A healthy, resilient community begins with a strong connection to the land.
Our vision is to restore a culture of food sovereignty in Greater Sudbury by weaving together wild food gathering, traditional hunting and fishing, and perennial permaculture food forests. These living systems not only nourish the body with nutrient-dense, culturally relevant foods, but also nurture relationships, skills, and a deeper sense of belonging.
We are building for the long term: expanding our 1.5-acre perennial food forest in Sudbury’s South End and working with partners to establish 1–2 new food forests across the city by 2027. Each site is designed to regenerate the land, feed the community, and pass on ancestral skills that keep us strong in the face of climate change.
What We Grow :
Fruit & Nut Trees – apples, pears, cherries, hazelnuts + more
Berries & Shrubs – hascaps, seabuckthorn, currants, elderberries, mulberries, goji berries + more
Perennial Vegetables & Herbs – hardy greens, root crops, and traditional medicinal plants.
Pollinator Habitat – wildflowers and a butterfly sanctuary to support bees and biodiversity.
All production follows permaculture principles: hugelkultur beds for soil health, closed-loop nutrient cycling, and absolutely no pesticides or artificial inputs. These practices build resilience in Sudbury’s northern climate and create harvests that grow stronger each year.
Wild Food & Ancestral Skills:
Our community programs go beyond cultivation.
We teach people to:
Gather wild foods such as mushrooms, berries, and edible plants in a safe and ethical way.
Harvest and prepare traditional medicines, honoring Indigenous and traditional knowledge.
Practice sustainable hunting and fishing, with guidance from local knowledge keepers, ensuring respect for animal populations and ecosystems.
Transform and preserve harvests through drying, fermenting, canning, and smoking, extending food access throughout the year.
These skills reconnect people with their heritage, foster resilience in a changing climate, and ensure that local, culturally significant foods remain accessible for generations to come.
Giving Back to the Community:
Every year, we share the abundance of our harvests by distributing hundreds of free seeds, seedlings, transplants, fruits, nuts, and wild foods to local families and community partners.
By providing free programming in both English and French, we reduce barriers to entry and ensure that youth, families, Indigenous communities, and other equity-deserving groups can fully participate.
Our commitment is simple: to grow food, grow skills, and grow community — together.
Through our four pillars — Education, Food, Skills, and Giving Back — Finding Polaris Wilderness Community is building a city-wide network of resilient food systems rooted in both ecological principles and ancestral knowledge.
By combining perennial food production, wild food gathering, and traditional hunting and processing practices, we are ensuring that Sudbury’s communities have lasting access to healthy, local, and culturally meaningful food.
