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CA State Official: Hummingbird Farm Is a “Shining Example of What’s Possible”

Hummingbird Farm is purple letters spray painted against a building with flowers in the foreground.
  • Lydia Chan

When guests stop by Hummingbird Farm, the SFPUC rolls out the “green” carpet of vibrant flowers and thriving native crops. That same welcome greeted Wade Crowfoot, California State Secretary of Natural Resources, during a recent visit as part of a conservation and urban biodiversity tour of San Francisco. Secretary Crowfoot leads California’s efforts to conserve the state’s environment and natural resources.

SFPUC Water and Wastewater colleagues on a tour of Hummingbird Farm
SFPUC Water and Wastewater colleagues on a tour of Hummingbird Farm.

The tour was organized by the SF Environment Department in collaboration with the SFPUC’s Community Benefits and Natural Resources & Land Management Divisions, SF Recreation & Parks, and nonprofits California Native Plant Society and Sutro Stewards. It introduced Hummingbird Farm’s urban agriculture programs and land stewardship practices and highlighted the SFPUC’s commitment to environmental and social justice. During the visit, Secretary Crowfoot expressed interest in the agency's unique partnership with People Organizing to Demand Environmental and Economic Rights (PODER) that repurposed the SFPUC’s underutilized property in the Excelsior district into a community farm.

Located on SFPUC-owned land, Hummingbird Farm is managed and operated by PODER. The farm produces hundreds of pounds of organic fruits and vegetables for local residents and offers year-round environmental and cultural programming. It also provides educational opportunities for students to learn about topics such as water conservation and pollution prevention. 

Group selfie with Wade Crowfoot, California State Secretary of Natural Resources (in the middle in sunglasses)
Group selfie with Wade Crowfoot, California State Secretary of Natural Resources (in the middle in sunglasses).

In 2025, PODER hosted 171 gardening days, community workshops, field trips, and cultural events that reached over 3,000 participants and 900 garden volunteers. “Since activating this previously blighted SFPUC property through Hummingbird Farm, the land is blooming,” said Jennifer Ly, Environmental Justice and Land Use Program Manager in the Community Benefits Division. “This green space is an example of what can be accomplished through our environmental justice and community benefits policies and shared stewardship.”

Secretary Crowfoot concluded the visit by posting on social media that “community-based land conservation and restoration represent the best of our environmental movement in California,” while also advancing big ideas to transform surplus property into land that is used by community, for community. He described Hummingbird Farm as an “incredible model [of this]” and a “shining example of what’s possible.”

Interested in a visit? Learn more at about Hummingbird Farm and check out PODER’s event calendar to get involved at the farm.