On The Ground: Permaculture in Action

2017 UMass Amherst Permaculture Summer Garden Crew member Lizzy Keery on her experiences working in the gardens:

Our Summer 2017 Permaculture Garden Crew!

When I started applying for summer jobs I knew I wanted to do something different. The previous summer I’d scored a competitive internship at a public relations company. While I learned a lot that summer, and still consider that internship an invaluable experience, the biggest thing I learned was that I wanted to do work that mattered in a different way than public relations matters. I didn’t want to spend another summer in an office helping big companies sell products to people who didn’t need them. I wanted to have a direct impact on the community I was a part of.

As a crew member at the UMass Permaculture Garden I know that the work that I do in the garden matters. We grow healthy, fresh and sustainable food for the University. It feels pretty great to give back to the students, faculty and staff that have supported me over the past three years. There’s something magical about seeing pea plants sprout from seeds we plant, watching kale plants grow lush and big, unearthing a perfectly round radish, or discovering a bright red strawberry. Growing food offers a satisfaction I’ve never experienced in any other job. But perhaps the best part is walking into a dining hall and seeing the crop we harvested four hours ago on peoples plates.

​At the beginning of the summer we made a list of group norms for the garden crew. One of them was, “cultivate community while cultivating crops.” The permaculture garden creates community, not just among the crew members who work there, but within the larger UMass community. 

Lizzy showing off freshly cut rainbow Swiss chard from Franklin Permaculture Garden.

It connects the people who eat at the dining halls to the earth and the crew in the garden to the staff at the dining commons. Working in the permaculture garden has made me understand the importance of knowing where our food comes from, how it is being produced, and made me passionate about engaging with my local community.

The garden crew harvesting chamomile to dry for herbal tea blends.

I believe that change starts with small, personal action. The permaculture gardens only makes up a fraction of the food supply at the UMass. But even small scale initiatives like this can make big change. I know that after experiencing the beauty, simplicity and satisfaction that comes with working in the garden, I think about food on my plate differently. If we can change people’s relationships with their food, we can make a large-scale difference in our community. ​

Lizzy Keery
UMass Permaculture Crew Member Summer 2017