In May, Art & Ag had the privilege of visiting the Center for Land Based Learning. The farm was bustling with lots of spring activity including planting hedgerows and olive trees, native plants blooming and bringing out all the pollinators, and several Bluebird nests with babies in them!
For 30 years, the Center for Land Based Learning has built adaptive people and ecosystems by inspiring and training agricultural leaders focused on sustaining our natural resources and working to build a resilient food system supported by and for California communities. Their mission is to inspire, educate, and cultivate future generations of farmers, agricultural leaders, and natural resource stewards.
CLBL began in 1993, Craig McNamara founded the FARMS Leadership Program, welcoming high school students to his farm to connect with the land and learn about stewardship. The SLEWS Program began in 2001, engaging high school students in habitat restoration projects on local farms and ranches. Then in 2012, The California Farm Academy graduated its first class of the Beginning Farmer Training Program. The Center for Land-Based Learning moved to a 30-acre headquarters at The Maples Farm in Woodland In 2020 where it sits today.
During our visit, we were joined by Julia Thomas, CLBL's Development and Communications Manager, who provided information about the farm. She has been working for over 20 years to support food and agriculture production in Sacramento and Yolo Counties. Julia is a hobby farmer at her "Rinky Dink Ranch" in Rumsey. She has been interested in the outdoors since childhood and became inspired to work in agriculture after going on a Community Garden Bike Tour in San Francisco.
Some highlights included:
Olive Trees from the 1860s
Barns
Tractors & Farm Equipment
"Grandmother" Valley Oak
Train Cars
Access to Levee and Lake Views
Bluebirds and Killdeer
Historic Roses from Sacramento Cemetery
Learn more about the Center for Land Based Learning.
Photos courtesy of YoloArts.
