Peace Mitchell and Michael Birchard: Rooted in Sustainability

Long before the term “sustainability” was coined, the Seven-Generation Principle existed as a cornerstone of Indigenous livelihood. The concept is simple – the decisions we make about the environment now should result in a sustainable world seven generations into the future – yet the execution of seven-generation living is far from easy. For thousands of years, ecosystems have been shaped and protected by Indigenous-American practices, only to be threatened today by resource extraction, pollution, and habitat destruction. Actively working against these environmental threats means going against the grain. But Frog Tree Farm is committed to making its land a sustainable haven despite the challenges.

Peace Mitchell and Michael Birchard are in the center of their own “seven-generation” chain. As owners of Frog Tree Farm, they cultivate birch, pine, and fir trees and sell products crafted from logs, branches, and other tree parts. Peace and Michael’s land serves as a stage for building connections with family. They describe themselves as being surrounded on both sides by their ancestors and their kin, with the physical land itself serving to deepen relationships in either direction. Peace’s mother and father purchased the farm in 1971 as an interracial couple with dreams of living off the land. Her parents raised Peace and her siblings here, gifting them a childhood rich in outdoor exploration. Now, Michael and Peace tend to the 108-acre farm with the socially-conscious practices of Peace’s family in mind.

Frog Tree Farm currently stands as the oldest Black-owned farm in the state of Minnesota, doubling as both a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and as a family retreat. The couple raised their two kids on Frog Tree, who now have children of their own. Michael recounts their childhood as filled with catching frogs, swimming in the river, and planting lots of trees – all the while inviting friends over to join in the fun. As such, they’ve developed deeper relationships with the outdoors, which they’ve carried with them into adulthood. Building strong relationships with the environment is vital in so many regards for both people and the earth. But for many communities of color, there exists a conspicuous gap in connections with nature. Why is that?

Historically, people of color have been exploited within and excluded from outdoor environments, causing lasting generational trauma. Black and Indigenous communities in particular have experienced coercion and violence as a result of land ownership and stewardship. Those with positive stories to tell often have their narratives go unheard, even in environmentalist circles. Frustratingly, this creates a cycle in which people of color fail to associate the outdoors with part of their identity. “We believe firmly and strongly that we need to rebuild that connection,” Michael tells us.

Today, many people of color in the U.S. feel unwelcome in green spaces, for a number of reasons. Michael explains that isolation can set in if someone finds themselves to be the only Black or Brown person in, for example, a park. Conversely, people of color are thrown strange glances, watched, suspected, or even followed by white park goers who feel more entitled to the space. Without intentional inclusion of BIPOC people in green spaces, people of color lose out on access.

This trend sadly extends to youth of color, as well. Outside of the farm, Peace’s work involves engaging with middle-school students. She’s found that many students of color experience a disconnect from nature, and that they think “the outdoors is a white thing.” We could hear the dejection in Peace’s voice as she speaks on this, intermixed with hope. She adds that, “when you’re able to give [students] that experience of being outside and they really enjoy it, I think it is really an emotional thing. That it belongs to you too… It belongs to everybody.”

As such, Peace and Michael have made it part of their mission to create intentional space for BIPOC folks on their farm. In addition to selling high-quality and sustainable products, Frog Tree Farm offers retreats to the property, including cabin stays and “glamping”.  These options make outdoor recreation more widely accessible to those with limited camping experience and equipment.

The farm also uses retreats as a form of community outreach, and has partnered with a number of groups in order to bring more people of color into the outdoors. For instance, the farm recently received a grant through Hennepin County’s violence prevention program, allowing Peace and Michael to invite students and teachers from nearby districts to their farm. Thus, they’ve been able to create a dialogue around social justice – particularly on how sustainability issues connect to historical violence against communities of color.

When people of color visit Frog Tree Farm, they get to spend time outdoors canoeing, walking, and learning to identify plants. “They can see somebody that looks like them, that owns it, that runs it, operates it. They can feel like they’re a part of this,” Michael explains.

Peace and Michael have built a community where visitors can meet those who share their values. Perhaps one of their most meaningful undertakings has been the Emerging Farmers Working Group, a statewide program which supports the startup efforts of new and aspiring farmers with underrepresented identities: people of color, women, queer people, and veterans. People with these backgrounds who want to farm are faced with barriers such as limited ability to purchase land, discrimination in small communities, and outdated USDA policies that set Black farmers at a disadvantage.

Frog Tree Farm was asked to help lead listening sessions with this working group. The group has won support for emerging farmers, including money for translation services, a $15,000 down payment assistance program for people trying to start a farm, and an emerging farmers office at the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, among others. When this working group started in 2019, only 39 of approximately 70,000 farms in Minnesota were Black-owned”. In the last farm census that came out in early 2024, the number of farms was still hovering around 70,000; but the number of Black owned farms had increased to 65. That number is still quite low, but the increase suggests that the Emerging Farmers project is making progress.

Intertwined with their efforts towards social justice are Peace and Michael’s sustainability efforts. Frog Tree is a Minnesota Water Quality Certified farm, and it has a Climate-Smart Endorsement from Minnesota’s Department of Agriculture. A number of specific measures have contributed to such certifications. Peace and Michael have incorporated cover cropping in between their stands of trees, which prevents runoff and captures more carbon dioxide per acre of land. They’ve made use of the rotary plow, which conserves both water and soil quality.

One of the coolest measures we learned about was Peace and Michael’s conscientious use of tree parts. All parts of their balsam fir trees – a primary component of their holiday wreaths – are utilized in some way on the farm. Another of their products – Yule logs – are harvested only after the birch trees they’re composed of have fallen on their own. Jack pines, typically removed from conventional tree farms for their undesirable “scraggly” qualities,  are preserved on the farm and incorporated into Frog Tree wreaths. This furthers the uniqueness of Frog Tree Farm’s products, in addition to supporting biodiversity and carbon sequestration.

The couple has had a longstanding interest in environmental justice, spanning back to their childhoods. Racism is connected to the air, land, and water–roots embedded in the soil. Michael explains this by saying, “The communities that most suffer from environmental injustice typically are BIPOC communities.” Yet, communities of color have a harder time making their voices heard by decision-makers when it comes to environmental, health, and safety issues.

When the couple bought the farm from Peace’s side of the family, their focus on environmental justice grew. Peace explains, “We’re trying to do things the right way with water quality, climate… so that whatever we’re doing does not hurt the place, and also introducing those concepts to the people that come out”.

Of course, Frog Tree Farm’s environmental justice framework has not persisted without its share of obstacles. In one case, Peace and Michael applied for a grant from the MDA to put in an irrigation system.  To receive the grant, the USDA required an expensive water test in order to approve the grant plan, but the water test was too expensive for a small farm like Frog Tree Farm. Michael offered a suggestion: that the USDA approve the grant, and with some of the grant money they could pay for the water test. The representative from the USDA that they were working with refused to approve the grant, saying that the water test needed to be conducted first. Peace and Michael continued to push. Weeks went by without a resolution until, eventually, they connected with an officer representing the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. The MDA officer, a white man who was advocating for them, offered the same solution that Michael and Peace had proposed and – just like that – the USDA approved it. Michael thanked the officer profusely, but immediately followed up his gratitude with criticism. He remarked to the USDA representative how “it’s pretty fucked up when the white guy says the exact same thing that we’ve been saying, [and] all of a sudden, it’s acceptable.”

The work and success of marginalized people – especially in agriculture – all too often hinge on the decisions of those with greater forms of power. Consider, for instance, how historically, mainstream environmental movements and organizations have been composed mostly of white activists, who have, in turn, failed to examine the relevant social-justice intersections within environmental issues. In other words, communities of color face interference from white people – sometimes in the name of sustainability.

Michael explains to us the irony of this all-too-common situation. “Look, white people don’t own sustainability. You may have created the word… but in terms of communities of color – particularly poor people – we’ve been living a sustainable life for a really long time.” In Michael’s family and community, when a mayonnaise jar was finished, it became a drinking glass. An outgrown pair of jeans would be passed down to a sibling. In Michael’s words, “That’s sustainability. We just didn’t call it sustainability.”

Peace and Michael have several suggestions for young activists. Their first recommendation is to reach out to elders. Peace says, “We were very fortunate that we had a lot of elders to guide us.” She also tells us to remember, “It’s a journey. There’s things you’ll mess up on… and if it’s something that’s really in your gut, you just gotta stay with it.” Moreover, it’s important to read and “talk to people that don’t have the exact same values as you.” Michael adds that taking a job that’s in line with your values can help, but even if you take a job that doesn’t, “Don’t let your employer dictate your values… The salary that you receive, that shouldn’t be a bigger push than your values.”

He continues on to say, “Some of your community pressures might be big.” Being a farmer and small-business owner is a full-time job, and even more so when the work is mission-driven. We asked the pair about what inspires them to continue farmwork in spite of the difficulties they face. But Peace tells us that it isn’t a choice for them. She describes her and Michael’s work as obligatory – fulfilling and rewarding, but obligatory nonetheless. The obstacles in front of BIPOC communities are too great, and their family’s future too important, for the couple not to play to their strengths, to their knowledge bases.

With all that being said, Peace and Michael are leading the agricultural community of Minnesota towards a brighter future, with a blend of programs like no other. Their contributions to justice-centered programming have brought relationship, networking, and resource opportunities to those who can use them the most, thereby strengthening the BIPOC farming community as a whole. Their sustainable practices have fostered positive and truly meaningful relationships with the land. Peace and Michael’s path to the present has not been linear, but the result of their care and efforts is remarkable. We are nothing if not inspired by their work and words.

Something exceedingly special occurs when generations collaborate. Our efforts to create change within our communities are informed and renewed. We come to a greater understanding of problems and solutions. We build on the work and care put into a cause by those who came before us. Not just for ourselves, and not just for the time being. When we work together, we build a more just and sustainable world – now, and for the future.