CultureSeed

CultureSeed is a nonprofit organization serving youth and communities in the Columbia Gorge region of the Pacific Northwest. A rural area with pronounced economic disparities, the Columbia Gorge is also the largest national scenic area in the United States where people from around the world come to recreate. CultureSeed is located on 150 acres at the confluence of Buck Creek and the White Salmon River, the ancestral lands of the Chinook, Yakama, Wasco, and Wishram. CultureSeed provides connection to nature, self and others for our most vulnerable communities—from underserved youth, with our Year-Round Outdoor & Community Engagement Youth Cohort, to the incarcerated, through our Bending the Bars program. CultureSeed’s Year-Round Outdoor & Community Engagement Youth Cohort is an opportunity for our region’s underserved and low income youth to participate in monthly outings, peer circles, overnights, and a seven day backpacking trip. CultureSeed is the only organization in our region offering a year-round immersion for underserved youth with a focus on outdoor adventure. CultureSeed also connects youth caregivers to community resources. To support vulnerable youth and community CultureSeed believes our work must involve the incarcerated. Through CultureSeed’s Bending the Bars program we provide inmates with the tools for mindbody wellness and opportunities to be in nature—from having classes outside, to nature outings for youth in Juvenile Detention. Through CultureSeed’s alternatives to incarceration initiative, regional youth in the juvenile justice system have the option of joining our programming instead of mandated nights in jail, and completing their probation community service hours with CultureSeed. CultureSeed fosters inclusion in outdoor recreation and economy. As youth graduate from our programs they are matched with relevant training, mentorship and employment.