Nido Neighborhood Reforestation

The Authority’s grant helped fund Living Classroom’s Garden-Based Instruction in the Campbell School District. Living Classroom's environmental education program focuses in three key areas: environmental literacy, connection to healthy food, and science learning that is relevant and real to the lives of students. Living Classroom will provide a full-service program to schools, including lesson instruction to hundreds of classrooms with multiple lessons for each class each year over multiple years, lesson materials, garden installation and maintenance, and recruitment and training of volunteer parents and docents. The goal of the Authority-funded portion the program was to provide top quality, engaging garden-based learning experiences in the areas of science, nutrition, math, and social studies for at least 1,200 K-3 students at five Campbell schools

Initially launched in response to COVID-19, Veggielution's Eastside Connect program serves more than 250 people per week through farm boxes, hot meals, and our onsite farm stand. Beginning in 2021, with the funding from the Open Space Authoriy, Veggielution will grow the capacity of Eastside Connect based on recommendations from our recent land use plan. By adding bike delivery, food safety certification, and value added products prepared by local residents, this program will help build a more pandemic- and climate-resilient local food system.

The Authority helped to fund the development and construction of an outdoor classroom and the installation of interpretive signage and trails at the Our City Forest Urban Forestry Educational Site at Martial Cottle Park in San Jose. Taken together, the classroom, signs, and trails showcase outdoor exhibits and provide facilitated and self-guided tours for the community, providing visitors a one-of-a-kind Urban Forest Education Center for learning about Santa Clara County's urban forest and its ecosystem, and how to engage in its growth, care, and protection.