Before Ajo CSA, Sterling Johnson was a cowboy. His life was spent clinging to the bull’s back for as long as he could in the dusty arena of the rodeo. He spent more than 25 years racing wild horses and tending cattle, but an injury ended his professional career.
“Rodeos don’t pay entry fees,” Sterling said. “Winning benefits you.”
To pay his bills, Sterling joined an apprenticeship program Ajo Sustainable Agriculture Center (CSA)This non-profit organization teaches traditional and non-traditional farming practices to the people of Western Pima County and Tohono Oodam Nation. It also connects communities with resources such as food pantries filled with organic, local and indigenous ingredients. As an apprentice, Sterling learned how to grow foods that he had only seen in supermarkets.
“The only things we knew how to grow were traditional foods like tepari beans, corn and pumpkin,” Sterling said. “now, [I grow] All these different breeds. By 2017, I was growing 70 of his plants in my garden. Everything from native pomegranates and figs to discovering and planting new traditional foods, kale, broccoli and more. ”
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Currently, he is co-director of Ajo CSA, a position he assumed last year.
Prior to Ajo CSA, Sterling Johnson was a school kid in Tohono O’odham Nation. If he had been born earlier, the federal government would have sent him to boarding school. His education was still affected by that violent rift: he was not taught how to grow food in the arid desert like his ancestors were.If he hadn’t taught himself, Tohono He couldn’t have taught the students at Oodham High School. They may not have learned those techniques today.
“Our traditional food is almost lost,” Sterling said.
Sterling Johnson in the fields of San Xavier Farms on February 24, 2023.
rick wiley arizona daily star
“That’s a big hallmark of Sterling,” said Nina Sajovec, co-director and lifelong partner of Ajo CSA. “Yes, he is a farmer/educator. Yes, he is a community organizer. Yes, he is a mentor. [also] One of the few people on the reservation who know about traditional dryland farming. He may already have one who does it the old fashioned way. Tohono Oodamu lost its way. ”
Tohono O’odham Dry Land Agriculture — Called actin agricultureor “mouth of the wash” – captures floodwaters with ridges (called berms) that stop and hold water and gradations (called contours) that guide the gravity flow of water.
“Sterling is reviving these methods lost by three generations of boarding schools and other colonial structures. He is both an agricultural leader and a non-profit leader because he is part of this Indigenous network,” Nina said.
Ak-Chin agriculture is more sustainable, does not depend on Colorado River water, and can be combined with drought-tolerant native crops like tepari beans, but these methods alone are not enough to overcome a changing climate. You can’t, Sterling said.
“There are limits to what traditional foods can do,” Sterling said. “I have seen the 2020 traditional pumpkins suffer and unable to reproduce seeds…Traditional pumpkins take longer to ripen. It was a dry place. There was no monsoon season, that long heat, no clouds, no rain.The squash suffered.Every plant has its limits.”
Sterling Johnson has jars of brown and white tepari beans grown in Ajo.
Rick Wiley, Arizona Daily Star
Before Stirling became co-director last summer, he worked as a farm manager, leading and teaching apprentices. His work has spread beyond disciplines.
He has worked in the desert and online and has led siolim (cholla bud) harvesting workshops. He has worked with his students to develop community gardens at the elementary and high schools of his Oodam Reservation in Tohono. He worked at Tohono O’odham Community College, facilitating farmers’ work groups.
He works at Mission Gardens in Tucson and has led workshops on traditional wheat and corn growing methods. He worked in Phoenix and advocated for legislation to fund farm apprenticeship programs. He has worked in Sells and across the country to organize farmers and artisans for the Tohono O’odham Farmers Market. In his new role, he is mentoring others to take over those responsibilities so that Ajo CSA can grow.
Nina said of her work and life partner, “A good listener, caring, and very hardworking. He can go on 14 hours a day,” she said.
“He also talks about living in two worlds,” continued Nina. I understand the outside world as they say. [tries] Rather than abandoning all his traditions, he refuses to give up living in the modern age and moving forward with the best of both worlds. ”
Sterling will continue to transition into his role as co-director, so he will take over running the reservation while Nina takes over behind the scenes writing financial reports and grants. “Sterling is leading the way, working on operational management, staff development and grant implementation,” she said.
Nina is sensitive to the focus on Ajo CSA as one of the few indigenous-run nonprofits not just in Arizona, but in the country. “We are building models,” she said. “We know people are watching.”
“We want to move past the mementoism,” said Nina. “How can we share our best practices and help others? If an organization wants to work with Tohono O’odham from the beginning, Tohono O’odham really needs you. Or do you just want to write a grant?
“That requires a significant investment in Native American leaders. For us, it starts in preschool,” Nina said. “You can be here to show native kids. Sterling is one of those leading the way.”
“I do whatever I can to teach the next generation. Going from farm manager to co-director, I step back and let the next generation take over…I am still there to teach But as I move up to my new position, I’m no longer on the scene…a lot, but I’m overseeing traditional foods,” Sterling said.
“I didn’t leave completely,” he said. “I am a farmer at heart.”
in numbers
Free meals provided monthly by Ajo CSA to the community: 2,000
Crops grown by Ajo CSA: 70
Indigenous vendors at Tohono Oddam Farmers Market: 50
Percentage of Indigenous Vendors at Tohono Oddam Farmers Market: 100
Years Ajo CSA Natively Managed: 5
Ajo Farmers Market and Cafe is located at 100 W. Estrella Ave. in Ajo.
Ellis Lueders, this is Tucson
How to connect with Ajo CSA
“We have office space here in Sells where we can use traditional seeds for our community and country. , cornmeal, Sonoran white wheat, tepary beans, indigenous coffee, chola sprouts and cookbooks,” Sterling said. “We really make a lot of things available to people.”
Location: Toho Plaza 1 India Rte. 19, Suite 209, Sells, Arizona
Hours: Thursday to Friday 9am to 2pm
For more information, visit Ajo CSA. Facebook page.
Tohono Oodam Farmers Market
Location: Sales District Office, State Route 86 Mile Post 112, 7, Sells, AZ
Hours of Operation: 1st and 2nd Friday of each month. April 7th and April 14th from 3pm to 6pm
For more information, see their Facebook page.
position: 946 W. Mission Lane
When to find Ajo CSA: Every 3rd Saturday from 8am to 12pm
For more information, see their website.
Aho Cafe & Farmers Market
position: 100 W. Estrella Ave., Ajo, Arizona
Hours: Monday to Friday 10am to 2pm
For more information, see their website.
You can find other locations for Ajo Food Pantry here.
Follow Ajo CSA for more information on online and in-person workshops. Facebook.
