The sanctuary network
Many small, productive sites, each rooted in its own neighborhood and connected to the others.
Why many small sites
They can be funded. A site of three or four acres is within reach of community fundraising and modest grants. A single large property may take years to afford.
They fit their neighborhoods. A small site can be shaped around the schools, families and food programs nearby.
They spread risk. If one site floods, struggles or has to close, the network continues.
They teach faster. Several sites in different soils and towns show what works far sooner than one.
What a site could include
Not every site needs every element. Acreage, soil, water, zoning, local need, staffing and funding decide the mix.
- Productive gardens and food forests
- Fruits, vegetables, herbs and edible perennials
- Cut flowers and botanical cultivation
- Pollinator planting, and honey where appropriate
- Soil improvement and ecological restoration
- Paid work and professional development for women
- Community food distribution
- Produce and flowers for schools and partners
- Workshops and intergenerational teaching
- Volunteer days and partnerships
- Demonstration plots and practical research
- Small-scale sales that help a site sustain itself
How sites will work together
Sites will share operating practices, planting records, tools and equipment where distance allows, training for new staff, and a common standard for reporting. A lesson learned on one site’s soil should save the next site a season.
Each site will also answer to its own community: the schools, families and partners nearby will help decide what it grows and where its harvest goes.
Sites
Each site is labeled by its actual status: concept, prospective property, under due diligence, land secured, in development, operational.