An Intervention Manual for Implementing Water Savings Design Strategies for Community Food
Hubs: A case study of the IRC Aquaponics Incubator
April 28, 2017
Amanda (Toohey) Jordan
The Project
The International Rescue Committee “responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises,
helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people
devastated by conflict and disaster.” (IRC, 2016) In this particular capacity, IRC is using an
aquaponics urban garden incubator site “to train refugee farmers in aquaponics agriculture and
good business practices in the United States.” The aquaponics site is an example of the
conversion of brownfields into “healthfields” and sustainability and resilience initiatives.
The 1-acre aquaponics site, located at 16th Ave. and Camelback in Phoenix, is an opportunity to
demonstrate some of the most innovative approaches to water reuse while contributing to a
sustainable food network in the neighborhood and in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. IRC feels
this can create a focal point for local community engagement and also build capacity and create
knowledge that can be transferred to other similar projects.
System complexities, barriers, and indicators of the sustainability challenge
The IRC incubator site sits at the food-water-energy nexus and thus presents certain
complexities and barriers when attempting to combat the identified sustainability challenge: food
and water security in a desert city. Additionally, the site is located in a densely populated
neighborhood within the sixth largest city in the county in an arid, dry climate. This means
demand for resources will be relatively above average.
Identified Intervention Points, Vision, and Goals
At the project outset, the client determined the intervention points to be within the landscape
design. Focusing on water-sensitive design strategies first, IRC would like to integrate rainwater
harvesting and stormwater management techniques within the site to enhance the quality of the
location while also supporting the aquaponics farmers and community members using the
space. IRC’s project vision revolves around demonstrating some of the most innovative
approaches to water and resources efficiencies. The project goals for the overall site include
leveraging relationships in the community, creating a sense of ownership for farmers/gardeners
and refugees, and developing a shared vision for optimizing use of the space. The project goals
for the intervention manual included identifying the best water-sensitive design strategies for the

2017-04-28

Page

1

IRC Intervention Manual

site, outlining the maintenance needs of each strategy, and adaptation, scaling, and transferring
strategies.
Desired outcomes or future states
IRC’s desired outcomes are to enhance the site including water-sensitive design elements in
addition to cultivating an otherwise lackluster space into a space that’s inviting and brings
community members together. As the project proceeds, focus will be on engineering and solar
components.
Methods and Interventions
From August-December 2016, a total of five charrettes were held to facilitate input from key
stakeholders and provide an opportunity to launch supporters into a collaborative and
productive process. Techniques used during the charrettes included utilization of the
Sustainable SITES Initiative criteria to determine the most important aspects to the site
(according to stakeholder viewpoints). From the charrettes, the final water-sensitive design
strategies were selected and became the foundation for the intervention manual.
Benchmarks for success
The main benchmarks for success were determined to be internal evaluations, identification of
best practices, transparency and open communication, and comparison of strategies across
other similar community gardens.
Project Outcomes/Results
After the series of design charrettes, it was determined that strategies to pursue would be a
comprehensive, integrated sustainable water system that aims to achieve complete water selfsufficiency for the site. As my manual is a supplementary component in the grander scheme of
things, there are no finite outcomes/results. The manual is simply providing information to
practitioners in a singular location. The bigger project is still ongoing and therefore it is also
unclear what the final results/outcomes will be.
Possible Next Steps
As the larger project shifts into the next phase of development and implementation, an ASU
Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) team will be working on detailed design for
an initial rainwater harvesting system, collecting and storing water from the greenhouse roof and
using the water for the aquaponics and raised bed irrigation. The team will also work on will
development and implementation of the new water system, which will include rainwater
collection, greywater reuse, blackwater, stormwater management, and irrigation methods.
With regards to the manual, next steps would be for IRC to distribute it in print and digital
format, expand the case study section and actually attempt the scaling and transferring methods
outlined.

2017-04-28

2