Welcome to the SEEDS Scholars Program

If you're looking for ways to strengthen our community, meet professionals working to increase food security, and learn about the food justice movement in San Diego, you're in the right place. 

Consider this: 

• San Diego County is home to more than 5,000 farmers producing $1.8 billion dollars worth of crops according to the San Diego Farm Bureau. 

• The San Diego Hunger Coalition reported that 1 in 4 San Diegans are nutrition insecure, meaning they unable to provide three nutritious meals per day for themselves and/or their families. A 2023 study of Mesa students found that 43% of students where food insecure, defined by Real College California as having a limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate and safe food, or the inability to acquire such food in a socially acceptable manner, in the past thirty days.

• The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimates that in the United States, 30-40% of the food supply is wasted.

• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency explains how climate change alters agricultural productivity, threatens the pollination of more than 100 crops grown in the United States, impacts water and soil quality, and exposes agricultural workers to climate-related health risks. 

• The UC Merced Community and Labor Center estimates that 75% of farmworkers in California are undocumented. That means that the majority of farmworkers in California's nearly $60 billion a year agricultural industry do not have access to social security benefits or unemployment insurance, and are commonly subjected to exploitation and wage theft.

We need to find ways to create a sustainable and equitable food system. By participating in the SEEDS Scholars Program, you can join efforts to make a positive change in our local community and beyond. The SEEDS Scholars Program brings opportunities to San Diego Mesa College students so they can develop their skills in the fields of food, agriculture, and natural resources. All majors and undecided students are welcome to participate.

Click on the buttons below or use the navigation menu to learn more about what we have to offer.

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