What we do
DESIGN
Design the centre as part of a wider ecosystem, supporting local community food networks, using Indigenous-informed land stewardship, and building infrastructure able to adapt to climate, seasonal change, and long-term social needs.
EXPAND
Integrate composting toilets, greywater reuse,food waste cycling, and on-site food gardensso that nutrient and resource cycles are circular, reducing reliance on external inputs and lowering operational stress.
SHAPE
Shape the physical environment—paths, gardens, views, natural light, calm acoustics, forest buffers—so that the infrastructure itself promotes mental, emotional, and spiritual healing. This starts from Zone 0; the mind and body, and ripples outward to home, garden, orchard, food forest, community, and territory.
Design buildings, landscapes, and systems (water, energy, waste, food) so the infrastructure produces more than it consumes—harvesting rainwater, generating renewable energy, and using natural materials that reduce long-term costs and environmental impact.
INTERGRATE
2024
Tl’etinqox
Community Garden
A collaboration between NENQAYNI, Tl’etinqox Government Office and REFARMERS, Trevor Mack, A Valeria both designed and managed the Tl’etinqox Community Garden for the 2024 season. The vision design of project was rooted in indigenous agricultural practices, ceremonial traditions, and the vision of fostering food sovereignty through a centre gathering space. Beginning in April and finishing in October 2024, the team transformed the community garden into a vibrant space, nurturing native seedlings, constructing sustainable garden beds, and holding ceremonies to honour the land.
Throughout the season, the garden became a hub of activity, hosting workshops, inter-community collaborations, and the inaugural Potato Harvest Ceremony and Festival. These events not only celebrated traditional food systems but also engaged youth and elders, uniting the community in shared purpose.
By the season's end, the Tl’etinqox Community Garden had produced a bounty of vegetables and fruits, completed infrastructure like an in-ground traditional gathering space, and laid the groundwork for future initiatives. The team’s efforts transformed the garden into a model for indigenous-led, sustainable development, and a has become a source of pride for the Tl’etinqox community.
For more information, visit www.nenqayni.org/ticgc
2024/2025
Tl’etinqox
Traditional
Gathering Place
Designed by Trevor Mack, the traditional in-ground gathering place at the Tl’etinqox Community Garden reflects the form of a Tsilhqot’in pithouse; however, instead of being built below ground, it is open-air to blend with the aromas of the surrounding garden. The structure features a reciprocal roof from locally harvested pine, a rock-wall exterior made up some nearby river rocks, and an interior finished entirely with earthen clay and local sand from the Tl’etinqox territory.
The gathering place is an example of using local materials from the land to enhance the quality and meaning of Tsilhqot’in infrastructure. It has become a focal point of the Tl’etinqox community garden and is scheduled for completion in Spring 2026.
2024/2025
Xeni Gwet’in
Community Garden
NENQAYNI Earth Design collaborated with REFARMERS to design the master plan and technical layout for the ‘Xeni Xenelhyax’ Xeni Gwet’in community garden, incorporating hügelkultur mounds for wind protection, strategic placement of geodesic domes based on winter sun angles, and optimized garden bed layout. Since then, the garden now has very committed managers and has hosted many Xeni Gwet’in youth and has had several successful harvests.