The work varies. As student staff member Caroline Felker describes it, “We do a lot of different things. Starting the morning, usually with harvesting … and then we wash everything. Now we’re packing for our Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) boxes,” she says, as she weighs bags of turnips.
CSA is a subscription model in which community members purchase a share of a farm’s fruits and vegetables and receive a box each week. The boxes include six to eight different vegetables that vary based on what’s growing, explains Christina Ferrari, Duke Campus Farm’s Sloss Fellow, who leads the farm’s communications and student-facing programming.
Farm Director Saskia Cornes talks to students. Photo: John West (Trinity College Arts & Sciences.
But the farm’s purpose goes beyond production. “While we grow over 30,000 pounds of produce annually, we like to say our main crop is food- and climate-literate students,” says Ferrari.
Students gain technical agricultural skills while also developing a broader understanding of complex systems.
“I think more importantly, they’re learning highly transferable professional skills and leadership skills,” says Cornes.
That learning is academic and personal. For Felker, the farm has shaped her Duke experience. “I’ve learned so much … definitely applicable [to] my academic life,” she says. But just as importantly, “the farm is always home … reminds you that exams aren’t everything and touching dirt is always helpful.”
Making Community Connections
The farm also connects Duke with the Durham community. Through its CSA program and food partnerships, the work students do in the field becomes tangible for others.
Isabelle Brace, the farm’s field education manager, explains that it focuses on educating about the challenges and opportunities of our current food system while also supporting broader community efforts. Each week, crops are divided between paying members and donation networks.
“All leftover produce is donated at no cost to our community partners,” Brace says.
Those partnerships extend across Durham as part of a network that ensures food reaches people who need it. The network includes Root Causes, the Durham Community Fridge Project, Duke’s Graduate and Professional School Pantry, Iglesia Presbiteriana Emanuel church, Bagging it 4 Kids, and the West End Free Market.
At its height, that effort was significant: “We donated over 50,000 pounds of produce over the last two years,” says Brace. Still, Brace is careful to frame the farm’s role realistically. Approximately 14% of Durham residents are food insecure, according to Feeding America. “We are not solving food insecurity in Durham. We’re doing what we can with the resources we have.”
For students such as Felker, seeing that process up close makes the impact real.
“Getting to leave campus and deliver food and feeling like you’re making an actual impact on someone’s life is something really, really special. To be able to give that to people who might not be able to have access to produce like this otherwise,” Felker says.
Duke graduate and retiree Eric Guajardo says, coming out to the farm has been a learning experience:
"I get to learn some of these really good farming practices and I can bring that stuff home and put it to use in my garden."
Volunteer Eric Guajardo, student staff member Caroline Felker and Isabelle Brace, field education manager, pack turnips for the Community Supported Agriculture boxes.
Not Just Flowers
A few miles away, the Charlotte Brody Discovery Garden at Duke Gardens brings many of these same ideas into a highly visible public setting. An estimated 650,000 people visit Duke Gardens annually.
Duke Garden's Curator Jason Holmes.
Garden Curator Jason Holmes describes the Discovery Garden as “a sustainable, edible garden.”
From composting systems to pollinator habitats, the garden showcases practical, scalable approaches to food production.
Like the farm, the garden is also deeply embedded in the community. Although the growing space is relatively small (two-tenths of an acre), it makes an impact. Since 2012, it has tracked everything it has harvested and donated, with more than 34,600 pounds of produce going to local food-relief organizations.
“This garden demonstrates that you can grow a lot of food with limited space through techniques like vertical gardening, trellising and container gardening,” Holmes says.
Who Benefits?
Pam Ryan, who runs the food pantry at Iglesia Presbiteriana Emanuel church, sees the results of that work through food distribution.
“Whatever’s ready to be harvested (from the Duke Gardens farm), they’ll harvest it and get it right over here,” Ryan explains. “They’re really particular about the quality of what they bring, how it’s harvested, how it’s packaged, the whole thing. When it comes here, it’s beautiful.”
For the families receiving that food, the difference is noticeable. “It’s a lot of lettuce and mixed greens, which is our clients’ preference. It’s worked out really well,” Ryan says. “They’re grateful to get something fresh.”
The relationship between Duke and Durham extends beyond food. Volunteers from across the university regularly support distribution efforts by sorting, packaging and handing out food. As Ryan puts it, “they’re involved in just about every aspect of the work that we do.”
Sue Williams McKissick, director of the Durham Community Food Pantry, says her organization benefits both directly and indirectly from Duke’s efforts. Some of the food the pantry receives comes from Root Causes and Bagging it 4 Kids, two nonprofits that receive donations from Duke. In addition, most of her volunteers come from the university.
“Duke has always been instrumental in supporting us and in the community,” McKissick says.
What connects the Campus Farm and the Discovery Garden is not just that they grow food. Students learn by doing — planting, harvesting, teaching, and distributing. Community members engage directly, whether by volunteering, receiving food or visiting to learn.
Pam Ryan packs strawberries at the food pantry at Iglesia Presbiteriana Emanuel church.
“People from this region see what’s possible, and international visitors often recognize plants from their home countries. That connection helps bridge cultures and experiences through food and plants,” Holmes says.
Sign at Charlotte Brody Discovery Garden at Duke Gardens.
Braden Scherting, Duke Campus Farm student field crew.
Isabelle Brace, Duke Campus Farm field education manager.