This summer, I led a Land Stewardship project with Global Growers Network in Decatur, Georgia, focused on uncovering the layered history of the urban land where we now grow food. Our aim was to trace how people, past and present, have connected to this land—and to better understand how that relationship shapes our environmental choices today.In many urban areas, development has erased visible signs of Indigenous stewardship, Black agrarian traditions, and community-driven land care. Through archival research, storytelling, interviews, and time spent on the land itself, we explored how different communities have engaged with this space over generations.
Working alongside a group of dedicated apprentices, I facilitated workshops and field activities to foster curiosity, responsibility, and imagination around land justice. Together, we documented our findings in two creative formats: a short documentary and a zine, both designed to be accessible tools for dialogue, learning, and organizing.
This project helped ground our regenerative farming efforts in something deeper than sustainability—it reminded us that caring for the land means honoring its full story. Stewardship, we learned, is not just about planting seeds, but also about listening: to the soil, to the elders, and to the histories hidden in plain sight.
As we look ahead to future environmental action, we carry this knowledge forward—choosing to grow not only food, but also place-based wisdom, community accountability, and collective care.
