FOOD & LAND: Activity Log
From 2026.01.08 Meeting: Team Notes and Research Leads
Food & Land
What Already Exists
o Augusta Co Permaculture Guild on Facebook (Holly is posting us on FB)
o Sears Hill Garden (FB group, I got the coordinator's phone number and messaged)
o Cooperative Extension & Master Gardeners (emailed about hOUR Economy collaboration)
o Embrace (messaged through their website)
o Neighbor Bridge (messaged through their website)
o River City Bread Basket (messaged through their website)
o Jubilee Climate Farm (emailed about hOUR Economy collaboration)
o Radical Roots (messaged through their website)
o Project Grows (messaged through their website)
o Verdant Acres Farm (community supported agriculture, work trade) (emailed about collaboration)
o Local forging groups (mushrooms) https://www.enchantednaturetours.com/ (messaged through their website)
o Plant swaps, seed swaps, cuttings swaps
o Shenandoah Permaculture Institute (messaged through their website)
o Staunton Farmers Market (Attended annual meeting 1/20th; applied for guest table in 2026)
o Waynesboro Education Farm (emailed about collaboration)
o Augusta Health’s Farmacy (emailed about collaboration)
o Jones Garden (messaged through their website)
o Necessary Mercantile (messaged through their website)
o Farm to Freezer meat options from local producers
o Medicinal Mushrooms
o Raw Milk, Butter Cheese
o Using underused farmland for crops to share
o Garden project at Natural Wonders School Verona, VA for the learning community. Students and parents will be included from day 1. The intention is for the school to source their meals from garden and educate the students. (emailed about collaboration)
o Parks service resources, ex. Water mapping
o Local farmers market
Dreams of What Could Be
o A community garden on every corner! Churches!! Vacant Lots
o School gardens, sourcing all meals from garden feeding families in need & educating students & re-attracting students to veggies
o Food not lawns
o Natural gardening, rewilding the land
o A downward trend in the average age of farmers
o Augusta to Abbatoir; Cannery
o Swales Everywhere
o Rainwater harvesting workshops (some already being done)
o Aquaculture fish supply
Risks on the Horizon
o PFAS – in biosolids
o Data centers and other industry taking up water
o More droughts / more floods
o Succession moments = land getting developed
One Small Next Step
o Connect SNAP recipients with volunteering opportunities to grow food
̶A̶I̶ ̶K̶i̶p̶:̶ ̶I̶ ̶h̶a̶v̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶p̶h̶o̶n̶e̶ ̶c̶o̶n̶t̶a̶c̶t̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶S̶N̶A̶P̶ ̶P̶r̶o̶g̶r̶a̶m̶ ̶p̶e̶o̶p̶l̶e̶ ̶f̶r̶o̶m̶ ̶S̶t̶a̶u̶n̶t̶o̶n̶ ̶F̶a̶r̶m̶e̶r̶'̶s̶ ̶m̶a̶r̶k̶e̶t̶.̶ ̶I̶'̶v̶e̶ ̶d̶i̶s̶c̶u̶s̶s̶e̶d̶ ̶i̶d̶e̶a̶s̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶v̶o̶l̶u̶n̶t̶e̶e̶r̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶t̶o̶k̶e̶n̶s̶,̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶g̶i̶v̶e̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶m̶ ̶S̶o̶v̶e̶r̶e̶i̶g̶n̶t̶y̶ ̶S̶a̶l̶o̶n̶ ̶f̶l̶y̶e̶r̶s̶.̶ ̶I̶ ̶w̶i̶l̶l̶ ̶r̶e̶a̶c̶h̶ ̶o̶u̶t̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶m̶ ̶a̶g̶a̶i̶n̶ ̶b̶e̶f̶o̶r̶e̶ ̶o̶u̶r̶ ̶n̶e̶x̶t̶ ̶m̶e̶e̶t̶i̶n̶g̶.̶ ̶(Spoke with Tiffany at the Annual Farmers Market Meeting 1/20/26; messaged her 2/11/2026)
A̶I̶ K̶i̶p̶:̶ I̶ w̶i̶l̶l̶ b̶e̶ r̶e̶a̶c̶h̶i̶n̶g̶ o̶u̶t̶ t̶o̶ t̶h̶e̶s̶e̶ e̶x̶i̶s̶t̶i̶n̶g̶ p̶r̶o̶g̶r̶a̶m̶s̶ t̶o̶ i̶n̶t̶r̶o̶d̶u̶c̶e̶ m̶y̶s̶e̶l̶f̶ a̶n̶d̶ t̶h̶e̶ Q̶u̶e̶e̶n̶ C̶i̶t̶y̶ S̶o̶v̶e̶r̶e̶i̶g̶n̶t̶y̶ S̶a̶l̶o̶n̶. I̶ w̶i̶l̶l̶ s̶e̶e̶ i̶f̶ t̶h̶e̶r̶e̶ i̶s̶ o̶p̶p̶o̶r̶t̶u̶n̶i̶t̶y̶ t̶o̶ c̶o̶l̶l̶a̶b̶o̶r̶a̶t̶e̶, a̶n̶d̶ t̶o̶ s̶e̶e̶ i̶f̶ t̶h̶e̶y̶ w̶o̶u̶l̶d̶ b̶e̶ o̶n̶ b̶o̶a̶r̶d̶ w̶i̶t̶h̶ j̶o̶i̶n̶i̶n̶g̶ h̶O̶U̶R̶ e̶c̶o̶n̶o̶m̶y̶ i̶n̶ o̶r̶d̶e̶r̶ t̶o̶ p̶r̶o̶v̶i̶d̶e̶ w̶o̶r̶k̶ o̶p̶p̶o̶r̶t̶u̶n̶i̶t̶i̶e̶s̶ f̶o̶r̶ v̶o̶l̶u̶n̶t̶e̶e̶r̶s̶ b̶e̶f̶o̶r̶e̶ o̶u̶r̶ n̶e̶x̶t̶ m̶e̶e̶t̶i̶n̶g̶. (Reached out to all that I could find available contact information 2/11/2026)