West Marin COMMUNITY ACTION TEAM

    The MarinHEAL Community Action Teams (CATs) lead garden projects in The Canal, Marin City, and West Marin to foster the development of community selected equitable food system priorities. Learn about the work led by the West Marin CAT below.

    2024-2026

      Boosting Local Food Production

      Over the next year, San Geronimo Valley Community Center (SGVCC) will continue as the MarinHEAL West Marin Co-lead, collaborating with Nicasio School and Shoreline Unified School District to increase local food production efforts at Nicasio Elementary and West Marin School.

      Of food have been grown in West Marin!

      2022-2023

      Community Engagement

      Through a joint leadership approach, West Marin Community Services and San Geronimo Valley Community Center held Community Action Team meetings with regional leaders, which included long-time West Marin community members representing the Spanish speaking community. In these meetings, engagement and outreach efforts were conducted reaching 10 towns within West Marin to present the proposed recommendations to the larger community. After incorporating feedback gathered from the engagement efforts, the West Marin CAT agreed to the 3 food system priorities outlined below.

      Priorities for a Comprehensive Community Food System in West Marin

      1. Access to community gardens to grow fresh fruits and vegetables.
      2. Establishing land trusts for agricultural workers and other community members to own land to grow and procure food.
      3. Create a water catchment system to support people in growing their own food, even in drought conditions.

      2023-2024

        West Marin Garden Rennovations

        San Geronimo Valley Comunity Centered partnered with Nicasio School District, Ecumenical Affordable Housing (EAH) and Shoreline Unified School District to form a local garden collective in West Marin. Funding provided by MarinHEAL supported with the rennovation of three existing garden sites, and led to the development of a new garden at Point Reyes Affordable Housing.

        Defining an Equitable Food System

        The reccomendations listed below served as a starting point to be further refined through a broader engagement process co-led by each Community Action Team (CAT).

        Draft Reccomendations

        1. Engage in land trusts to secure land for agricultural workers to own and produce food
        2. Hold community gatherings and meal shares that are donation based with those with money sponsoring cooks
        3. Develop water catchment systems to coordinate community gardens for gleaning, food/plant/seed sharing.

        West Marin Interviews

        Interview themes prompted further discussion and inquiries about root causes and strategies for change that were planned, implemented, and evaluated by the Community Action Teams (CAT’s).

        Interview Themes

        1. Transportation, affordability, and cultural divides are the largest barriers between community members and healthy eating.
        2. Food plays a role of addressing political and power disparities, improving health for low-income families, and bringing people together.
        3. There is a desire for collective ownership over land and resources to support and expand mutual aid networks.
        4. Community food systems means local solutions to address wealth/racial disparities and reskilling the community to have agency over local foods.
        5. Community empowerment means interconnected skills for liberation, self-autonomy, and gathering different cultures.

        2022-2023

        Stakeholder Interviews and Recommendations

        Over the course of four months, MarinHEAL Collaborative leadership interviewed 22 identified community stakeholders in the Canal District, Marin City, and West Marin. The same questions were asked of each participant and sought to identify what a community food system and community empowerment could look like in each community. Of the 24 interviews conducted, 6 of the stakeholders were representatives of West Marin.