This spring, I had the privilege of taking a Newswriting and Reporting class through NYU’s School of Professional Studies. I took the class to improve my interviewing skills and learn more about journalism ethics for A Nourishing Harvest.

For my final class project, I wanted to learn more about topsoil available for sale. Where is it collected from? It is processed or amended in any way? Do topsoil companies test for nutrients, pH, heavy metals, and/or other contaminants?

In the first article in this series, we explored New York's 2010 pesticide law for schools and daycares. This law establishes admirable rules for keeping outdoor spaces safe, and the New York State Department of Conservation (DEC) has offered equally stellar guidance for choosing alternatives to conventional pesticides.

However, Beyond Pesticides has suggestions to offer New York State to improve these rules, and the safety of school and daycare communities. We'll explore those recommendations in this article.

As an herbal medicine and foraging instructor, I have partnered with numerous school districts in Western New York to offer wild edible and medicinal plant classes. Many continuing education participants and kids in science class or summer school have explored school property edges with me, plucking self-heal and linden flowers to nibble.

I've heard mixed information about pesticide application regulations at schools and daycares. Here, I'll share my findings on what's currently on the books in New York State.

Better Safe Than Sorry: How Consumers Navigate Exposure to Everyday Toxics was written by Norah McKendrick, Assistant Professor of Sociology at Rutgers University. McKendrick begins by tracing the history of US government inadequacy when it comes to regulating chemicals used in agriculture, food production, and household goods. I found it empowering to be guided through milestone legislation from the past 100 years, learning how laws and restrictions on the sale and use of toxic chemicals were weakened, circumvented, or inadequate from the start.