CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR GRANT WINNERS!
Advancing food justice through community-driven research
Community Researchers for Food Justice is a community granting program co-designed by the YMCA of San Diego County, the San Diego County Childhood Obesity Initiative Community Council, and UC San Diego Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Longevity Science and UC San Diego Center for Community Health. It funds and supports local leaders and community groups to design and lead their own research projects that advance food justice.
The following groups were carefully selected to receive grant funding for their projects!
People of Color Fungi Community (POCFC)
A grassroots community science organization
People Of Color Fungi Community (POCFC) is a grassroots community science organization that focuses on the intersections of mycology, food sovereignty, and ecological justice. The work of POCFC has taken them many places, including researching and educating the community through knowledge shares and cooking demonstrations about their ancestral connection to fungi including the corn fungus, Huitlacoche.
Their most recent project, Spora Libre, will kick off in 2026 and is a collaborative effort and partnership with farmers located in the San Diego region to grow Huitlacoche on a small scale farming environment and document the process that will be featured in a full length film documentary!
Arif Urban Agrarian Collective (AUAC)
A community-run farm in City Heights
Arif Urban Agrarian Collective (AUAC) is a community-run farm located at the Peace Resource Center in City Heights, and is embraced by a bustling community who has helped restore this land after essentially being abandoned since 2018. Restoration has been the focus since April 2025, and 2026 will be the year of growth and tending.
The food grown at the farm will be entirely donated to local mutual aid organizations feeding the community, and for volunteers who show up to help maintain the farm. AUAC is devoted to food sovereignty and justice, making it an oasis in the middle of the city that provides space for harvesting food, organic gardening, educational workshops, areas for recreation and play, community healing, and creative expression.
Follow @arifcollective on Instagram to stay up to date with upcoming volunteer and educational opportunities!
Taupou Samoa Cultural Arts (TSCA)
A Samoan cultural arts and community wellness organization
Taupou Samoa Cultural Arts is on a mission to preserve and perpetuate our Samoan heritage through language, music, dance, storytelling and creative arts. We are dedicated to engaging with our Samoan community at-large and providing resources to support our Samoan and Pasefika people in the realms of art, fitness, mental health and wellness, life skills and advocacy.
ABOUT Community Incubator network (KIN)
The Community Incubator Network (KIN) is a collaborative initiative led by the YMCA of San Diego County, the San Diego County Childhood Obesity Initiative Community Council, UC San Diego Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science and UC San Diego Center for Community Health. Funded by the American Heart Association’s Health Equity Research Network (HERN) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, KIN seeks to reimagine and transform traditional research paradigms—shifting how resources, knowledge, and power flow between communities, academia, and institutions.
Learn more about the YMCA’s Community Granting Program.
Stay Connected
Are you in need of funding for a similar project? Join our mailing list to learn about future opportunities!
