Growing a Farm Podcast: The 20-year Journey of the UBC Farm

UBC Farm Podcast

Growing a Farm: The 20-year Journey of the UBC Farm


This limited podcast series tells the against-all-odds story of how the UBC Farm was started – and ultimately saved – by a group of people who just wouldn’t give up on the dream.

Listen to the Teaser here:

Listen below and find the podcast on Apple Podcasts, and many more platforms!
“The Farm wasn’t saved by faculty members. It wasn’t saved by administrators. It was saved by students.”
– Dr. Art Bomke, Associate Professor Emeritus, Faculty of Land and Food Systems
“The first time I went, you opened the gate that just looked like it hadn’t been opened in ages, with these old buildings and blackberries taking over it. And it was this amazing place, and had that feeling of somewhere that had a lot of life to it.”
– Kristina Bouris, the UBC Farm’s first Education Coordinator

About the Podcast:

Twenty years ago, UBC’s south campus looked very different than it does today. Among a scattering of empty buildings and some remaining cattle, sheep, quail and poultry, there was derelict farmland, 24 hectares of field and forest with research projects running but not much else – but a small group of students saw the potential.

Celebrating anniversary logo

Growing A Farm: the 20-Year Journey of the UBC Farm, is a limited podcast series that tells the story of the beginnings of the Farm in 2001 and the against-the-odds story of saving it.

The podcast is hosted by current LFS student, Anisha Sandhu, who wanted to explore the Farm’s history on its 20th anniversary by speaking to the students, staff and faculty members who were key to turning a vision into reality.

“The story of the UBC Farm shows we are capable of anything we put our minds to: the team work makes the dream work,” says Sandhu. “It’s also a story that needs to be shared as students come and go. It’s such a unique space and brings so much to the UBC experience.”

Over two episodes, we follow as they uncover this derelict land, learn how to start a farm, battle against devious wireworm pests, set out to show the value of food and sustainability before it was a hot topic and start a movement to prove the value to the university and, ultimately, save the farm.

See how we’ve grown over the years: a timeline since our inception in 2001 can be found in this LFS ReachOut article. Learn more about our history here.

The Episodes

Show notes:

To further your knowledge of Musqueam Territory upon which the UBC Farm is situated, check out Land Beneath Our Feet, a Musqueam guide brought to you by the UBC Library.

Credits:

  • Hosted by Anisha Sandhu (LFS Student and former CSFS Knowledge Mobilization Assistant, CSFS at UBC Farm).
  • Produced by Melanie Kuxdorf (Communications and Marketing Manager, CSFS at UBC Farm) and Anisha Sandhu, with special production thanks to Duncan McHugh (Digital & Instructional Media Producer, Faculty of Land and Food Systems).

Music:

  • “Denali at Dawn (feat. RIVER LUME)” by SPEARFISHER
  • “Beyond” by Ian Post

Special Thanks:

Thanks to the staff at the UBC Farm and LFS who provided feedback and support, and a very special thanks to everyone who was interviewed for this project and especially to all those who started, supported and helped save the Farm: Thank you for your vision and perseverance – we wouldn’t be here without you.