Westside Neighbourhood Food Network

WNFN is very active, engaging in approximately 150 activities a year.

Our COMMUNITY FOOD RESILIENCE core program revolve around 6 key projects: Westside Food Festival, Westside Permaculture Corridor, Workshops, Collaborative Community Gardens, DIY Planter Boxes, and Community Seed Libraries. Other projects include a recycling centre, community meals, Permaculture Vancouver meetups, and plant and bee house giveaways.

During the pandemic, we've pivoted to ensure that our programs have continued to remain accessible, including hosting zoom workshops, seed-libraries-by mail, and continuing to garden collaboratively. In response to combatting social isolation and offering more opportunities to folks who may be immunocompromised during the pandemic, we've started a DIY Planter Box Kits program,  are offering more work from home volunteer activities, and offer zoom workshops over the winter holidays.

New this year (2021): Seed Libraries at Kerrisdale, Dunbar, and W. Pt. Grey Vancouver Public Library branches, Community Planter Box Garden at MLA David Eby's office, planter boxes at Bayswater Plaza, expanded vertical garden at McBride Fieldhouse, Kits Community Centre Collaborative Garden (now managed by us) expanded plant and planter box giveaways.

WESTSIDE FOOD FESTIVAL                                                   

The 1st festival took place July 18-31, 2017, and featured over 40 activities (all free) at a dozen westside locations, now the festival has grown to having over 100 activities! Keep scrolling to the bottom of the page to see a list of our past events hosted during the 2026 Westside Food Festival.

WORKSHOPS                                                                           

We hold several dozen food and gardening related workshops a year - many hand-on - at McBride Fieldhouse, our gardens, Kits Library, Aberthau, Kits Community Centre, and elsewhere. Typical topics include growing, preserving, fermenting, seed saving, permaculture, bees, cooking, native edibles, improving your soil, vertical gardening, and gardening and climate change.                                                       

Recycling Depot Monthly depots on the Thursday before the 3rd Friday of the month at Kits CC. Free from Apr-Nov; by donation Dec-Mar. Volunteers welcome.

WESTSIDE PERMACULTURE CORRIDOR

The goal of this 3-year Greenest City project is to create a corridor of several Permaculture gardens in Kitsilano and adjoining westside communities. Currently, 11 gardens/gardening spaces are involved. Features of the project include self-guided walking tours in English, Cantonese and Mandarin as well as extensive plant and topical signage. We're completing the 1st 3 years of the project this year, and will be extending the project for at least another year.

COLLABORATION                                                                                                            We've collaborated w/many local community groups, organizations, businesses, universities and other institutions over the years, including Kits, Dunbar, Kerrisdale, and W. Pt. Grey VPL branches, Aberthau Mansion (West Point Grey Community Centre), Kits Community Centre, Kits Neighbourhood House, W. Broadway BIA, SPEC, Billy Bishop Legion Hall, KCC Collaborative Garden, Society Le Village, LocoMotoArt, Vancouver Neighbourhood Food Networks, Westside Food Collaborative, Marpole Oakridge Neighbourhood Food Network, South False Creek NFN, UBC, Emily Carr UAD, Langara College, Kerrisdale Community Centre, West Point Grey Preschool, Kits Car Free Day block parties, Car Free Day Vancouver, Green Streets, Frisch Farms, Vancouver Arts Colloquium Society, West Coast Seeds,  Invivo Desigh, Fermentoring, E.A.R.T.H. and Co., Springtail Soil Regeneration, Counter-Cultures, Pacific Mobile Depot, The Agronomy Garden (at UBC), Kits House Rooftop Garden, Hives for Humanity, Dunbar Earthquake Emergency Preparedness, Rogue Folk Club,  Banyen Books, Hunter Garden Centre, Home Hardware (on 10th), Home Hardware (on Broadway), as well as MLA David Eby's Office, MP Joyce Murray's office, Green Streets, Vancouver Park Board, and the City of Vancouver.

In the broader Westside community, we've also worked with Marpole-Oakridge Community Centre, Jewish Community Centre, and Charleson Community Garden. Other current or past collaborations include, or have included Museum of Vancouver, Marpole Place Neighbourhood House, St. Augustine's Church, Farm Folk/City Folk, False Creek Community Centre, A Rocha, Seedstock Community Currency Project, Automatic Earth, Dunbar Residents Assn., Salmonberry Days, the Sustenance Festival, PosAbilities, Lord's Grace Church, UBC Farm, NOW BC,  Grant's Gourmet Gardens, Westside Collaborative Garden, Kits House Balcony Garden, and the Vancouver Food Policy Council.

Within Village Vancouver, many groups and gardens collaborate with the network - most notably Kits Village - as well as West Pt. Grey Village and Kerrisdale Village.

If you're a Westside food group, or have a food project that you'd like us to help spread the word about, please get in touch.

COLLABORATIVE COMMUNITY GARDENS/other growing projects & activities 

We have 5 Westside collaborative community gardens/gardening spaces.

Aberthau Collaborative Permaculture and EcoArt Garden (at West Point Grey Community Centre) The garden includes our Demonstration Permaculture Garden, the West Point Grey Preschool Garden, and (following on the heels of 2015's Sunflower Garden, 2016's year's Pumpkin Patch,2017's Heritage Bean art/garden project, other art/food projects by Aberthau/McBride Park Fieldhouse artists-in-residence LocoMotoArt: Laura Lee Coles and Rob Scharein. Registrations to participate as a volunteer are available HERE or on the Vancouver Recreation website. 

Kitsilano Community Centre Community Garden

Situated west of Connaught Park, this garden is a beautiful green space to educate and inspire community through collaborative learning, growing and sharing. During 2025, the Community Centre replaced the old wooden raised beds with six aluminum ones to further provide space to grow herbs, pollinator-friendly flowers, and fruit-bearing shrubs and trees. As with all VV plots, the Kitsilano Garden is sustained through the collaboration of volunteers. Registrations to participate as a volunteer are available HERE or on the Vancouver Recreation Active Communities website. 

Green Streets Garden

As a part of the City of Vancouver's Green Streets program, Village Vancouver maintains the garden near Broadway in Kitsilano, focused on mostly growing native plants  As with all VV plots, the Garden Streets Garden is sustained through the collaboration of volunteers. 

McBride Park Vertical Garden

With a major expansion project through the installation of a drip irrigation system, McBride Park on West 4th Avenue in Kitsilano houses Village Vancouver's vertical garden. This garden now hold 197 pouches, with over 100 from the last two years, despite moving the gardens, in 2025, to continue the opportunity to expand the native plant-focused garden. Although the Vancouver Parks Board has recently added signage describing the garden, we may be moving the garden to another location in the park, or an entirely new location. As with all VV plots, the Garden Streets Garden is sustained through the collaboration of volunteers. 

10th Avenue Community Garden 

Situated the Point Grey neighbourhood, Village Vancouver has 2 planter boxes in the 10th Avenue Community Garden with various plants and flowers. As with all VV plots, the 10th Avenue Garden is sustained through the collaboration of volunteers.

Grow Local Community Food Resiliency Project (2018-19) We offered hands on gardening and other workshops related to growing food at interested community gardens in Spring 2018.

Harvest Celebration

Organic Gardening Open House We help organize this every April at Kits Library, along with Kits branch VPL, Le Village, Kits Community Centre Collaborative Garden, and Westside Food Collaborative.

COMMUNITY MEALS                                                                                                  Potlucks We hold occasional potlucks, including sometimes potluck after garden work parties at Permaculture Vancouver Meetups, and at other times.

Thanksgiving Dinners

Slow Food/Slow Everything Days (Terra Madre Day) We've held several of these over the years.

Drop in "Spaghetti" Nights Neighbours cooking meals for other neighbours. We've done around 40 of these over the years. No nights are currently scheduled, but get in touch if you'd like to hold/see one in your neighbourhood.

Monthly Dinner Groups We've had a couple groups in the past. If there's interest, let's start a new one.

Salon d'Elan Vital Occasional discussions/potlucks.

EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS

Join VV in discussing practical responses to the climate emergency. At these gatherings, we’re particularly interested in hearing what actions you’re taking, especially ones which others can also take. (Previous project.)

PERMACULTURE PROJECTS                                                                                             

See our Westside Permaculture project. If you have space - for instance, a front lawn, that you'd like to see converted into a mini-food forest, please contact us.

SEEDS                                                                                                                             Seed Libraries We maintain 11 Westside seed libraries - at our McBride Park Fieldhouse office, at Kits, Kerrisdale, Dunbar, and W. Pt. Grey VP Library branches, at MLA David Eby's office, at KV Collaborative Garden library, a roving library in Kits for street fairs, etc., one for the Aberthau Garden Project, at Kits House (Seniors Centre) and, in Kerrisdale, a set of seed library panniers in Kerrisdale. Folks can get free seeds, or swap donate seeds.

School and community garden Seed Donation Program

Seed Savers Club

Seed Saving at our collaboartive gardens

Seed Saving Workshops

Donate Seeds to the Seed Library

SENIORS

ElderGreens Westside ElderGreens help organize workshops, are active in our gardens, help maintain our seed libraries, and participate in other activities. New members (50 and over, as well as all other ages) welcome!

Westside Food Collaborative We're a longtime member of WFC, which is a longstanding Neighbourhood Food Network based out of Kits House. WFC and WNFN enjoy working together and supporting each other's activities in building food security and food resilience on the Westside.

Community Based Food Art and Music

Neighbourhood Small Grants Numerous  Westside VVers have applied and been successful in receiving Neighbourhood and Green Neighbourhood Small Grants, many of which have food themes. Need info on how to apply? We can help!

FED-AP (Community Food Resiliency Plan)

Bees/Pollinators We give away native bees houses, and our gardens are all pollinators friendly.

Westside Community Food Market We have a booth (in June, July, part of Aug and Sept) at the weekly market, which is organized by SPEC and Kits House. (During the pandemic, the market is on hold.)

Sustenance Festival We participated in Sustenance for many years, offering workshops and other activities. 

Other Festivals and Street Fairs We participate in Khatsahlano, HUB GO by Bike Week, Greek Day, and other festivals.

Seasonal Gatherings The Celebration of Light fireworks and Folk Fest in the summer, plus our Thanksgiving Potluck and Slow Food, Slow Everything Day

PAST PROJECTS

Broccoli Promenades (proposed project 2009-10)

Brown Bag Lunches (2012-13)

Curbside Fruit Orchard (proposed project 2013-14))

From Here to There (2011-14)

Green Streets Garden #2 (2014-16)

Kits Community Centre Collaborative Garden We helped start KCCCG (2013-14). 

Kits House Balcony Garden (2013)

Kits Point Car Free Day Block Parties (2008-9)

Kits Point Village (2008-9)

McBride Park Field House Programming during LocoMotoArt residency (2013-14).

Permaculture in Planters and Pots A small permaculture project at McBride Park Fieldhouse (2014-16)

We Can Do the Can Canning (2009-10)

Westside Community Garden (2009-11)

Some recent activities (Summer 2026):

This summer 2026, we were fortunate enough to host yet another Westside Food Festival(our 10th). In collaboration with Village Vancouver and Fairview-False Creek South and Marpole Oakridge Neighbourhood Food Networks the festival consisted of over 60 free & low cost activities and workshops through the westside. Activities included:

May 19, Tuesday: Pressure Canning — CANCELLED
 6:15 PM – 9:15 PM at West Point Grey Community Centre

May 22, Friday: Homemade Kombucha Brewing
 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM at Kitsilano Community Centre

May 24, Sunday: Small Space Gardening Workshop
 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM at Acadia Commonsblock, UBC

May 26, Tuesday: Grow Your Own Microgreens
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at Kitsilano Community Centre

May 27, Wednesday: Permaculture Vancouver May Meetup -- Tour of Aberthau Community Garden
 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM at West Point Grey Community Centre

May 28, Thursday: Homemade Kombucha Brewing
 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM at False Creek Community Centre

June 4, Thursday: Grow Your Own Sprouts and Microgreens — CANCELLED
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at False Creek Community Centre

June 5, Friday: Village Vancouver Table at HUB Go By Bike Week
 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM at HI Hostel Jericho Beach

June 6, Saturday: Sprouts and Microgreens Workshop
 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM at Acadia Commonsblock, UBC

June 7, Sunday: Quick Pickles
 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM at West Point Grey Community Centre

June 7, Sunday: Village Vancouver Table at Marpole Community Days
 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM at Marpole-Oakridge Community Centre

June 8, Monday: Healthy Soil for a Great Garden
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at West Point Grey Community Centre

June 11, Thursday: Introduction to Vertical Gardening
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at West Point Grey Community Centre

June 12, Friday: Mason Jar Fermenting
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at Kitsilano Community Centre

June 13, Saturday: Kids Playing in the Dirt — CANCELLED
 1:00 PM – 1:50 PM at West Point Grey Community Centre

June 13, Saturday: Kids Planting Herbs — CANCELLED
 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM at West Point Grey Community Centre

June 14, Sunday: Wild and Edible Plants
 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM at Kitsilano Community Centre.

June 18, Thursday: Kitsilano Village Recycling Depot
 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM at Kitsilano Community Centre

June 19, Friday: Kimchi
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at Kitsilano Community Centre

June 23, Tuesday: Drip Irrigation for a Waterwise World — CANCELLED
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at West Point Grey Community Centre

June 24, Wednesday: Pickling
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at False Creek Community Centre

June 24, Wednesday: Permaculture Vancouver June Meetup
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at Kitsilano Community Centre

June 25, Thursday: Hot Water Bath Canning
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at Kitsilano Community Centre

April 4 – June 27, Saturdays: Kitsilano Community Garden

   1:45 PM - 3:45 PM at Kitsilano Community Centre

May 2 – June 27, Saturdays: Aberthau Community Garden

   10:00 AM - 12:30 PM at West Point Grey Community Centre

June 28, Sunday: DIY Canning Soup in a Jar
 9:30 AM – 11:30 AM at West Point Grey Community Centre

June 28, Sunday: Village Vancouver Table at Greek Day on Broadway
 11:00 AM – 9:00 PM on West Broadway

June 29, Monday: Plant Walk
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at West Point Grey Community Centre

June 30, Tuesday: Flavored Vinegar — CANCELLED
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at West Point Grey Community Centre

July 2, Thursday: Kimchi
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at False Creek Community Centre

July 3, Friday: Water Bath Canning
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at Kitsilano Community Centre

July 6, Monday: Sauerkraut
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at West Point Grey Community Centre

July 8, Wednesday: Fall and Winter Gardening
 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM at West Point Grey Community Centre

July 9, Thursday: Homemade Kombucha Brewing
 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM at West Point Grey Community Centre

July 11, Saturday: Village Vancouver Table at Khatsahlano Street Party 
 11:00 AM - 4:00 PM, West 4th Ave (Burrard St to Macdonald St)