Building the Collective Memory of the Healthy Soils Movement

Introducing the National Healthy Soils Policy Network’s Living Knowledge Base

When I began organizing the National Healthy Soils Policy Network’s growing collection of policy resources, I found myself navigating a familiar landscape: a Google Drive full of folders within folders, packed with valuable information that wasn’t always easy to find. I started geeking out with Notion, imagining how we could transform this collection into something much more useful—a searchable, interconnected library of policy models, campaign strategies, and lessons learned from across the country. After many hours of building, indexing, and refining, I’m excited to share our new Living Healthy Soils Policy Knowledge Base public portal!

Across the country, advocates are advancing innovative policies to help farmers build healthier soils, strengthen agricultural resilience, and support more sustainable food systems. CalCAN started the National Healthy Soils Policy Network in 2018 to ensure that lessons learned in one state can benefit organizers facing similar challenges elsewhere. In service of this function, we developed the Living Healthy Soils Knowledge Base. Envisioned as a collective memory and strategic repository for the movement, it brings together state legislation, program profiles, funding mechanisms, campaign experiences, and educational resources, helping advocates discover promising approaches, learn from successes and setbacks, and avoid reinventing the wheel.

Until now, this treasure trove of resources has been available only to the members of the National Network. We are excited to announce the release of the new public Knowledge Base portal, and we hope you can help spread the word!

The Knowledge Base makes a curated selection of these resources freely accessible to advocates, policymakers, researchers, and anyone interested in advancing regenerative agriculture. Visitors can explore state-by-state policy developments, examine legislation and program models, discover innovative funding approaches, and access practical advocacy tools and educational resources. Behind the public portal lies a much more extensive, fully indexed and searchable Knowledge Base available to Network members and National Partners. This living resource is continually enriched with new policy developments, campaign insights, and contributions from advocates across the country, transforming scattered information into accessible, actionable knowledge.

The Knowledge Base is also a reflection of what makes the National Healthy Soils Policy Network valuable: the people and relationships behind it. Through peer learning, strategic collaboration, and shared resources, the National Network connects advocates working across the country to exchange ideas, navigate challenges, and strengthen their campaigns. The Knowledge Base captures and amplifies that collective expertise, preserving institutional memory and building lasting infrastructure for our growing movement.

Explore the public portal, learn more about the Network, or get in touch to contribute resources, share your expertise, or explore opportunities to collaborate in building this evolving resource.