Editor's Note: This piece was written by Margaret Lee, a SNRE student and member of StudGov. Margaret attended the Harvest Festival in early October.

SNRE's own Liz Dengate, Allyson Green, Lindsey Macdonald and Jerry Tyrrell, the creative masterminds behind the UM Sustainable Food Program, hosted their first Harvest Festival at Matthei Botanical Gardens on Thursday, October 4th. The Sustainable Food Program, a master's student project, is both community driven and student run with a focus on sustainable, local food; the event was a smashing success with both food and music in abundance.

Over 300 people made their way to the event via carpools, buses and bikes. Attendees had the pleasure of eating a delicious dinner composed of foods grown at the botanical gardens and cooked by University Union Chefs, such as a goat cheese, arugula and roasted squash salad and some sort of magical dish of grains. In addition to eating, there was music from local bands such as The Crane Wives and a tour of both the farm and surrounding plot. Parker Anderson, a dual-degree student in LA and Sustainable Systems at SNRE, and member of UMBees, oversees the beehives immediately adjacent to the farm. The autumnal gathering was a warm, friendly celebration of local foods, sustainability and community.