Our Mission
To implement an integrated and adaptive land management approach with the deliberate and overriding objective of producing biodiversity while also generating other important goods and services.
Our Vision
By investing in a nature-first approach to land management, Sunnyside is dedicated to conserving native biodiversity and ensuring that our working landscape is first and foremost a diverse, healthy and resilient ecosystem.
Our Work
Sunnyside seeks to realize our overall mission and vision through implementing an integrated work program involving the following three components.
Conservation
We produce biodiversity. Sunnyside works across the entirety of its ecosystem to create the best possible conditions for the widest range of native species to thrive. We continually assess and adapt our management practices in response to scientific research we undertake with our partners as well as careful ongoing observation from those who live and work here.
Agriculture
We grow food and forage. With over thirty acres of orchards, vegetable fields and high tunnels, we supply local farmers' markets, restaurants and food assistance programs with fresh, organic produce. With another fifteen acres in pasture, we collaborate with a local farmer to make hay for cattle feed and mulch. In both instances, we employ practices that aim to demonstrate coexistence between agriculture and conservation, even if it occasionally means tradeoffs for both.
Connection
We connect people to nature. Our Community Supported Conservation program provides a unique portal through which to experience and explore nature and build a shared relationship with place. It also seeks to reframe private conservation efforts on working landscapes by recognizing that such efforts both entail real costs and also deliver tangible benefits worth paying for. As such, we hope it becomes an example of how land stewards can incorporate nature as a sustainable product to be intentionally managed for.