Reuse, reduce and resell: Changemaker’s sustainable farmers market

Farmers markets have a reputation for clean and sustainable products, relaxing atmospheres and an all-around sense of community. When Arizona State University’s Changemaker Central is in charge, you can add free shaved ice, free ASU swag and a DJ to that list.

The Changemaker Central sustainable farmers market took place Apr 25, 2024 on the ASU sports and recreation fields outside the Sun Devil Fitness Complex.

Students explored a vibrant, fair-like event where booths—set up under a series of interconnected canopies—offered an array of items. The offerings included organic food, handmade jewelry, and thrifted clothes, all available from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

As customers wandered throughout the farmers market taking in the sights, Arielle Jane, a second-year Sun Devil double majoring in marketing and psychology, and campus lead for Changemaker Central, was busy making sure her “baby project” was running smoothly.

“I didn’t get to start planning until three months ago, so this was planned at rapid speed,” Jane said. “We started back up after COVID. I contacted all the vendors we had last year, found new student entrepreneurs, used all my organizations and it turned out really well!”

Sun Devils showed up to help support their entrepreneurial community, with more than 100 students within the first hour, and many more streaming in throughout the day.

While the event may have been planned with only a little prep time, the care and effort that was put into this event started long before the first calls were made.

“This has been my baby since February,” Jane continued. “We have three pillars of Changemaker. Service, sustainability and ‘entrepreneurship and innovation.’ This event is super special to sustainability, especially as we’re supporting all of these local vendors who create their own food and products. There is also a big emphasis on keeping the environment clean and reusing a lot of recyclable materials.”

Student vendors echoed this sentiment, detailing their commitment to keeping things sustainable and their appreciation toward Changemaker Central. Entrepreneur Lele, a third-year student majoring in political science and philosophy, spoke on how this event helped her business, Honey Miel Store.

“It’s really important to have events like this because it shows appreciation and also builds a sense of community between students,” Lele said.

First-years, Avery Wall, studying digital marketing, and Jackie Tom, studying marketing, spoke on how they enjoyed bringing their booth, AZ Girl, to the event.

“It’s a super great event,” Wall said. “It’s a great way to get connected with the ASU community, and it’s Earth Day, so it’s focusing on sustainability.”

“We have Cricuts, which are like die-cut machines,” Tom continued. “You can connect it to your computer, we make the designs, it cuts out the vinyl, and then we heat press it. It’s a cool process, and it's really cool that we can do it ourselves in a sustainable way.”

Changemaker Central, much like the name suggests, advocates for social change on campus. By creating opportunities where students can combine passions like entrepreneurship and topical social issues like sustainability, allows students to pave the way for their own change, centered around their interests.

If you are interested in checking out more from Changemaker Central, follow their instagram @asuchangemakercentral or sign up for their newsletter!