Our local community is teeming with incredible people, organizations, and farmers who are working to improve water and soil health. Ocean Hour Farm partners with these environmental stewards to support the viability of regenerative landscaping and agricultural systems, provide educational workshops, and create experiential events.
We intentionally designed our programming to partner with existing organizations on Aquidneck Island and beyond, welcoming a diverse range of people to the Farm. We use the landscape as a living classroom to explore watershed science, regenerative agriculture, and whole systems design.
Depending on the day, this involves teaching farmers to analyze living soil, creating climate resilience projects with high school students, or designing research studies in collaboration with local farmers and landscapers.
These activities are united by our commitment to caring for our local communities—both human and ecological—and to highlighting the connection between people and planet.
Our mission to educate is woven into each department and is at the core of our impact as an organization. Intern and apprentice placements enable us to contribute to the growth of the next generation of regenerative land managers in Rhode Island and beyond. By offering paid workforce experiences, we aim to progress toward our goals of a more diverse agricultural workforce, a pathway for new farmers, and a workforce with design and ecoliteracy skills.
We prioritize building lasting relationships through multiple visits throughout the year, aiming to deepen eco-literacy and empower students to maximize the benefits of their experiential education. In three years, we have welcomed more than 1,200 students from local schools and after-school groups.
Students engage in experiential programming that ranges from studying soil biology under the microscope to analyzing and designing nature-based systems, as well as planting new landscape features across the farm. This immersive approach nurtures a connection with nature and a deeper understanding of our local ecosystem.
Ocean Hour Farm collaborates with local universities, scientific institutions, and regional farmers to conduct research exploring regenerative approaches that strengthen the connection between land and ocean health. From studying carbon sequestration in farm soils to developing innovative fertilizers from waste materials, our research connects soil to sea, with a vision to design waste out of our systems.
By aligning scientific inquiry with hands-on land management, our research aims to demonstrate practical pathways to close nutrient loops, reduce pollution, and ultimately design waste out of agricultural systems. These efforts contribute to a broader vision of ecological restoration—where healthy soils lead to healthier seas.
If you’re interested in collaborating on any of the programmatic work listed above, please don’t hesitate to reach out!
Ocean Hour Farm is proud to collaborate with organizations that share our commitment to education, sustainability, and regenerative land stewardship. Together, we strengthen connections between human and ecological communities, nurturing the land, the ocean, and the next generation of stewards.
