“He filled up his little sedan with 30 fruit trees and brought them home,” said Cassie Metz ‘17. This was the start of Ecofluent, the nonprofit that aims to plant fruit trees and educate local residents about agriculture in the Springfield area. Metz and her partner, Michael Clark, launched the organization in January 2020.
Metz has always had a passion and love for the environment. As an environmental health major at Illinois State University, she stayed active with the Student Environmental Action Coalition, an organization dedicated to uprooting environmental injustices through action and education.
Metz also credits her mentor and professor, Dr. LC Yang, with broadening her knowledge of having a sustainable future.
“I took a class with him on renewable energy which isn’t related to fruit trees, but it was exciting because I was concerned about climate change and having a sustainable future,” Metz said.
Ecofluent is more than just fruit trees. The organization provides education and resources in the area of sustainable living and environmentally friendly practices. These services include the use of aquaponic facilities to demonstrate the sustainability of aquaponics along with additional practices including composting, waste reduction, and alternative energy.
When Clark was a child, he knew the importance of food and where it came from. Clark has always had an immense appreciation for food and wants today’s youth to gain knowledge of the importance of agriculture.
“It is said that only one in 10 Americans gets the recommended fruit and vegetable serving,” Clark said of his passion for aquaponics and food security. “I hope one day we can get free food because we have all this grass with nothing on it.”
Metz and Clark began their journey to providing a more sustainable future by contacting the Springfield Park District to get permission to plant fruit trees in the local public parks. Their hope was to expand ways for the community to have access to fresh produce while reducing food insecurities. They are now responsible for over 200 fruit trees planted in the Springfield area.
Since launching Ecofluent, Metz and Clark have won Sustainable Springfield’s Silver Award for leadership. This is awarded to organizations that have addressed renewable energy, tree/pollinator climate support, waste reduction, or water conservation. It focuses on creating innovative, real-world solutions to reduce the city’s environmental problems.
Metz and Clark want to enhance people’s economic status by showing them more efficient ways to offset their food expenses. They are helping push this goal forward by promoting agricultural practices and getting their peers to understand where their food comes from, so they can appreciate it and the natural world more. Moving forward, Ecofluent is looking to expand in Central Illinois to continue to help neighboring communities.
Food security is a big issue in the state of Illinois. According to Feeding America, one in 12 people in Illinois struggles with food insecurity daily. It is hard to make a healthy choice for food when you are hungry. Cassie Metz and Michael Clark are doing their community a great service by planting trees and educating the people of Springfield and nearby areas on sustainability. Illinois State is proud of the #RedbirdImpact the organization is making to better their community and the state.
