Category: Season 12
Tags: agroforestry, environment, food, stewardship
Andrew Leahy, Education & Outreach Specialist, Horn Farm Center, York County
Growing up in a rural town called Sweet Valley, just south of Ricketts Glen, Andrew spent his life fostering a love for the PA wilds. He attended Muhlenberg College in Allentown and majored in English Literature and Music Composition, exploring regional ecology, slow food, composting, gardening, permaculture, foraging, and wildcrafting in the spaces between. After graduating college and moving to the Lower Susquehanna region, Andrew spent a year working with the Dickinson College Center for Civic Learning and Action. Soon after, he joined the staff at the Horn Farm Center, affirming his intention to make environmental stewardship a professional path and lifetime passion project. As Education & Outreach Specialist, Andrew is responsible for developing programs, coordinating volunteers, managing social media, crafting educational content, and supporting marketing and development projects.
Take a look at the pawpaw (Asimina triloba), North America’s largest native fruit. Viewers learn about the pawpaw’s unique growth habits, pollination, wildlife relationships, and tropical flavor profile, as well as its deep connections to Indigenous stewardship and American history. The talk traces how the pawpaw shifted from a widely used and cultivated fruit to a largely forgotten one, and why it is now experiencing renewed interest. Emphasizing sustainability, agroforestry, and climate resilience, this presentation highlights the pawpaw’s growing importance in local food systems and its promise for the future.
Watch this video…
