By Alex Day, Marketing & Communications Director
In North Cascades National Park, stewardship doesn’t always begin on a trail — sometimes, it starts in a school garden.
With continued support from Washington’s National Park Fund, the ongoing Food Sustainability & Native Plant Education project is expanding its impact, connecting students at Lummi Nation School to the land, their culture, and ultimately to North Cascades National Park itself.
In the Lummi Nation School garden, the Common Threads Farm team is supporting students in growing camas, wild onion, thimbleberries, and black-cap raspberries alongside tomatoes, carrots, and snap peas.
At first glance, a school garden might seem far removed from the rugged peaks and forests of the North Cascades. But this project is designed with a bigger vision in mind.
By giving students hands-on experiences growing food, identifying native plants, and understanding ecosystems, the park is helping make environmental concepts real and personal. By growing, tending, eating, and celebrating both traditional/wild Lummi food plants as well as grocery-store familiar/farmed foods, this project is helping make the connection that Lummi culture has lived since time immemorial — and that the entire ecosystem is a place that supports and feeds the community, and the community takes care of it in return.
These “close to home” experiences build a foundation of knowledge and curiosity that naturally extends to public lands like North Cascades National Park. When students later visit, the park no longer feels like an unfamiliar place. Instead, it becomes an extension of what they already know.
This project is a powerful example of partnership in action, bringing together North Cascades National Park Service Complex, Lummi Nation School, and community partners like Common Threads Farm, a Bellingham-based nonprofit that promotes a seed-to-table approach to gardening, nutrition, and environmental stewardship, to meet shared goals.
Park staff play a key role by supporting teachers, facilitating learning opportunities in the park, and helping design field experiences that connect classroom learning to real landscapes.
These ongoing relationships are at the heart of the project’s success. They create meaningful, repeated opportunities for students to engage with park rangers, build trust, and see themselves as part of the park’s story.
Over the past year, hundreds of students have participated in garden lessons, cooking classes, park field trips, and hands-on science activities.
And the impact is clear: Students are not only learning about native plants and ecosystems — they are forming personal connections. Many share stories of harvesting berries with their families, recognizing plants they grow at home, and understanding how pollinators support the food they eat.
In the garden, learning comes alive. Students quickly made their own connections about the interrelatedness of the garden ecosystem, and even small moments can be powerful. One student who once preferred video games over gardening ended up proudly carrying a full harvest bag after discovering the excitement of picking fresh food.
And sometimes, it’s as simple as delight: “Look, farmer, I have a worm for a ring!”
This spring, three Lummi Nation School high school classes got to take their learning into the park. On their field trip, the students hiked, visited a Skagit cultural site, and walked across Diablo Dam.
While there, students in the Tribal Government class learned about tribal-federal relationships and governance, stewardship, sovereignty, land management, and the impacts of dams on the ecosystem. The Outdoor Education class focused on forest fires, wildfire management, and forest succession, and the Cultural Cooking class spent time identifying native plant species and their uses.
Throughout the trip, students raised many questions about the park’s wildlife and plants, wondering whether they would encounter any animals during their visit, what kinds of animals they might find, and where in the park they’d see animals.
They were also curious about jobs in the park, with some even asking, “What do you do to get a job like this?” It’s clear that these experiences spark curiosity and confidence, and, perhaps most importantly, instill a sense of belonging in outdoor spaces.
At its core, this project is about more than food — it’s about stewardship.
By learning how ecosystems function in a garden setting, students begin to understand the delicate balance of the natural world. They see firsthand how soil, water, plants, and pollinators are interconnected — lessons that translate directly to the landscapes protected by North Cascades National Park.
As students gain confidence outdoors, try new foods, and connect cultural knowledge with science, they are also building a relationship with the park that is rooted in familiarity and a sense of shared responsibility.
With continued support, this project will soon expand to include a greenhouse, increased volunteer engagement, and more opportunities for students to visit the park and deepen their learning.
Each season builds on the last, strengthening connections between the community in and around the North Cascades and the park.
When young people see themselves reflected in these landscapes — and understand their role in caring for them — the future of our parks becomes stronger. It’s a worthwhile investment, and one that we’re proud to continue supporting.
Washington’s National Park Fund is the official philanthropic partner of Mount Rainier, North Cascades, and Olympic National Parks. Your gifts directly support vital projects in trail maintenance, science and research, youth and family programs, and more.
Special thanks to our friends at the Thomas O. Brown Foundation for their generous support of this project. You can join the movement and support programs like this one at wnpf.org/donate.
Cover photo courtesy of Lummi Nation School.