The Joint Economic Development Initiative (JEDI) is excited to announce that 2 bursaries to attend Hayes Farm Regenerative Farming Certificate program have been awarded to Sierra Perley-Brooks and Louis-Xavier Aubin-Berube! These bursaries were possible due to a partnership between JEDI and Hayes Farm. JEDI had worked with Hayes Farm to deliver some content for an upcoming plenary on agriculture* and with a surplus of sponsors for the plenary we were able to offer bursaries for two Indigenous participants.
Sierra Perley-Brooks
Hayes Farm is a community-led organization that aims to inspire and mobilize people in New Brunswick toward a resilient and thriving food system. Their goal is to teach people integrative principles of land-based learning and reconnection to the land while honouring Indigenous culture.
Sierra Perley-Brooks is from St. Mary’s First Nation and she applied for this bursary because she felt like it was the perfect fit for her personal journey. “I started working in an office atmosphere and I felt like I was missing something so being at Hayes Farm is connecting me back to the land and I feel that’s exactly what I need,” said Sierra. She believes that as Indigenous Peoples our culture and our way of life is directly connected to the land, and this program is helping her find her way back to that. She believes working with the soil is very grounding and she plans to pass this experience down to her children.
As for Louis-Xavier, he is from Wahsipekuk community located in Quebec and he applied for the bursary because he wanted to immerse himself into farming to learn how everything works including the management part of having a farm. Louis-Xavier said, “I wanted to put myself into gardening and learn about growing food so that’s why I was really happy with having this opportunity for this internship at Hayes Farm.”
Louis-Xavier Aubin-Berube
Sierra and Louis-Xavier both do very similar tasks day to day: weeding, seeding, transplanting, and then maintaining their own crops. They also do a portion of their work online where they learn about pest management, different varieties of vegetables, and Indigenous views on agriculture and climate change. Louis-Xavier said, “as we learn about having a small-scale farm, we learn that it’s really hard to do it on your own for business because it is a lot of time and effort.”
Both recipients love that Hayes Farm is a community orientated organization, they enjoy the atmosphere and working with like-minded people. “It’s more personal and that’s what I like about it because you feel more connected,” said Louis-Xavier.
When they finish the program, Sierra would like to use her knowledge to grow her own food with her husband and children. Sierra said she hopes to “bring this [knowledge] back to the community. I think more people are shifting their minds towards farming and being self-sustainable". Louis-Xavier plans to share his new-found knowledge with others and eventually have a farm of his own.
Sierra and Louis-Xavier are both extremely grateful for the opportunity that JEDI and Hayes Farm have given them, and they are excited to continue to learn and benefit from it. JEDI wishes them the best of luck as they continue learning how to work with the land and grow their own food.
*TO REGISTER FOR THE PLENARY (which is now a 5-Part Webinar): http://www.jedinb.ca/jedi-plenary.html