Food Sovereignty

Seeds of Community

Originally supported by the Bauta Family Initiative on Canadian Seed Security, Seeds of Community supports the development of knowledge and skills related to community seed sovereignty. Since 2013, countless Island gardeners with varying degrees of experience have benefitted from the exchange of knowledge and skills as a result of our projects. All this has been possible because of the support of many, including librarians with the PEI Public Library Services, and a number of our Island organic farmers.

Seed Libraries

  • In collaboration with the PEI Public Library Service, Cooper Institute has created a network of seed libraries across PEI. These are maintained, on a seasonal basis, in public libraries in Summerside, Breadalbane and Charlottetown.

Seed Saving Workshops and Seed Sharing Events

  • In addition, Cooper Institute collaborates with public libraries in Summerside, Montague and Charlottetown and with the Community Council in Breadalbane to organize seed saving workshops and seed sharing events. 
  • Community seed exchanges have also been organized by mail when in-person events were impossible due to COVID-19 health concerns.

For new about upcoming events, please visit the Seeds of Community Facebook page.

Resources

To learn more about the importance of seed-saving, follow the links below:

Click here to read an article from Food Secure Canada about seed sovereignty and the dangers of seed monopoly, and see the National Farmers' Union's campaign to Save Our Seed, here.

 

 

PEI Seed Alliance

Organized in 2015 through the generous assistance of the Bauta Family Initiative on Canadian Seed Security, and with the support of Cooper Institute, the PEI Seed Alliance offered their first cooperatively produced collection of seeds for the 2016 growing season. Their goal is to continue to expand their collection by trialing open-pollinated, open-source vegetable varieties, as well as pollinator flower varieties to continue to build a living collection of Island adapted seed.

The Alliance hopes to grow their organization by tapping into the PEI community to collect other open pollinated varieties of seeds that have been grown and saved by other Island gardeners and farmers, as well as supporting new seed growers in their efforts to select, save and clean their own seed.

Visit the Alliance website to find out more.