BRAIDED SEEDS
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Mission Statement
Our mission is to provide opportunities for rest, reconnection, and reclamation of the land, especially for communities of color.
About This Cause
Braided Seeds is a King County-based nonprofit committed to removing barriers to experiencing the wonders of the Pacific Northwest, especially for BIPOC communities. We provide opportunities for rest, restoration, and reconnection to the land, especially for communities of color, by increasing access, knowledge, and opportunities for outdoor recreation and food sovereignty. Specific services include distributing free Discover Passes to BIPOC communities, partnering with schools to integrate Black-centered environmentalism and nature connection activities into the curriculum, sponsoring rest retreats for low-income Black, Indigenous, and Latinx community members, resourcing participants with gear, leading hiking, foraging, camping, and outdoor trips for BIPOC (predominantly Black) youth, and working with communities to find local ways to connect with the natural world. In 2022, 1328 were impacted by our Discover Pass Distribution and sponsorships, 100+ people were served through in-person programs, we offered more than 250 hours of youth programming, 80 percent of those served fell below the median income level, and 94 percent of those served through direct programs were African American. Many of those served experienced one of the following firsts: first-time camping, kayaking, visiting a state park, and/or visiting a National Park. Braided Seeds was birthed by an African American Seattle native in honor of our Black ancestors' commitment to survival against all odds. Before boarding ships as a part of the Transatlantic slave trade, they braided seeds in their hair as an act of subversive resistance, commitment to survival, and as a testament to their determination to set down roots in any environment. As a Black-led organization, we hope that we, too, can actively commit to our survival, subvert harmful systems and set down roots in the PNW. Our work is in the tradition of the living legacies of our ancestors, Rue Mapp, the founder of Outdoor Afro, Tricia Hershey, founder of the Nap Ministry, and Leah Penniman, the founder of Soul Fire Farm. It honors that for Black American descendents of enslaved Africans, our ancestors have already paid too much. We no longer have to continue paying. We get to pause. We get to be. We get to release, heal and experience the freedom they already paid for. The reality is that the outdoors have been a source of trauma and harm, but they can also be a conduit for healing if space is made and with intentional reclamation efforts.