Farmer Incubator Internship

Location: Cozy Point, Aspen, Colorado 

Time Commitment: Flexible start dates from mid May/early June through late September/ Mid October with a farm business plan to be completed during the winter months.  Additional test-plot implementation optional during a second spring/ summer.

Compensation: $200/week during summer and a CSA share with produce, some lamb and eggs (usually the slightly cracked ones).  Additional option for $100/week with possible housing included. Second year possible part time employment to provide a financial buffer while working as a farmer incubator based on first year’s performance.

Application Deadline: Positions are open until filled. 

Requirements:

• No previous farming experience necessary 

• Strong, demonstrable work ethic 

• Curiosity, commitment to treating internship as learning experience

• Flexibility, patience, and a positive attitude 

• Ability to safely and successfully perform manual labor in varying weather conditions at an altitude of 7,000ft 

• Interest in organic agriculture

• Flexibility to do multiple on-farm tasks.

• The intern must arrange their own transportation to the internship.

This more extensive internship will span from May or June-October as a farm intern with the possibility of implementing a test plot during a second summer.  During this first year the intern’s tasks will include soil building and cover cropping, starting and planting vegetables, and canning and preserving excess produce for the market.  Interns will learn seeding, planting, weeding, harvesting, and preserving. During this time the intern will engage in two research projects driven partially by the interests of the intern but that may include; cultivation methods, soil fertility, carbon sequestration, harvest densities or marketing.  The intern will present these topics to the Farm Collaborative Staff during staff meetings. This first summer on the farm will expose the intern to daily farm work and give them an idea of different farming methods.  Interns will also take park in infrastructure upkeep and animal husbandry including rotating chicken and sheep, mucking chicken coops, fixing fencing and irrigation, digging trenches, and pulling thistle.

The second stage of the internship will involve planning and implementing their own incubator farm.  During the fall or winter the intern will work to create a farm business plan and seeding and planting plan with the Production Manager of The Farm Collaborative.  This will include documenting the calculations on what to plant, projected farm harvests and sales, seed purchases and orders based on projected plantings, and research on market opportunities.  The intern will be able to do these projects in conjunction with the Production Manager and will have access to the Farm Collaborative’s harvest and sales data from previous years as a baseline.  This second year the intern will not receive a stipend for time spent on their personal test plot, but they will have the option to work part time for the farm collaborative to supplement their pilot year.

If the intern chooses, they will then be able to take and implement this farm plan during the subsequent summer.  The Farm Collaborative will provide allocated space for this farmer as a test plot, space at the Aspen Farmers’ Market booth, and access to wholesale or CSA connections forged by the Farm Collaborative.  They will be able to utilize the farm equipment provided by the Farm Collaborative, including small greenhouse structures, seeding materials, and machinery.  This final project collaboration will culminate in a comparison of the planting, harvesting, and business plan projections to the actual harvests and sales achieved during that year.  It will give the new farmer a taste of what a real farm year would be like without having to make the big investments.

“I will forever cherish my experience working with the Farm Collaborative. Coming in, I had a minimal background in regenerative agriculture. I had no intention of studying it in school or becoming a farmer. Little did I know that my summer gig would leave me with a foundation of passion, knowledge, and skill to live a more sustainable and conscientious lifestyle. A moment that stands out in particular and resembles the organization's "beyond sustainable" mission is when I took part in building a mobile bunny house. This was a design used to remove the grass (as the rabbit ate) while simultaneously nourishing the soil (as the rabbit pooped) to prepare for the next bed of crops. I was blown away by the land and animals' ability to create a self-sustaining environment. While I expected my job to entail chores like planting and weeding, little did I know that each day would look different and require a diverse number of tasks. Some days involved assisting with the children's camp, while other days involved preparing for and running the Aspen Farmer's Markets or the butchering of a lamb who was born and raised on the farm.

My experience with this organization taught me how to never again take for granted the work of the land, animals, and farmers, that allow me and my community to live and eat more sustainably. I am eternally grateful for my co-workers, who welcomed me with an open heart and showed up every day with enthusiasm and a contagious dedication to give back!” - Lily Kraft, 2020 summer intern