What is the Farm?
Place: 24 hectares of integrated farmland ecosystem, including surrounding forest located at the south end of UBC’s Vancouver Campus.
People: Dedicated staff, students, and researchers, 14 of UBC’s faculties, schools, and colleges, thousands of students young and old, Indigenous and visiting community members, thousands more who use the farm…and growing!
Purpose: Supporting academically rigorous research and teaching, as well as community service programs, all of which focus on local and global food security, sustainable food production, agro-ecological issues and more.
What is the problem?
The 24 hectare UBC Farm is threatened with being shrunk in size or moved to agriculturally unviable soils. The Farm’s mission and purpose are in threat of being compromised due to instability caused by UBC’s planning processes.
What is the current status of the Farm?
The future of the UBC Farm is uncertain. That is why the Friends of the Farm and concerned community members are hard at work to influence UBC’s final decision about the fate of the 24-hectare landbase. Saving the Farm means protecting and supporting the farm’s social, ecological, and educational systems. There are five main practical aspects of protecting the UBC Farm. UBC Farm will be “saved” when it has:
1) Land Security
The 24 hectares in South Campus now designated as the “Future Housing Reserve” is re-designated as the “UBC Farm/Centre for Sustainable Food Systems” in all official UBC planning documents and campus maps and has secure long-term land tenure.
2) Assured Ecological Integrity
In all farm-related documents, the UBC Farm is recognized as part of an integrated ecological system, which includes and depends upon the forest ecosystem. Soil fertility and arable land of the farm are recognized as irreplaceable components of the farm ecosystem and the farm’s arable land is provided long-term security from built development.
3) Farm community driving decision making about the Farm
In the immediate and long-term future those who use and work on the site most actively and intimately (students, faculty, farm staff, and community partners) are key drivers of land use and other decisions.
4) Recognition that UBC Farm is an integral component of a sustainable university
UBC Farm is broadly understood to be a key part of meeting UBC’s commitments and aspirations towards being a global leader in sustainability. UBC Farm thrives and grows as a world leading centre for sustainable food systems, community health and environmental literacy making it a target for investment, and a magnet for attracting and retaining, faculty, students, and community partners.
5) Long-Term Funding Stability
The UBC Farm receives appropriate investment for both capital needs and provision of ongoing, stable core operating funding for research, learning, staffing and community service projects.
How you can help:
There are lots of ways, big and small, to lend your support. Some good ideas are listed below, but please feel free to get in touch with us at friendsoftheubcfarm@gmail.com if you want to discuss.
- Sign our petition
- Write a letter of support
- Come to a Friends of the Farm meeting (email us for current time and location)
- Visit the Farm
- Volunteer with Friends of the Farm
- Tell your friends!
*This page is being developed, please check back for updates*
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