Emma paige by Freestyle Academy

Everyone eats Emma Paige

Emma Paige is a 17 year old Junior who attends Los Altos High School and Freestyle Academy. Emma lives in Los Altos with her parents, 10 pets, two brothers, and grandma. She enjoys nature, the outdoors, and concerts. Emma plays volleyball, and wants to be a graphic designer once she graduates college.

Acknowledgments I

would like to thank the Duveneck family for giving us this special place we call Hidden Villa. Without their foresight and generosity, none of what I experienced at Hidden Villa as a child and throughout this project would have been possible. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d also like to thank the Board of Trustees and Friends of Hidden Villa. Without them, there would not be the funds which I discovered during my interview process. They gave me their amazing and inspiring insights on what Hidden Villa means to them. This includes Karen Wilkes, Director of Development and Suzanne Allcroft, Annual Fund Manager. Suzanne and Karen were instruhelped me shape my interview questions and taught me the importance of internships as they impact our local community. To Daniel Chmielewski, Volunteer and Public Outreach Coordinator, Kendra Moss, Public Programs Intern, and Lanette McKenney, Horticulturist, your interviews as you love Hidden Villa. Finally, to Stephanie Sieveke, Development Intern, for taking me on a long walking tour so that I could capture the perfect photos. Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d also like to give thanks to my teachers at Freestyle, without whom this project would never have happened: to Mr. Greco for making me believe that I made the right decision in Hidden Villa, when I was second-guessing my choice; to Mr. Flo for helping us learn how to record our interviews; and to Mrs. Parkinson for teaching us how to create this book in Design class. Finally, I could not have done this project without help from my mom. She drove me to Hidden Villa for the interviews, held my camera and blocked the light so I could get the perfect shot. But more importantly, she shared her love for Hidden Villa with me.

Table of Contents Acknowledgments

preface

introduction

chapter 1

chapter 2

chapter 3

conclusion

27 5

Preface M

Day. Every year we would eagerly walk to the barns to see all the baby animals and then enjoy a picnic by the creek. I that I was allergic to them. She put me on the horse bareback in my shorts and took me for a short ride. When I we went back to Hidden Villa for a Father’s Day concert featuring the Banana Slugs, who now I realize were singing about sustainable farming and taking care of our environment. All I remember is singing the song “Dirt Made my Lunch”. Lastly, and probably most memorable, was the time we went to Hidden Villa for a cow milking class. We all milk came squirting out into the bucket. When it came time to pick a location for my project, my mom reminded me of all these special times we shared at Hidden Villa. I realized that we had this hidden gem right in our backyard. When I drove up and saw the garden, how special Hidden Villa is, and how much the people I spoke with love to work there and give back to our commusustainable future for our community, whether it be through programs, farming or internships. Each interviewee was so passionate that I am inspired to apply for an internship at Hidden Villa when I graduate from college. One of the challenges I encountered in my project was that I had to interview people while they were working on the farm, which meant I had to miss school so that I could accommodate their availability. I also had to coordinate this with my mom’s work schedule. Another challenge -- also a great opportunity -- was that after I started the project, the director of development at Hidden Villa reached out to me to see if they could use my work in their upcoming annual met their needs. I am very excited for this opportunity and hope that my work can help Hidden Villa with their goals. When reading my book, I hope you will be inspired to take an afternoon and visit Hidden Villa to learn about how each of us can make simple changes in our lives to help create a more sustainable future for our world. Whether it is by buying organic produce, or learning about how dirt made your lunch, Hidden Villa has something for everyone. I

Introduction Imagine a vast valley. Imagine yourself in the hills. A farmland surround you. You look to your left, a creek is running. You look to your thick layer of fog. As the day goes on the bright sun appears. All the animals become more rowdy. Pigs, chickens, cows, goats everywhere. All running around, as happy as can be. Open your eyes. You are at Hidden Villa. Long before the term sustainable agriculture was part of everyday life, Frank and Josephine Duveneck embarked on a mission to create Hidden Villa as a place to inspire a just and sustainable future through its programs, land, and legacy. The term sustainable agriculture is new to most people, but Hidden Villa was applying its principles long before it became popular. “In simplest terms, sustainable agriculture

other plant or animal products using farming techniques that protect the environment, public health, human communities, and animal welfare. This form of agriculture enables us to produce healthful food without compromising future generations’ ability to do the same” (“Sustainable Agriculture - The Basics”). Today, throughout its many diverse programs, Hidden Villa continues to make an impact on our sustainable future through education, hands-on learning, internships, and community farming. In particular, Hidden Villa’s sustainable agriculture program makes an impact on our future by the way that the resident farmers take care of the land, use the water resources carefully, and grow food in a way that is not harmful to the environment around us. Some of the ways that Hidden Villa ensures that their actions are sustainable for our future is by using the manure, animal bedding and kitchen compost for fertilizer, instead of throwing

them away. No one would know this better than Lanette McKenney, Hidden Villa’s Horticulturalist, “instead of taking those things that could be a way to deal with them, we’re turning them into an asset using those resources to build our soils to help grow healthier plants and in turn promoting biodiversity.” The Duvenecks had a vision for sustainability more than 50 years ago, long before the term was a popular buzzword.

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Chapter 1 The land that is called Hidden

Villa today had a long history before Frank and Josephine Duveneck purchased it in 1924. For thousands of years, the native Ohlone people lived in the area because of its fertile land and good climate. In the mid to late 1700s the Spanish Missionaries had ists today in the form of a grove of olive trees that were probably associated with either the Santa Clara or San Jose mission (“Early History”). The planting of these groves of olive trees once again demonstrated the rich agricultural value of the land. Later, it became a stagecoach stop. “The ‘White House,’ originally a stage coach house, is the oldest building on the property. Passengers from San Jose would stop in Mountain View, stay overnight in the White House, and continue to Pescadero the following day” (“Josephine and Frank Duveneck Life”). There is evidence of this today in a hitching post ring found in an old oak tree. The Duvenecks fell in love with the 1,600 acres and purchased it in 1924

as a family ranch. Frank Duveneck was a civil engineer, and he understood the importance of owning land to protect a watershed. He later purchased another 900 adjoining acres. Starting as early as 1945, the Duvenecks began giving back to their local community. “Hidden Villa became a center for social, educational, environmental, and humanitarian activities. In summer it was a youth camp, to which the Duvenecks brought minority and disadvantaged children, and minority counselors, which given the mostly white demographics of the San Francisco Peninsula, was particularly unusual and innovative” (“Josephine and Frank Duveneck Life”). The Dutheir home to complete strangers passing through the area. The Duvenecks believed that giving back to the community also meant they provided a safe place for Ceworkers strike, right here in our back-

yard in Los Altos. All the time never promoting themselves or Hidden Villa. They even let Japanese-American families returning from internment camps live on the property. Interestingly, it was Mrs. Josephine Duveneck who always looked for new ways to use the land. In addition to social justice, the Duvenecks wanted to promote environmental education, which later became one of the key elements

of Hidden Villa’s mission statement. What’s most amazing is how Frank and Josephine Duveneck inspired their own children to live by what is today the mission of Hidden Villa. Their four children all agreed to give up their inheritance of the 2,500 acres in Los Altos Hills, and donate it ents had established in 1960. They did this to carry on their parents’ tainable future through programs, land, and legacy. They donated 900 Space District, leaving 1,600 acres tory”). What is most remarkable is the generosity of the Duveneck family in an area where land values are astronomical and real estate developers are constantly in search of a new opportunity to build more expensive custom homes. Hidden Villa sits next of the most sought after locations to live in Los Altos Hills. It took a special kind of family to look past these give their land to the community for the purpose of education, internships and farming. This gesture of generosity is truly amazing.

Chapter 2 Josephine Duveneck always

believed that education was a key to Hidden Villa’s mission of inspiring a just and sustainable future. Today, by taking an active role in educating future leaders in environmental education and sustainable farming. Hidden Villa accomplishes this through their internship program which helps young educators, organizers, and organic farmers start their careers by ships. All interns live and work at Hidden Villa. The internship program provides young college graduates with work experience, enrichment classes, and projects that give them skills towards future employvariety of programs including Animal Husbandry, Environmental Education, Agriculture, Public Programs and Development (“Internship Program”). What makes Hidden Villa’s internships unique is that they all give

back to the community in some way. According to Daniel Chmielewski, Weekend Program Coordinator in Hidden Villa’s Public Programs and former intern,“Inspiring the just and sustainable future as an intern, you get inspired by being in this place, and then you’re able to take what you’re learning and what you’re doing, and inspire the people that you’re working with, whether it’s the kids in the environmental education education program, or the high school students in the youth development program.” The environmental education internship works with 20,000 students every year that visit teach at schools in Los Gatos and The agricultural internship grows all the organic produce on the farm and manages a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program that provides weekly boxes of fresh vegelies. While we see the term “organic”

everywhere, organic farms are still by far a very small percentage of America’s farms. According to the 2012 Census, “there were 16,525 farms or exempt), or roughly 0.7 percent (“2012 Census Drilldown: Organic and Local Food”). Hidden Villa is one of less than 1 percent of farms because of their sustainable agricultural practices. But Hidden Villa goes beyond simply producing organic back to the community by donating 25 percent of its produce to the Community Services Agency in Mountain View for low income families so they can have access to fresh produce. Former agricultural intern and horticulturalist, Lanette McKenney shares her personal insights on Hidden Villa’s internship program: Our intern program allows young people who are wanting to get into -

selves or the visitors to the farm. “The point of it is to reinforce the learning and make sure that people cannot just remember it, but recall it and use it in their everyday lives,” according to Chmielewski. Not only

and [the work they’ll do] when they leave this place,” added McKenney.

impact on the community, but they interns themselves. According to McKenney, “I love seeing the people come here and just be so excited by baby piglet. It’s just amazement. That’s wonderful. It’s new, but also profoundly old. It’s something that nity to test their skills and build their skills here at Hidden Villa to become more prepared for a career in agriculture on their own. They get the opportunity to do all of the agricultural farm tasks here and managing our farmer’s market stand and our CSA gives them the managerial skills that are really important for a small scale farm. I really truly believe that we’re building farmers here. We’re growing farmers and we’re growing educators who are going to go out into the world after they leave Hid-

time but that has delighted people for hundreds, if not thousands of years. I love that we get to bring that to people’s lives. I think it’s really important.” The internships are all about education and environmental stewardship. They prepare people for a variety of career paths all of which are working to build a more sustainable future. Interns go on to start their own CSAs or small organic farms or teach environmental education. Other interns go on to become grant writers for

Another unique aspect of Hidden Villa’s internship program is that it is all based on hands-on learning – whether this be for the interns them-

Villa throughout the Bay Area and the world. “People that come here as an intern become more inspired to do the work that they’re doing here

munity is that weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re providing them a really special experience that is close than the normal experience of the typical person living in Silicon Valley.â&#x20AC;? Kendra Moss

“It’s 1600 acres of gorgeous land some of which we maintain in our farms and gardens and some of which, the majority of which is just wild” - Lanette McKenney

Chapter 3 “Everyone eats. It’s a thing that

unites us. We all have to nourish our bodies on a regular basis and choosing to eat food that is grown in a way that sustains our world and keeps our water clean and supports farmers by providing them a livable wage, makes McKenney. Hidden Villa manages a small-scale, organic farm that teaches about and produces sustainable food. The farm has an agricultural mission to “produce the best quality vegetables, fruits, meat, and eggs for local markets and to support Hidden Villa’s educational programs by modeling sustainable, organic practices that minimize outside inputs, promote biodiversity, honor labor, value animal welfare, and respect the capacity and wildness of the land” (“Sustainable Agriculture”). Hidden Villa’s small scale farm tion. The farm strives to steward the land by using water wisely and grow

food in a way that is not harmful to the environment. “Food production should never come at the expense of human health. Since sustainable crop farms avoid hazardous pesticides, they’re able to grow fruits a d vegetables that are safer for consumers, workers, and surrounding communities” (“Sustainable Agriculture - The Basics”). A lot of food today, ers are raised with chemicals that natural resources. Most produce is grown with the use of herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers that pollute the waterways. At Hidden Villa, only natural resources, such as kitchen scraps, animal bedding and manure vegetable gardens. The farm also does not set any traps or bait rodents or small animals. While they may be a nuisance, the farmers believe that it is their land too and their feces and food scraps help keep the overall farming system in balance.

Sustainable agriculture is not only etables. Animal agriculture also plays an important role in our environment. Unfortunately, most of the animal agriculture in the United States today does not factor in the well-being of the animals. The focus is on generating the greatest amount spaces and accelerating their growth Education Program at the University of California, Davis,” . . . sustainable livestock farmers and ranchers raise animals without dangerous practices like use of non-therapeutic antibiotics or arsenic-based growth promoters” (“Sustainable Agriculture - The Basics”). At Hidden Villa, the cows graze in large green pastures, and the goats and sheep are in large pens with fresh straw bedding. The chickens roam free in an orchard, and the pigs wallow in large pens with plenty

of mud. They are fed a healthy, organic diet and enjoy treats from the kitchen compost. “. . . we make it a really big point that all of our animals are happy and healthy and have a reter our animals, but until the day that they die, they are happy and free and out enjoying the world,” added McKenney.

Hidden Villa today delivers on its mission to produce the best quality produce, meat, and eggs, while supporting its educational programs by modeling sustainable, organic practices.

better, more sustainable alternative to traditional agricultural farming. By providing internships in agriculture, the hope is to create more farms and CSAs throughout Northern California that provide small scale agriculture to the local community. “Looking at just the 2012 Census itself, the highest concentration of organic farms is in the West, with the Midwest and Northeast coming in second, as shown in this chart of the top ten states” (“2012 Census Drilldown: Organic and Local Food”). As seen in Fig. 1, California is the clear leader in organic farming today: Fig. 1 (“2012 Census Drilldown: Organic and Local Food”) As McKenny said, “Everyone eats. It’s a thing that unites us.” It is evident that Hidden Villa is doing its part in providing the local community with organic alternatives through its sustainable agriculture program.

“Inspiring the just and sustainable future as an intern, you get inspired by being in this place, and then you’re able to take what you’re learning and what you’re doing, and inspire the people that you’re working with, whether it’s the kids in the environmental ed program, the high school students in the youth development program.” - Daniel Chmielewski

Conclusion “To inspire a just and sustainable future through programs, land, and legacy” (“Hidden Villa’s Mission”). In completing this project, what inspired me most is how Frank and Josephine Duveneck had the vision so many years ago to create a sustainable future by giving back to the local community, and they inspired their children to do the same. Many large old properties in Los Altos Hills have now become subdivided lots with giant mansions, swimming pools and tennis courts fortressed by large iron gates. Hidden Villa is the hidden gem. It lies amongst these “McMansions” as a reminder to all of us that our land is a privilege that we should respect. “It’s pretty extraordinary for people to give away all that they’ve worked for the betterment for the surrounding community and anyone that comes into contact with it,” according to Chmielewski. Hidden Villa will educate children and adults for future generations because of the contributions made

by the local community. Hidden Villa provides more than $550,000 of underwriting each year for scholarships, youth leadership. Environmental education programs will evolve to meet local needs. Whether it be adding classes on beekeeping, or expanding its programs for teens, there will always be something for everyone at Hidden Villa. And along the way, they will teach people to respect our land and stand behind the farmers that do so, by supporting locallygrown sustainable agriculture. The responsibility of educating our future generations does not lie with Hidden Villa alone. All of us play an important role. According to researchers at search and Education Program at the University of California, Davis, “It is important to point out that reaching toward the goal of sustainable agriculture is the responsibility of all participants in the system, including farmers, laborers, policymakers,

researchers, retailers, and consumers (“What is Sustainable Agriculture?”). No matter how Hidden Villa evolves in the future, what will never disappear is the magic in a child’s eye the baby piglet. While Frank and Josephine Duveneck may be gone, their legacy truly lives on forever at Hidden Villa.

Everyone eats Emma Paige