agroecology commons

What agroecology commons does

Agroecology Commons is a collectively governed 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2020 and headquartered in Oakland, California, that operates a portfolio of free programs aimed at BIPOC, queer/trans, and beginning farmers across the Bay Area. Its core offering is the Bay Area Farmer-to-Farmer Training (BAFFT), a nine-month hybrid program (in-person plus online) covering agroecological farming, seed sovereignty, soil stewardship, Black agrarianism, and global food sovereignty movements. Graduates progress into a paid Farmer Mobilization Apprenticeship network of nine mentor farms in Northern California and onto a 3-acre Cooperative Incubator Farm in El Sobrante used as both a classroom and a land access hub. Complementary programs include Farmer-to-Farmer Skillshares, a participatory Food Sovereignty Seed Grant Program (cumulative $468,840 awarded since 2020, including a $425,000 2025 cycle), a $5,000–$20,000 Urban Agriculture Seed Grant stream funded by CDFA, an annual Farmer Wellness Day, and a Tool Lending Library.

The underlying technology stack is intentionally lightweight and built on consumer/SMB SaaS: Squarespace for the public website, the Farmer Campus learning platform hosted on mn.co, QuickBooks Online for finance, Google Workspace/Asana/Slack for internal operations, Zeffy for donations, MyTurn for tool lending, and Zoom for online sessions. There is no proprietary software product; differentiation comes from the curriculum content (rooted in Indigenous and peasant traditions), the cooperative governance model, the global solidarity network (La Via Campesina, ATC Nicaragua, ANAP Cuba), and the physical incubator farm.

The organization is funded entirely through grants and individual donations — primarily from USDA programs (Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development, Urban Agriculture and Innovation, Community Food Projects), CDFA (Beginning Farmer and Farmworker Training, Urban Agriculture Seed Grants, Office of Farm to Fork), and foundations including Patagonia, Stupski, Clif Bar Family Foundation, Western SARE, Fruit Guys, and others. All services are provided free of charge to participants. The 2025 cancellation of 49 of 50 USDA program grants — two of which targeted AC — and the subsequent federal court reinstatement of one grant, illustrates both the organization's reliance on federal funding and its emerging capacity for legal/policy mobilization.

Name

agroecology commons

Legal name

Agroecology Commons

Website

https://agroecologycommons.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Agroecology Commons is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2020 in Oakland that provides free agroecological farmer training, paid apprenticeships, cooperative land access, and direct seed grants to BIPOC and beginning farmers across the Bay Area.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Education and Land Stewardship

NAICS

Soil Preparation, Planting, and Cultivating (115112), Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting (11), Vegetable and Melon Farming (1112)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (BPAGAGAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems (Fair Trade, Food Access, Regenerative) (BPAGALAD), Soil Health & Regenerative Agronomy Consulting (AFACABAA), Sustainable/Regenerative Agriculture & Conservation Practices (EDAOAOAO)

Keywords

• Agroecological education
• Farmer training programs
• Land stewardship services
• Food sovereignty initiatives
• Cooperative farm development

Headquarters

HQ city

Oakland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Individual Donations: Individual donors contribute to support programs. Donations are collected via Zeffy platform on the website. AC is a 501(c)(3) organization (EIN: 85-3343221).
2. Foundation and Government Grants: Primary revenue stream. Funders include CDFA Beginning Farmer and Farmworker Training Program, USDA Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program, USDA Urban Agriculture and Innovation Program, USDA Community Food Projects, Western Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education, Patagonia Foundation, Bay Area Climate Council, Stupski Foundation, Food and Farming Communications Fund, Rising Foundation, Clif Bar Family Foundation, Fruit Guys Foundation, Mighty Arrow Foundation, Planet Bees Foundation, Xerces Society, and others.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Agroecology Commons is a Bay Area-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that delivers farmer education, hands-on apprenticeship training, and cooperative land stewardship programs centered on agroecology, food sovereignty, and decolonized land practices. The organization runs a portfolio of programs including the Bay Area Farmer Training (BAFFT), the Farmer Mobilization Apprenticeship, Farmer-to-Farmer Skillshares, seed grants, a cooperative incubator farm, a tool lending library, and a digital Farmer Campus. Its offerings are free to participants and funded through foundation grants, government funding, and individual donations.

Product overview

Agroecology Commons is a Bay Area nonprofit offering interconnected programs for farmer education and food sovereignty. Core offerings include the Bay Area Farmer-to-Farmer Training (BAFFT), a 9-month program combining in-person and online learning; Farmer Mobilization Apprenticeships linking graduates with mentor farms; Farmer-to-Farmer Skillshares for horizontal knowledge exchange; and the Seed Grant Program providing $5,000-$20,000 grants to farmers. Supporting infrastructure includes the Farmer Campus online platform, Tool Lending Library, and 3-acre Cooperative Incubator Farm where graduates practice agroecological stewardship. Additional programs include Land Commons for land access, Farmer Wellness Day events, and specialized skillshares on topics like vermicomposting, beekeeping, and watershed care. These programs work together to support farmers from initial training through apprenticeships and into established farming ventures.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bay Area Farmer Training (BAFFT)
• Farmer Mobilization Apprenticeship
• Farmer-to-Farmer Skillshares
• Food Sovereignty Seed Grant Program
• Urban Agriculture Seed Grants
• Cooperative Incubator Farm
• Tool Lending Library
• Farmer Campus
• Farmer Wellness Day
• Land Commons / Land Stewardship Network

Quantifiable outcome

• 125 BAFFT participants trained since founding in 2020
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Soul Flower FarmcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMentor farm in the Farmer Mobilization Apprenticeship Program. Provides paid, hands-on agroecological training to BAFFT graduates. Located in the San Francisco East Bay Hills, California.
• Feral Heart FarmcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMentor farm in the Farmer Mobilization Apprenticeship Program. A 3-acre certified organic market farm in Sunol, California, growing annual and perennial Pan-Asian vegetables, culinary and medicinal herbs and flowers.
• Raised Roots FarmcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMentor farm in the apprenticeship network, providing land-based training to BAFFT graduates in Northern California.
• Berkeley Basket CSAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMentor farm in the apprenticeship network. An urban CSA growing hyper-locally in Berkeley backyards, providing apprenticeship opportunities to BAFFT graduates.
• Urban TilthmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on a Farmer-to-Farmer Skillshare on Rain Catchment and Watershed Care, facilitated by Urban Tilth's Watershed Restoration Field Crew. Urban Tilth provides technical expertise in watershed literacy and hands-on water restoration practices.
• VeggilutionmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of Farmer Wellness Day alongside Feed Black Futures, Freedom Community Clinic, and UC Santa Cruz Center for Agroecology. Veggilution brings a community farm and food access programming.
• Feed Black FuturesmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of Farmer Wellness Day. Deep collaboration on Black agrarianism, land justice, and food sovereignty programming.
• Freedom Community ClinicmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of Farmer Wellness Day, providing a network of healers offering massage, acupuncture, reiki, and herbal medicine to farmers.
• UC Santa Cruz Center for AgroecologymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of Farmer Wellness Day and collaborator on UC Santa Cruz Agroecology Short Course visits to the AC farm.
• Sustainable Economies Law Center (SELC)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner providing free legal consultations to farmers through 'legal cafes' covering cooperative formation, land acquisition, labor law, and governance. Collaborated with AC to offer these sessions to the farmer network.
• StopWaste!minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated on a Vermicomposting Skillshare (August 2026), providing practical knowledge and skills for turning food scraps into worm castings for gardens and farms.
• Witness for Peace Solidarity CollectivemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAC's BAFFT graduates participated in the Witness for Peace Solidarity Collective's Colombia Delegation, organized with Afro-Colombian and Indigenous communities around food sovereignty, sustainable farming, and resistance against corporate land control (2021).
• Asociación de Trabajadores del Campo (ATC) / Rural Workers Association, NicaraguamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBAFFT graduates participated in ATC's food sovereignty and agroecology delegation and La Vía Campesina's short course on Agroecology at IALA Ixim Ulew in Nicaragua (2022). ATC is a member organization of La Vía Campesina.
• Cuba's National Association of Small Farmers (ANAP)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAC collective members, BAFFT graduates, and board members joined ANAP's 8th International Encounter on Agroecology, Food Sovereignty, Nutritional Education and Cooperative Movements in Cuba (2022).

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Urban Tilth: Richmond, CA-based urban agriculture and food justice nonprofit that co-facilitated a watershed-care skillshare with Agroecology Commons. Operates a cooperative farm, runs youth/urban farmer training, and serves a comparable BIPOC urban farming audience in the East Bay.
• Soul Fire Farm: New York-based BIPOC-led farm and food sovereignty organization running farmer training, apprenticeships, and seed grants comparable to BAFFT and AC's Food Sovereignty Seed Grant Program. Functions as a national peer in the Black agrarianism movement.
• Cooperation Richmond: Richmond, CA cooperative-economics and food justice organization with a board member affiliated with Agroecology Commons. Comparable focus on cooperative governance, BIPOC-led food systems, and movement-building.
• Soul Flower Farm: East Bay Hills agroecological mentor farm that hosts AC apprentices. Operates as an organic/permaculture teaching farm serving Bay Area BIPOC communities — directly comparable in scale and pedagogical model to AC's apprenticeship programming.
• Farms to Grow: Black-led sustainable agriculture nonprofit focused on supporting Black farmers and food sovereignty in the US, with an AC board member affiliated. Operates in the same BIPOC regenerative-agriculture ecosystem with overlapping farmer-training and advocacy missions.
• Veggilution: San Jose-based nonprofit operating a community farm and food access programming; co-organizer of Farmer Wellness Day with Agroecology Commons. Comparable as a Bay Area BIPOC-serving food justice and agroecology training organization.
• Mandela Grocery Cooperative: Oakland-based worker-owned cooperative grocery serving low-income communities, where AC's Board Chair Jeneba Kilgore was a former worker-owner. Comparable as a Bay Area BIPOC food-sovereignty cooperative with overlapping leadership and constituency.
• SAAFON (Southeastern African American Farmers' Organic Network): A network of Black farmers advancing organic and regenerative practices, advised to Agroecology Commons by Jahi Chappell. Comparable as a peer movement-anchored organization supporting BIPOC farmers through training, certification, and cooperative networks.

Broad incumbents

• UC Santa Cruz Center for Agroecology: Long-established academic agroecology program that co-hosts short courses at AC's farm and co-organizes Farmer Wellness Day. Comparable as a major agroecology training provider, but operating at institutional/academic scale vs. AC's grassroots model.
• La Via Campesina North America: Continental node of the global peasant/farmer movement, with an AC board member on its Technical Team. Comparable in mission (food sovereignty, agroecology, anti-extraction) but operates as a multinational federation rather than a direct service/training provider.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about agroecology commons