic District Development Corporation (Atlanta, GA), and Gratitude Botanical Farm (Atlanta, GA).
SOUTHSIDE COMMUNITY FARM (ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA)
Led by a dedicated team of Black farmers, Southside Community Farm is a pillar of food justice in Asheville. Chloe Moore, Kate Wheeler, and the farmers behind SCF focus on growing culturally relevant produce, offering fresh food to their neighbors through the Free Fresh Food Fridge, and providing hands-on agricultural education. Their work not only anchors the Asheville community especially during Hurricane Helene relief efforts, but also inspires local advocates to reclaim land and food sovereignty.
HEALING HOPE URBAN GARDENS (PETERSBURG, VIRGINIA)
Founded by urban agriculture advocate and home brewer Natasha Crawford in 2021, Healing Hope Urban Gardens is a vibrant 1/4 acre at the Petersburg Oasis Community Farm. Crawford grows a variety of vegetables focusing on crops that are culturally meaningful and can’t be found in the local grocery stores. Also, a home brewer, Crawford, grows crops that are utilized in the craft beer making process. She enjoys showing other community members how to garden and grow their food as an act of self-sufficiency and freedom.
ECO-PARADIGM (ATLANTA, GA)
ECO-PARADIGM is an Atlanta based, strategic agricultural service provider who specializes in helping people and communities grow by providing a variety of farming services. Led by Charles Greenlea—a pillar in the urban agriculture community and an advocate for organic, regenerative farming and environmental justice—ECO-PARADIGM believes healthy communities are those that honor natural processes, and conserve and protect natural resources. From garden installations and sustainable farming to urban agriculture education and training, ECO-PARADIGM is a go-to resource for the agriculture industry.
POLYCULTURE PRODUCTION AT GAIA GARDEN (ATLANTA, GA)
At Polyculture Production, farmer and educator Stephanie Simmons is redefining how urban spaces can be used for sustainable food production, offering a seasonal CSA and a farmers market selling fresh heirloom vegetables. With a focus on polyculture farming—growing multiple crops that support each other—Stephanie’s work demonstrates how small-scale agriculture can be both ecologically sound and economically viable. As the first Black female to own and steward the land at Gaia Garden, Stephanie is revitalizing the land by using regenerative farming techniques and ensuring that knowledge is passed down to future growers.
HISTORIC DISTRICT DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION (HDDC) (ATLANTA, GA)
Founded to protect the treasured assets of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birth site and the surrounding Sweet Auburn neighborhood, HDDC has been a catalyst for strengthening, revitalizing, and preserving the identity and history of Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward community through equitable and inclusive development. The SAGE urban agriculture initiative at HDDC aims to create collaborative initiatives amongst residents, farmers and local businesses, while integrating fresh food production into Atlanta’s historic Black neighborhoods.
GRATITUDE BOTANICAL FARMS (ATLANTA, GA)
Gratitude Botanical Farm’s mission is to grow, educate, feed, serve and protect the history of the people of Atlanta through the art of organic urban agriculture. Led by Chris Lemons, an Atlanta native and a Master Gardener who comes from a long lineage of farmers in Georgia. With a deep commitment to growing medicinal and culinary herbs, Gratitude Botanical Farms is helping redefine wellness in the South. Their farm specializes in regenerative agriculture and plant-based healing, offering locally sourced ingredients to mixologists, chefs, and brewers, along with the greater community.
About BrewGether
BrewGether is on a mission to support BIPOC farmers and increase the assistance between agriculture and the craft beer industry. Through grants, volunteering and intentional connections to resource resources, BrewGether supports an ecosystem that brings together urban agriculture and the craft beer industry. To learn more about BrewGether and how the team is bridging the gap between Black farmers and the craft beer industry, visit brewgether.org. To make a tax deductible donation to BrewGether, visit their donation page on the Craft x EDU website.
About Craft x EDU
Craft x EDU (pronounced “craft by E-D-U”) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to champion inclusion, equity, and justice in the craft brewing community .Craft x EDU provides advisory services, networking opportunities, and fiscal sponsorship to grassroots movements, emerging organizations, and high impact change makers that want to shape what it means to belong in the craft brewing community while making positive social change. Craft x EDU is proud to serve as fiscal sponsor for BrewGether.