Eco-Road Trip - Ecovillage Farm Learning Center

Ecovillage Farm Learning Center – Summary:

Who: N/A
What: Drove from Davis, CA, to the Bay Area of California; Stopped by the Ecovillage Farm, but it was closed
When: Friday, March 30
Where: Richmond, CA

Quick Resources:

My Route:

Planning my Eco-Inspired Road Trip Blog Post

My Travel Story:

I left Muir Commons Community that morning and drove towards the bay area, hoping to make a drop-in visit to the Ecovillage Farm Learning Center.

“EcoVillage Farm Learning Center, a project of Earth Island Institute, is a non-for-profit organization, which was founded in 2002 by its current Executive Director, Shyaam M. Shabaka.

Our mission is to create a healthy sustainable environment and socially/economically just society for present and future generations. EcoVillage Farm Learning Center is a place where urban residents of all cultural backgrounds feel welcome and come to learn through (participatory) “mind/hands on” activities how to restore and protect Mother Earth and her people.

EcoVillage Farm Learning Center is an “Oasis of Connectivity” in the City of Richmond, a city that is often perceived of as a food, safety and environment desert.” – Ecovillage Farm Webpage

My drive to the Bay area took me back onto a Blue Star Memorial Highway in California – a tribute to the national armed forces who served defending our country.

I also got to see some scenic views on my drive, as well as cross some major freighter channels.

After several hours of driving and being stuck in some one-lane traffic, I finally made it to Ecovillage Farm, which was nestled in a sparse residential neighborhood behind a local elementary school.

I went up to the door and knocked, having seen several cars in the driveway – but no one answered. So I call the number listed on the website, and the director told me he wasn’t there for the week.

Realizing it was more of a working educational farm, I wasn’t terribly disappointed, because I originally had higher expectations with it having “ecovillage” in its name.

But before I left, the center had some painted calendar murals on the fence line facing the school – which were very detailed and decorative. So took pictures, and googled their origin later on.

“Like nature, the ecological calendar marks time by the seasonal changes in life on earth – from winter snows to spring flowers, from summer sun to autumn leaves. Designed for use in the northern hemisphere, it presents information on seasonably visible starts, the phases of the moon and tides, the rations of darkness and lights, the seasonal behaviors of earth’s creatures and a host of other details about the natural world.” – EcoCalendar Webpage