Creating Community and Resilience in Regenerative Farming

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC | Twenty-five years ago, a retired couple set out to start an off-grid hobby garden on a plot of land on Conanicut Island, Rhode Island. From the very beginning, they decided to donate their surplus harvest to a local food pantry. The town, friends, and neighbors quickly joined in to help, and soon the garden grew into a 12-acre regenerative farm.  

Over the years, Jamestown Community Farm has become a registered nonprofit, donating hundreds of thousands of pounds of produce to food pantries across Rhode Island. The farm has been nationally recognized for its work by organizations such as NPR and PBS.

In this talk, Maia Ashley '24, the farm manager, will tell the story of the people who have come together to make this project possible: farmers, scientists, conservationists, and the community members who have kept the organization running and funded in a rapidly changing financial and environmental climate.