FoodLab at Stony Brook Southampton is starting a new Community Garden this spring, aiming to provide a space where students and local residents can grow food and foster community ties. The initiative has received financial support through a $2,400 Presidential Mini-Grant and a $50,000 grant from the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets Urban Farms and Community Gardens Grant Program.
The project is a collaboration between the Bridgehampton Child Care and Recreational Center, Stony Brook Medicine, and the Office of Student Life. According to Judiann Carmack-Fayyaz, executive director of FoodLab at Stony Brook Southampton, "With support from this funding, we can cultivate more than vegetables — we can cultivate belonging. These grants have made it possible to grow an ecosystem where wellness, education and community are deeply rooted together. Through the shared act of growing and giving, we’re reminded that food is one of the most powerful ways to care for each other."
The state grant comes as part of $2.5 million distributed among 51 organizations across New York in Round 3 of the Urban Farms and Community Gardens Grant Program. The program aims to support urban agriculture projects that strengthen local food security.
Students involved with the garden will manage their own raised beds as well as work together on shared plots focused on crops that address specific health needs. Produce grown will be used for “produce prescriptions” distributed through a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program in partnership with the Bridgehampton Child Care and Recreational Center for families experiencing food insecurity.
Located behind the Carriage House on campus, the garden will feature raised beds, fruit trees, berry bushes, and seating areas for relaxation or group activities. Events such as workshops, communal meals, and wellness gatherings organized by Stony Brook Southampton Student Life are planned to engage both campus members and local residents.
Judiann Carmack-Fayyaz noted how initiatives like this address wider issues: “The FoodLab Community Garden reminds us that change doesn’t always start in a laboratory or a lecture hall,” she said. “Sometimes, it starts with a seed, a trowel and a shared vision of a healthier, more connected world.”
According to recent data from government sources, over 42 million Americans currently rely on SNAP benefits for food assistance nationwide.