Arthur Levine, Pitzer College

Arthur Levine, a senior at Pitzer College, demonstrates deep commitment to social and environmental justice. He mobilized students to work in solidarity with growing neighborhood revitalization movements in New Orleans post-Katrina. Students collaborated with a local school, which serves as a national training center, for organizing, capacity building, and conducting community-based research while simultaneously learning from the resiliency of the neighborhood and working to support the construction of healthy sustainable local food models as a means of revitalization. Building on course work in the Pitzer in Ontario program, he has emerged as a student leader with his work in community gardening and sustainable farming supporting the emergence of The Huerta del Valle project. HdV provides local community members with access to personal plots alongside support for urban farming practices and knowledge of organic agriculture. The garden aims to create opportunities for Ontario families to grow and have access to healthy food, learn about agriculture and sustainability, create new economic and educational opportunities, provide a community space and space gathering on-site, and work together to create a stronger sense of community. Arthur’s work continues to inspire students to combat structural inequality in their own communities, both locally and globally.