August ’25 Love Notes

You can’t have food security without land security.
Dr. John Boyd Jr.

Sweet Greetings Beloved Community

As summer winds down, the land starts to shift—slower mornings, softer light, and crops reaching their final stretch. The earth has a way of responding—quietly, intentionally—when she knows change is on its way. After months of giving and growing, she doesn’t push past her limits. She begins to pull back, to prepare. There’s wisdom in how the soil prepares for rest—no urgency, just surrender. There is something to learn here. The land doesn’t apologize for her shifts. She doesn’t fear the quiet or the letting go. She teaches us that transformation is necessary for survival. As she transitions, so can we: tender, deliberate, unapologetically rooted in our own unique and intimate cycles. Let this be our inheritance too—rest as resistance, change as ceremony.

As we prepare with the land for summer winding down and a slower season ahead, we’re creating space to gather, reflect, and nourish what’s next. With this intention, our upcoming programs are rooted in care, connection, and collective learning. Join us for a Herbalism and Somatic Wellness workshop on September 19th as well as Hands On Introduction to Carpentry workshop on September 26th. Come through and root into this season of transition with us.

May your breath be your anchor.

With love and solidarity,

Briana, Cheryl, Christina, Clara, Crysta, Danielle, Hana’, Hillary, Jaz, Jey, Jonah, Leah, Maya, Naima, Neshima, O’den, Ria, Shay, Susuyu, and Winter

Neshima and Leah just signed a contract to co-author
Soul Fire Farm’s newest book project –
Children of the Land: A Soul Fire Farm Parenting Guide.

Grounded in Afro-Indigenous wisdom that emphasizes village child-rearing and intergenerational cooperation, this book is a loving dialogue between a mother, child, and the land that holds them. Children of the Land will be published by Seven Stories Press in 2027.

“Even our little seeds scare them!”

In Palestine, there exists a cultural concept and political strategy called صمود (Sumud), or steadfast perseverance.

This past winter, I traveled to the West Bank to explore Palestinian Sumud through its roots in beekeeping and farming — despite the ongoing impacts of Israeli ecocide and genocide.

Throughout my journey, I was gifted seeds by beekeepers, farmers, and by the Palestinian seed bank of the Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UWAC). The UWAC Seed Bank provides free seeds to hundreds of agricultural workers to preserve the genetic diversity of over 80 traditional varieties. These seeds were brought to Turtle Island and, with guidance from Palestinian land stewards and in partnership with Soul Fire Farm and Truelove Seeds, are growing and being saved—until they can return home.

As we work on documentation, I simultaneously learn that Israel has destroyed over 530 Palestinian villages—and also that each Palestinian village is honored by a specific plant that grows there. Of the 15 crops that traveled here, three are being saved by Soul Fire Farm: a rare white cucumber from Wadi Fukin (خيار أبيض), fava bean from Artas (فول ارطاسي), and the Country Tomato (بندورة بلدي).

On August 1st, 2025, the Israeli government—piling up yet another set of international war crimes—bulldozed the seed multiplication unit and control center of UWAC’s seed bank in Al Khalil (Hebron), ravaging the very fields where heirloom crops were being cultivated for future generations.

Back at Soul Fire, as the fava beans bloom with white flowers marked by bold black circles, the cucumbers turn pale, and the tomatoes deepen their ridges and ripen, grief and joy dance around each other in the high tunnel where they grow. They remind us that “seeds are saved for the same reason that they are destroyed—they make the future possible” (Diandra Marizet).

We will live to see the day when these crops—and their people—can grow safely again in Palestine, from the mountains to the deserts, from the river to the sea.

In the words of Vivian Sansour: “Even our little seeds scare them!”

– Hana’ Maaiah, farmer, beekeeper and now aspiring seed saver at Soul Fire Farm

An Herbalism & Somatic Wellness Workshop
Facilitated by Brooke Bridges & Crysta Bloom

This hands-on workshop is designed for medicine-makers who are ready to deepen their herbal knowledge and integrate holistic wellness practices into their work with plant medicine. Open to all levels of experience, this offering bridges foundational skills with embodied healing.

The participant will learn how to sustainably harvest herbs and craft medicinal tinctures, salves, and infusions that support a balanced nervous system. In addition, the workshop introduces cognitive and somatic healing practices that can be used alongside herbal remedies to address anxiety, depression, and nervous system dysregulation.

In a time when our collective sense of safety is being challenged, medicine makers are being called to approach their work from a holistic viewpoint—one that honors the whole person and centers emotional well-being as essential to physical healing. By integrating somatic and wellness practices into herbalism, the participant strengthens their capacity to offer care that is not only effective, but deeply compassionate and rooted in a commitment to collective healing and resilience. This workshop provides a grounded, integrative approach to plant medicine, supporting practitioners in bridging the wisdom of herbs with mind and body-based healing to support the well-being and resilience of our communities.

Each participant will leave with handmade herbal remedies and practical tools for supporting individual and collective resilience.

Learn more and register here.

Introduction to Irrigation Workshop: Water Bending

Join us at Soul Fire Farm with D from Rock Steady Farm and Hana’ Maaiah from Soul Fire farm for an Introduction to Irrigation Workshop: Water Bending Workshop! This irrigation workshop is tailored to urban, sub-urban and rural growers. We will:

Learn how to put your irrigation system to bed
Introduce a brief history of traditional irrigation systems, and water justice.
Explore different forms of irrigation and when they are used (like sprinklers, driptape, overhead)
Consider different irrigation needs depending on the scale and style of growing
Demonstrate hands on irrigation installation and repairs

Learn more and register here.

EQUILIBRIUM

Embodied Balance in Celebration of the Equinox. This day of movement will invite us to reflect on and embody balance in our world, in our beings, in our reciprocity with the Earth and each other. On Sunday Sept 20, 12:00 – 7:30 pm we will dance, play capoeira, meditate, practice Thai Massage, rest and nourish ourselves with farm-to-table culinary creations and beloved community.

Details & Registration here: https://bit.ly/soulequilibrium25

Community Work & Learn

The days may be getting shorter but the land is ever abundant. Join us in September by clicking on the links below to register.

Click on the links below to register for upcoming programs
9/2
9/16

Come experience some of the plants, animals and humans that grow at Soul Fire Farm.

We will guide you through the growing fields and agroforestry gardens, take you up close to the building projects, share whole-hearted stories, and answer your questions.

Our next tours will be on September 19th and our last tour is on October 2nd.

Our only Hands on Introduction to Carpentry Workshop for the season is scheduled for Friday, September 26th.

This daylong deep dive will be an opportunity to learn safe hand and power tool use, layout, measuring, fastening, and some of the basics of working with wood through a beginner building project. Learn more and register here!

Uprooting Racism in the Food System

We all have a significant and intrinsic role to play in uprooting racism in the food system, and the good news is that there are many right answers to the questions, “What can I do to help?” We’ve been deep diving into this question and sharing solidarity strategies far and wide. Save the date for our upcoming workshops.

October 15, 2025
November 18, 2025
November 19, 2025

You can also check out our Actions Steps to uproot racism in the food system here.

Sovereign: Reclaiming Black Land

In this podcast, rich in storytelling, history, and ritual, we explore what it means to be sovereign. With Black land at the center, this series brings together prominent activists, artists, weavers and the rising generation of Black land stewards. Crafting inspiring conversations that honor the past and create blueprints for the future.

Monthly IG Live series @soulfirefarm with audio later shared on podcast streaming platforms. Hosted by Clara AgborTabi and Crysta Bloom

Our next episode, Wahala, features Bertram Williams and Farmer D, airing on September 30th at 4 PM EST. In this conversation, we unpack how misogynoir shows up in our movement spaces—how it shapes relationships, undermines collective work, and impacts the pursuit of Black land sovereignty. We also get into Black men’s relationship to land and wellness, and how that shapes dynamics within our movements. Together, we’re looking at what it means to build liberated land-based futures without reproducing the harms we’re working to undo.

Listen to all the latest episodes here or watch previous IG Live shows @soulfirefarm

We are so thrilled to be welcoming Angie Comeaux and Ayo Ngozi to the Braiding Seeds Fellowship Co-Directors team!

From fellows to alumni to now supporting internal operations more closely, Angie and Ayo’s journey with the Braiding Seeds Fellowship has continued to flourish in beautiful ways. Applications for the Braiding Seeds Fellowship are also now open! Links to: Application and FAQ. The Braiding Seeds Fellowship, a project of Soul Fire Farm Institute in collaboration with the Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund, uplifts and supports beginning Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color farmers, growers, and land stewards across the Northeast and Southeast of the US who are committed to advancing food sovereignty, cultural preservation, and community care. During this 18-month long fellowship, participants receive a $50,000 stipend, 1:1 mentorship, professional development resources, business planning support, and a close network of peers to help their visions flourish. 10 new fellows will be selected and 12 mini-grants of $2,500 each will be awarded to runners-up. Applications close October 15th– please mark your calendar!

BLACK AUGUST

This Black August we celebrate Black freedom fighters and political prisoners, and recommit to resisting racism, imperialism, and the systemic oppression of Black people. We honor the Black Guerilla Family of San Quentin Prison 1979 who founded Black August and all of the changemakers who are remembered this month – George Jackson, Chokwe Lumumba, Nelson Mandela, Thomas Sankara, Emmet Till, and Fred Hampton, among others.

We especially honor and remember Bwa Kayiman, the Haitian Vodou ceremony that commenced the Haitian revolution on August 14, 1791. This essay by Leah Penniman explores 10 proverbs and principles birthed at Bwa Kayiman that have instructive wisdom for our freedom movements today.

The Praxis series reflects on how our community can best put our values into action, sharing resources, ideas, and practice toward collective liberation. These will be shared each month in Love Notes and also on social media.

On May 16, we welcomed Shawn Stevens,
Red Eagle of the Stockbridge Munsee Mohican community
for an evening of storytelling, music, and prophecy.

This gathering holds deep cultural and spiritual meaning. For many of the Stockbridge-Munsee community members, this will be their first time returning to their homelands, a place their ancestors were removed from over two centuries ago. They will come together to dance, sing, share traditions, and reconnect with the land, and with both Native and non- Native community members.

To make contributions online: www.homelandspowwow.org
or make checks out to: Homelands PowWow
77 Housatonic St., Lenox, MA 01240
For more information Contact us at info@homelandspowwow.org

Soul Fire Farm is located on unceded territory of the Mohican Nation. We remain committed to working in solidarity with the Mohican people and other Indigenous communities in our region.

Alumni Spotlight: Dominique Pearson [2021 FIRE 3]

Coyote Gourd Farms is a labor of love from my family to our community. A small urban farm in the heart of South Central Los Angeles, growing foods and herbs of the African Diaspora. We feed Black folks the foods of our people, from the Continent to the Caribbean to the American South. We recently broke ground on a new community garden site, installing raised beds and planting greens, green beans, peppers and herbs with our homies in Hyde Park.

As a Black Native, daughter of land stewards and raised in a concrete jungle, connecting deeply and genuinely to the land is central to my life and healing. Coyote Gourd Farms is named after the sacred calabash of the Tongva people, the Coyote Gourd. A deep spiritual connection to the calabash is shared by Black folks and Tongva folks alike, and symbolizes the commitment of Black folks of the diaspora to live in alignment with the lands that have become our home, from Turtle Island to Abya Yala. Our culture connects us to a future in harmony with Native kin here in these lands, and everywhere around the world.

Please sign up for our newsletter, our summer CSA, or cop some herbs and other goodies from our online store! https://www.blackrootsherbals.com/

From September 7th to September 28th, Herban Cura will be
hosting a four part Fall Herbalism Immersion in NYC

Facilitated by Herban Cura Founder Antonia Estela Pérez, participants in this introductory bioregional herbalism program will have the opportunity to learn basic plant identification, medicine making skills, and ecological frameworks in support of community care and climate resiliency.

PARTNERSHIP UPDATES

CALLING ALL NYC BASED COMMUNITY MEMBERS
Farm School NYC Emergency Meeting:

Farm School NYC is at risk of closure, and hosting an emergency town hall to gather and strategize with community members on how best to move forward. The Emergency Town Hall is Friday, September 12th at the People’s Forum 5-8:30pm with a virtual component. Please RSVP here.

Please, be encouraged to donate to Farm School NYC, and support fortifying their roots for a regenerative future! Click this link to donate.

Birthing Sovereignty: Soul Fire Farm’s Model For Land-Based Liberation RAFI-USA
From Punk To Plants: What The Next 20 Years Of AFROPUNK Wellness Could Look Like Afro Punk
Murmurations: The Haitian Revolution Continues – Lessons for Today adrienne maree brown

BIPOC-led farming organizations are under threat. Please consider donating to these trusted and vetted movement partners who are in need in these times. With your support, we can make an impact on the Black food system.

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