Sankofa Initiative

This principle and symbol of Sankofa have guided WEHDC and its partners in its work to address modern health, financial and community challenges through increased access to the healthy foods that are traditional to the West End’s ethnically diverse community

In 2011, resident demand around healthy food access in the West End, spearheaded the formation of  WEHDC’s  Sankofa  Initiative. Many residents, especially those of African and Southeast Asian backgrounds, reported that they were unable to find fresh, affordable food that was reflective of their native diets.  Sankofa builds community around food and culture in  Providence’s diverse West End community. Through the development of the projects below, the Sankofa Initiative aims to build community around food and culture in Providence’s diverse West End community. is transforming the West End into an innovative center for agriculture, economic development and housing with a special  eye towards promoting, celebrating and supporting the neighborhoods rich cultural identity.Sankofa builds community around food and culture in Providence’s diverse West End community.

Sankofa World Market (WEHDC’s farmer’s market) is a weekly celebration of food, community and culture of the West End. Sankofa World Market offers fresh, locally grown produce, prepared food, hand-made goods, weekly live music, cooking demonstrations, and more. Sankofa Market highlights specialty crops from our diverse mix of growers such as; bitter ball, bitter melon, sweet potato greens, bitter leaf, luffa, Asian corn, amaranth, water spinach, long beans, melons, and much more. Shoppers at Sankofa World Market can use their SNAP/EBT and WIC to purchase fresh produce. 

WHEN and WHERE?

Knight Memorial Library
275 Elmwood Ave Providence, RI

Every Wednesday July – October  2:00 pm-6:00 pm

Want to be a Sankofa World Market vendor?

Email sankofamarket@westelmwood.org

We are enacting some safety guidelines to keep Sankofa Market staff, vendors, and customers healthy and safe!

• Masks: Every customer will be required to wear a mask while shopping at the Sankofa World Market. If you don’t have a mask, we will have free masks available at the Market Manager table.
• New layout: We will be changing the usual layout of our market so that there is more space for social distancing.
• Limited programming: We have enjoyed having artists, storytellers, and performers at the Sankofa World Market but to encourage people to make purchases in a timely manner, we will be putting all programming on hold.
• Hand Sanitizer and Hand-washing: We will have multiple hand washing stations and hand sanitizer availble for guests and vendors.

These are just the first steps we’re taking to ensure Sankofa Market can operate safely and successfully, and this will mean additional rules that will need to be strictly followed. This page will be continually updated as our rules change.

Sankofa Community Garden includes 30,000 square feet of garden space on formerly blighted properties throughout Providence’s West End. These community gardens provide space for low-income residents of Providence, RI to grow food that will improve their nutrition and incomes. One community garden is adjacent to Sankofa Housing, giving tenants first priority on garden beds. In addition to community gardens, there is also 9,000 sq ft Market Grower Space, and the Sankofa Community Greenhouse.

The Sankofa Community Kitchen, adjacent to the Sankofa Community Room, will provide a critical resource for Sankofa residents and the broader West End neighborhood. While Sankofa Farm addresses health disparities, Sankofa Kitchen will provide a platform to address the economic development disparities in our community.

The key objectives of the Sankofa Community Kitchen:

• Offer opportunities for new entrants in the food service marketplace to incubate start-up enterprises and develop skills to ensure ongoing viability
• To the extent possible, share space with residents and the community
• Provide classes in nutrition and cooking