MILWAUKEE (AP) — After years of tilling away in obscurity, Milwaukee farmer Will Allen has found sudden fame as the face of the urban farming movement.
Allen won a so-called genius grant last year from a Chicago foundation. Since then, the 60-year-old has appeared in Oprah Winfrey's O magazine and addressed scores of groups. Former President Bill Clinton even called Allen his hero.
Allen is the founder and chief executive of Growing Power Inc., a company that develops urban farming techniques and teaches young people how to grow food in poor, inner-city neighborhoods.
He says the best part of the attention is that he gets to show fellow African-Americans that farming is a legitimate career.
The MacArthur Foundation grant provides $100,000 per year for five years.
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