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Volunteering at UBC Farm

The great work that happens at the UBC Farm is made possible by the continued support of our dedicated volunteers.

Most volunteering at the farm happens during the main growing season from April to October. A seasonal volunteer coordinator assists volunteers with placement, orientation, and training. In the off-season (October-April), the Program Coordinator will respond to volunteer enquiries on a weekly basis. Regular orientations are not held in the off-season.

UBC Farm recruits volunteers on an ongoing basis. We encourage new volunteers to attend an orientation session, which we schedule throughout the year. Please see above or e-mail Gemma to find out when the next one will be held.

If you have already completed an orientation session, or can't wait, we have regular drop-in volunteer sessions on Fridays as well as opportunities for training if you are willing to make more of a time commitment.

Please note that a brief Volunteer FAQ has been added at the bottom of this page.

A good way to keep up to date on all work parties and volunteer news is to subscribe to our volunteer email list.

Urban Farmers Weekly Volunteer Sessions

Current drop-in times:

• Thursday afternoons, 1pm-5pm
• Friday morning, 9:30-12pm
• Friday afternoon, 1pm-5pm

Urban Farmers is a drop-in volunteer program. This means you do not need to RSVP, just be in the Farm Centre at the beginning of any scheduled shift ready to head out and get dirty. We do not require you to work for an entire day, but try to schedule at least a few hours so that we can get to know each other and you can get to know the Farm. Though it is not mandatory, we recomend attending an orientation session before your first volunteer shift.

What kind of Volunteer Positions are available at the Farm?

• Urban Farmers - Ever wanted to try your hand at organic farming? This diverse position introduces volunteers to all aspects of organic farming, from seeding and weeding, to planting and harvesting. Urban Farmers play an important role in carrying out the day-to-day activities needed to run UBC Farm. Contact: ubcfarm.volunteer@gmail.com
• Market Crew - Like interacting with large groups of people? Join us at our Saturday Markets to sell our fresh farm produce to the public. Market Crew members are in charge of setting up the market stands, selling our produce and generally running our markets throughout the summer. Contact: ubcfarm.market@gmail.com
• Education Team - Like working with elementary school students? We have two main positions for interested education volunteers. Our tour leaders assist as workshop leaders for small groups of elementary school students who come to the farm during our spring and fall workshop series. Our farm friends assist during repeated visits from the schools participating in the Landed Learning project, cultivating their own gardens at the UBC Farm.

Both the positions on the education team require some dedicated time commitment. For information on the tour leader positions, please contact Sophia at ubcfarm.tour@gmail.com. For information on the farm friend positions, please contact Stacy Friedman at ycats77@yahoo.com.

• Honeybee Keepers - We maintain several hives of European Honeybees on site. Learn how to extract honey, upkeep the hives and teach others about the mysterious world of bees. Contact ubcbees@gmail.com for more information.
• Friends of the UBC Farm- Are you interested in getting involved with a group of people to promote the UBC Farm and organize outreach events? The Friends of the Farm (FoF) is a newly formed group available to both students (as an AMS group) and the wider community. Contact: friendsoftheubcfarm@gmail.com for more information, or to sign up.
• Office, events, and art (ongoing, ask us) - If you have skills that you want to share or learn, whether they be in helping out in the office, working on our computers or website, making signs, or helping to organize events, there is likely a place for you. Just ask, and we'll see how we might be able to work together. farmteam@interchange.ubc.ca

Volunteer FAQ

Why haven't you responded to my email?

The farm currently can only support a part-time coordinator of volunteers during the summer, from May until September. During the off-season (which, unfortunately, coincides with the academic year), we may not be able to respond to all volunteer enquiries individually. Your name will be added to the volunteer email list, and you will get updates every few weeks.

When is the next orientation session?

We hold orientation sessions regularly during the May-September period (see above), but can't do this during the rest of the year. If you are interested in volunteering from October - May, it might not be possible for you to attend an orientation session before you help out. Depending on your interest and experience, this may not be a problem (see below).

Do I need to attend an orientation session in order to volunteer?

A volunteer orientation session is definitely useful, but since we can't offer these year-round, we do not require an orientation session for volunteers who simply want to drop-in to help out during regualrly scheduled work parties in the garden ("urban farmers" shifts). As a volunteer, we encourage you to read through information on this website to familiarize yourself with the farm's mission and programs. If you are interested in some of the other volunteer opportunities (schools team, market crew) you will need to attend an orientation session specific to those programs. Often, these sessions will be held by the staff person responsible for that particular program.

What kind of time commitment is required?

It depends on the program you would like to volunteer in! For our 'urban farmers' work parties, any time commitment is sufficient, whether it is just an hour or if you become a regular, committed super-volunteer: we're happy to have the help, and you still have the opportunity to learn!

Other programs, such as the education program or the market crew, require a more regular time commitment, and you need to sign up for specific work days.

If I want to come to a work party, do I have to stay for the entire session?

If you are visiting to help out during a work party in the garden, it is easier if you come at the beginning of the session so that everybody can be introduced and the work required can be discussed. If you come in the middle of a work party, we will do our best to fit you in to what is going on - but you should be prepared to wait around, and be flexible as we might not be able to find you a job on the spur of the moment. You are not, however, required to stay until the end of the volunteer shift.