Table 1
Key theories for the work of some community seed organizations in the United States.
| THEORY | THEORY REFLECTED IN COMMUNITY SEED WORK | REFERENCES (THEORY/ APPLICATION) |
|---|---|---|
| Biological diversity expands response capacity | Development of locally appropriate, adapted seeds Participatory plant breeding Diversity conservation Risk mitigation | Falconer and MacKay 1996/Ceccarelli 1996; Letourneau et al. 2011 |
| Knowledge diversity is necessary for strong objectivity and justice | Valuing experiential as well as formal knowledge Broad participation, diversity of experiences Grassroots investigations and action Community science | Freire 1970; Harding 1995/Tengö et al. 2014 |
| Common property resource management can contribute to prosocial goals | Reformulation of the management of shared resources Seeds as products of commoning process Respect for community-defined commons limits, e.g., Native American enclosure of Native American seed | Ostrom and Hess 2010/Euler 2018; Montenegro de Wit 2019; Sievers-Glotzbach et al. 2020 |
| Open-source, non-proprietary seeds that may be widely used and shared Reduced barriers to broader, equitable access to and use of seeds | OSSI 2021; SELC 2014 | |
| Cooperative behaviors support social adaptation, justice | Mutual aid as social processes that transform power dynamics in society | Kropotkin 1902/Firth 2020; MADR 2021; Spade 2020 |
Table 2
Richmond Grows Seed Lending Library.
| METRIC | DETAILS |
|---|---|
| Year founded | 2010 |
| Mission statement | “Our Mission is to increase the capacity of our community to feed itself wholesome food by being an accessible and free source of locally adapted plant seeds, supplied and cultivated by and for Richmond area residents. Richmond Grows celebrates biodiversity through the time-honored tradition of seed saving, nurtures locally-adapted plant varieties, and fosters community resilience, self-reliance, and a culture of sharing. We celebrate our human diversity through outreach and inclusion. Richmond Grows strives to fulfill its mission by focusing on two activities:
|
| Website | http://www.richmondgrowsseeds.org/ |
| Organizational structure | Community-based organization overseen by volunteers; fiscally sponsored project of a 501(c)3 nonprofit, Urban Tilth |
| 2020 COVID-19 RESPONSE | |
| Project | Tiny Free Seed Libraries, Richmond, CA |
| People | ~60, seed preparation, distribution network |
| Seeds | 20,000 packets* |
| Other resources, activities | Seed Saving in a Time of Crisis classes (5); Absolute Beginners Gardening classes (6); gardening listserv for class participants and open to community to share gardening tips and resources; webpages for Absolute Beginner Gardeners, in English and Spanish; Grow a Row Program to involve more community members in growing seeds for community; how to save seeds brochure, in English and Spanish. Late 2020—early 2021: hosted cuttings give-away of figs, grapes, pomegranates, currants; distributed > 400 cuttings; perennial Purple Tree Collard cuttings give-away in collaboration with Urban Tilth and City of Richmond |
[i] *Packets were a) one species, or b) a mix of garden species; both included what RGSLL thought a household would plant in a season, plus a little extra.
Source (RGSLL 2021).
Table 3
Experimental Farm Network Cooperative.
| METRIC | DETAILS | |
|---|---|---|
| Year founded | 2013 | |
| Mission statement | “To accelerate innovation in sustainable agriculture by facilitating unprecedented collaboration on research and the free sharing of resources.
| |
| Websites | https://www.experimentalfarmnetwork.org/ http://www.efnseeds.com | |
| Organizational structure | Cooperatively-run 501(c)3 nonprofit, and fiscal sponsor of four additional projects: Palestine Heirloom Seed Library (seed saving project led by Palestinian food justice activist Vivien Sansour); Fair-Amount Food Forest (project to install a permanent food forest in Philadelphia’s Fairmount Park); Munsee Three Sisters Medicinal Farm (project led by the Turtle Clan Chief of the Ramapough Lenape people in north-central New Jersey); and CGC. | |
| 2020 COVID-19 RESPONSE | ||
| Project | Cooperative Gardens Commission (CGC) | |
| CGC mission statement | “The CGC is composed of hundreds of volunteers from across North America working as a collective to facilitate the conscientious sharing of resources—including seeds, soil, equipment, labor, land, and knowledge—and build solidarity across traditional divides. We are farmers, gardeners, activists, and organizers. We believe increasing local food production can help build community power and resilience” | |
| CGC website | https://www.coopgardens.org/ | |
| People | 500+ | |
| Seeds | 1,200 lb in 2020 | |
| Other resources, activities | Educational resources for gardeners, resource-sharing map, more than seven active working groups, bi-monthly public organizing/informational conference calls | |
[i] Sources: (CGC 2021) and https://www.experimentalfarmnetwork.org/.
Figure 1
Tiny Free Seed Libraries (TFSLs) established by Richmond Grows Seed Lending Library (RGSLL) in Richmond, CA in response to the COVID-19 crisis, 2020.
TFSL on the street (left); TFSL in worker-cooperative bike shop Rich City Rides (RCR) with Najari Smith, RCR Founder and Executive Director (top right); TFSL, the Arlington Market, Richmond (lower right). Used with permission of subjects, and photographer, Rebecca Newburn.
Figure 2
Locations of Tiny Free Seed Libraries (TFSLs) established by Richmond Grows Seed Lending Library (RGSLL) in Richmond, CA in response to the COVID-19 crisis, 2020.
Figure 3
Cooperative Gardens Commission seed packaging, spring 2020. CGC Instagram.
Figure 4
Cooperative Gardens Commission resource-sharing map, 2020. https://www.coopgardens.org/.