CONNECTING FARMERS,
LAND, and community

Healthy farms depend on healthy ecosystems and thriving farmers, and healthy communities depend on all three.

WHAT WE DO

Our mission is to co-create and steward a network of farm commons in communities across Minnesota, supporting equitable, healthy food systems.

Commons Land is a community land trust dedicated to farmland. We acquire land and hold it permanently for community benefit, while farmers steward the land through long-term agreements designed to support both agricultural viability and ecological health.

This approach creates a lasting balance between affordability, productivity, and conservation. Farmers can focus on growing food and building their businesses without the burden of purchasing increasingly expensive land, while the community gains confidence that these landscapes will remain protected and productive for future generations. Though our model is adapted to today's challenges, it draws on an older understanding of land not as a speculative asset, but as a living resource to be stewarded for future generations.

commons 101

who we are

re-imagining land as a commons

Commons Land reanimates a centuries-old practice of commoning: people working together to share, steward, and sustain land for the collective good.

Using the legal structure of a Community Land Trust (CLT), we separate ownership of land from its use. The land remains community-held in perpetuity, while farmers gain secure, long-term access through affordable ground leases.

This approach creates lasting stability for farmers while ensuring that land remains dedicated to food production, ecological stewardship, and community benefit.

PROTECTING WHAT MATTERS

Our work extends beyond farmland access.

We actively conserve and restore ecologically natural resources such as wetlands, waterways, native prairie remnants, and sensitive habitats.

Through thoughtful stewardship and collaborative partnerships, we strengthen biodiversity, improve water quality, and build resilience in the face of a changing climate.

A FUTURE WHERE EVERYONE THRIVES

Trust holds us together.

We envision a future where farmers have secure access to land and the opportunity to build thriving businesses; where healthy soils, clean water, and diverse ecosystems are restored and protected; and where communities benefit from resilient local food systems and enduring connections to the land that sustains them.

WHO WE ARE

Commons Land is guided by a community of farmers, land stewards, organizers, and advocates who believe that farmland should remain accessible, productive, and rooted in community.