Our
Community
Our mission is to support and grow the communities of organic growers and farmers, producers, food activists, community gardeners, eaters, and everyone working to grow local, ecological and equitable food systems.
Share Your Skills and Resources
Are you a grower, farmer, writer, artist, lawyer, craftsperson, musician, producer, landowner, or anyone that has a vision of a just food system, ecological land use, and resilient communities?
Your local food system needs you! Send us an email at villageagrarians@gmail.com to get involved.
Recent Newsletters
Share Your Story
Do you have a story about food sovereignty, seed keeping, community development, land access, land use, etc? We would love to learn about your experience and highlight it on our social media and website.
Share Your Time - Volunteer
Village Agrarians is looking for assistance in developing: legal resources, curriculum, and small business building materials. If you are interested in helping us to develop these resources, and/or lead workshops throughout the year on topics relating to food systems change, ecological land use, and resilient communities, and/or be a resource for beginning and existing small scale growers and producers in running successful businesses and supporting their communities. Please get in touch with us if you would like to become a part of our network of practitioners.
Get in touch if you would like to contribute to our projects or if we can contribute to yours!
Check out the Jobs page for volunteer opportunities around New Zealand.
Thanks to our friends Lindsay Wasko, Alisha M’Lot, Ham Davidson, and Marissa Perez for sharing their farming and gardening photos and artwork with us!
A big thank you to the support we have received from The Land Trust, the Oraka Aparima Community Board, Lotteries Community Fund, MESA, and Rogue Farm Corps.
Village Agrarians Board
Rebecca Perez - Treasurer
Rebecca grew up in the Pacific Northwest, US, and began growing food as an apprentice on organic farms in the United States in Maine, Washington, and Oregon, and has been an organic, small-scale market gardener in Southland at Woodsorrel Farm and Aparima College. She now works part-time on a small organic vegetable farm in Ōtepoti Dunedin. She loves growing and preserving tomatoes more than anything.
Terry Guyton
Terry grew up in the Guyton's food forest in Riverton and was a founding member of the Invercargill Spring Eco Festival. He works as a High School teacher in Invercargill. Terry loves giving an oversize Peasgood Nonsuch apple to one of his students and watching them struggle to finish it.
Hollie Guyton - Secretary
Hollie is based in Ōtepoti Dunedin, but grew up in Riverton/Aparima in Southland. She is passionate about seeds, winter, stories, communities, and Village Agrarian Potlucks. Hollie tended flowers and herbs with friends as Riverwood Croft and Woodsorrel Farm in Riverton, and was an intern at Our Table Cooperative, a mixed flower, herb and vegetable farm in Oregon, US.
Ham Davidson - Chair
Ham is a science communicator, mum, passionate home gardener and tiny house dweller based in Ōtepoti. When Ham isn’t amongst heirloom beans and flowers or chasing after her young toddler, she is researching and communicating environmental science.
Brit Chreptyk
Brit lives in Mihiwaka, near Ōtepoti Dunedin, where she is deeply involved with her family, local school, and community. Brit is passionate about the role food plays in community health and community change, and is often found in her kitchen, elbows deep in gleaned cabbages and coriander making delicious food to share.
Danielle Cameron has tended a large home garden biodynamically for many years near Ōtepoti Dunedin. With the help of the family, she milks a cow, looks after a farmyard of animals, and tends the land. She loves food and it is very important to her to know where food comes from. Life is all about sharing, growing, preparing, cooking, and eating food!
Leigh McKenzie
Leigh resides in Dunedin. She and her partner have been changing their home garden from ornamental to home grown goodies with natives to boot. She is passionate about maps, and helping the planet. Having studied Environmental Management and GIS, she is an ever ready advocate in these areas, now working at the Dunedin City Council as the Waste Minimisation Officer. Hit her up for a friendly chat anytime.
Aleisha Guyton - Treasurer
Aleisha's family has farmed all over Southland. She is working as a seamstress in Invercargill sewing for a local merino clothing company. Aleisha has two young children who know how to spot Miner's Lettuce in a lawn for snacking on if tea-time is too far away.
