Ann Arbor plans cookbook to advance carbon neutrality goals

Ann Arbor’s Office of Sustainability and Innovations (OSI) is developing a free A2ZERO Community Cookbook to help Ann Arbor residents make climate-friendly food choices. The cookbook will feature community-contributed recipes, sustainable food tips, and stories from local leaders driving Ann Arbor’s sustainable food movement.

"Food is really at the heart of our community," says Azella Markgraf, OSI's sustainability coordinator for food. "We’re excited to celebrate that and use it as an opportunity to highlight how food plays a role in our ongoing transition to carbon neutrality."

Markgraf explains that transitioning to more sustainable diets is an important part of A2ZERO, Ann Arbor’s plan for a just and equitable transition to community-wide carbon neutrality by 2030. She says the cookbook initiative aims to educate residents about food sustainability in an easy-to-understand way, using insights drawn directly from their neighbors. Markgraf says the project will also highlight more accessible ways for Ann Arbor community members to incorporate more sustainable foods and food practices, particularly for those who may experience challenges doing so.

"A cookbook won’t change the systemic barriers that exist for many people to sustainable eating, but it can highlight and share knowledge about foods that are easily available,"  Markgraf says. "We hope that providing a place-specific resource when it comes to navigating our food systems sustainably can be an opportunity to minimize the complexity in sustainable food choices."

The cookbook aims to not only provide practical tools for sustainable eating but also to foster a sense of community and shared purpose. By highlighting local contributions and everyday sustainability practices, Markgraf hopes the cookbook will celebrate Ann Arbor residents' knowledge and creativity.

"We hope that this resource helps people feel more empowered and confident in their food and sustainability choices, and that folks with knowledge to share feel celebrated and included," Markgraf says. "We’re encouraging residents to share the things they do in their daily lives that make sustainability easy for them, and share that with the community."

Once complete, the A2ZERO Community Cookbook will be free to use through OSI’s website sometime in 2025. Plans to distribute physical copies are also being discussed. The deadline to submit recipes and sustainability tips to the cookbook is Feb. 1. Find submission guidelines and more information at osi.a2gov.org/cookbook. To learn more about the A2ZERO initiative and its other projects, visit OSI’s website.

"What’s cool about a community cookbook is that it acts as a snapshot in time," Markgraf says. "We hope that it helps to continue this conversation around the importance of food in our community when it comes to sustainability, and build a future that we all hope to live in."

Rylee Barnsdale is a Michigan native and longtime Washtenaw County resident. She wants to use her journalistic experience from her time at Eastern Michigan University writing for the Eastern Echo to tell the stories of Washtenaw County residents that need to be heard.

Photo courtesy of OSI.