Sauvie Island Center

Mission

Located on historic Sauvie Island farm land, once home to the Multnomah People of the Chinook Nation,  the Sauvie Island Center is a farm -based education nonprofit that educates youth and the whole community about food, farming and the land. We celebrate diversity, and cultivate food equity with our words, intentions and actions, prioritizing service to under-resourced communities.

Bottom Line for Portland

On a typical day, if you visit our teaching garden located on Topaz Farm, you might find 2nd graders from James John Elementary harvesting goji berries from the first foods section of our Grow Lunch Garden, 5th graders from Harrison Park School tasting - and dissecting - edible flowers, or Rigler Elementary kindergartners planting garlic. Since our founding in 2005, we have helped more than 20,000 children learn about the science behind how our foods grows while developing positive attitudes towards fresh, locally-grown vegetables. Together, we are growing healthier children and more resilient communities.

Quote

“Dirty fingernails = authentic learning.”  - Teacher

“Eating vegetables is like a rainbow in your mouth”, summer camper

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

We aim to engage youth and the community in building equitable and sustainable food systems through culturally-responsive programming and hands-on learning.  More than 70% of the students enrolled in our partner schools identify as BIPOC, and more than 50% of them live in households with annual incomes below the national threshold for poverty. As a farm-based education nonprofit, we believe that all children have the right to know where their food comes from and how it is grown. 

Incentives

The early bird gets the worm! For the first three weeks in November (one per week), individuals donating more than $50 to the Sauvie Island Center will be enterred to win these fabulous prizes courtesy of our  business partners.

November 1st - pizza party from Dove Vive

November 7th - shopping spree from Garden Fever

Business Partner(s)

We are so grateful to Topaz Farm for hosting our farm-based education program, and for their financial support.

Each term students from Portland State University's Capstone program lead field trips and help us to maintain our teaching garden.

We are grateful to other business partners who have provided financial support for our programs in 2022 including: Providence Health & Service, Tillamook Creamery, Remax Equity Group, Environmental Resource Management, and Columbia Bank