Bob (Robert) Randall, Ph.D.

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RELEVANT Executive Director of Urban Harvest, Inc. Urban Harvest is the eighth largest community gardening program in North America.
COMMUNITY Professional anthropologist with more than 30 years researching, publishing on, and working on issues related to wise horticulture, food production, ecosystems, hunger and education. Holder of Permaculture Design Certificate.
GARDENING Author of Year Round Vegetables, Fruits, and Flowers for Metro Houston-- A Natural Approach Using Ecology, 11th ed.; also author of How to Grow Tomatoes in Greater Houston--The Community Gardening Experience (with Mark Cotham). Featured in Texas Gardening Answers from the Experts by Laura Martin.
EXPERIENCE Chair of the Houston Environmental Foresight socioeconomic science panel assessing risk to food quality in the eight metropolitan counties.
The garden at my residence has been described both in American Horticulturist, in Pomona (Journal of the North American Fruit Explorers), and in Houston Metropolitan Magazine.
Taught dozens of organic gardening and permaculture classes over the last decade for Urban Harvest, Leisure Learning, and 3 county extensions. One of the first people in the Houston area to popularize the concept of the soil food web. Past Chair and current active member of the Planning Committee of the Gulf Coast Fruit Study Group.
Awards and honors include Target Hunger Harvesting Hope Humanitarian Award (2003), Urban Harvest 15 Year Service Award (2002), Houston Chronicle People Spotlight (2000), Citizens Environmental Coalition Synergy Award for Community Activism (1999), Men’s Council of the Houston Area Award (1993), KTRH Radio Everyday Hero Award (1993), Houston Peace and Justice Award for Social Change (1990), Teacher of the Year, University of Houston Honors Program 1986.
1994 --2003 Urban Harvest, Inc.
Executive Director
One of 10 founders of nine year old Urban Harvest, Inc. Director since its inception as part of The Park People, Inc. and Executive Director since we became an independent non-profit. Urban Harvest has 101 community gardens, about 15 market gardens, and 700 individual members in its seven county network. The most common reasons for the community gardens are (1) youth education, (2) food donation to the needy; (3) self help efforts for diet improvement; (4) horticultural therapy (5) marketing fresh, tasty, local produce. Under my leadership, one inner city garden received a national award, and another appeared in a Smithsonian book on the most beautiful vegetable gardens ever.
1987-1994 Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston
Community Gardens Coordinator, Interfaith Hunger Coalition
Started volunteering when there were no community gardens, and joined the staff when there was one. Together with many others, I built the network to 42. Under my leadership, the program was named one of President Bush’s Thousand Points of Light, was featured in the national weekly Chronicle of Philanthropy, and got an Environmental Achievement Award (1990).
1964-1986 Teacher
Taught at 3 universities: (Asst. Professor Anthropology University of Houston; Visiting Lecturer Univ. California Riverside & Univ. Victoria Canada), Head of Mathematics (Birnin Kudu Govt. Secondary School, Kano State, Nigeria). Supervised education doctoral students.
Published dozens of anthropological articles in scientific books and journals on food production and poverty in the Philippines. Published a 400 page book. Taught every grade between 8th and post-doctorate. Field research in Basilan Pr, Philippines, 1971-72 and 1980. US Peace Corps Volunteer in rural Sahelian Nigeria 1964-66.
Main Education Ph.D. Ecological Anthropology, University of California Berkeley (1977); M.A. Anthropology, S.U.N.Y. Binghamton (1969), B.Sc. Mathematics,Bucknell Univ. (1964)