RI State Conservation Committee

The RI State Conservation Committee provides assistance and support to the three Conservation Districts in their efforts to assist local landowners and municipalities in the proper stewardship of our lands and waters. To this end, the Committee works with state and federal agencies to promote the districts' mission on both the state and national level, while still providing administrative and program support.

The Conservation Districts were established in Rhode Island by State Law in 1944. The function of the Districts is to take available technical, financial, and educational resources and focus or coordinate them so that they meet the needs of the local land user for conservation of soil, water, and related resources. They operate on a premise that local people know the most about local needs. The districts do not regulate or enforce laws.

Three women standing together indoors, smiling at the camera, wearing name tags. The woman on the left is in a red top with a gray and black cardigan, the woman in the middle is in a colorful floral blouse with a dark cardigan, and the woman on the right is in a pink dress with a matching cardigan. There are wooden walls and windows showing an outdoor scene in the background.

RI State Conservation Committee District Managers

Gina Fuller (SRICD), Molly Allard (NRICD), Sara Churgin (ERICD)

Map of Rhode Island showing conservation districts in Northern Rhode Island, Eastern Rhode Island, and Southern Rhode Island, each in different colors.

There are three Conservation Districts in Rhode Island - Northern, Southern, and Eastern

The People’s Garden

A program which empowers local partners to install community gardens or high tunnels within each of the Rhode Island Conservation Districts (Eastern, Southern, & Northern).

This project is funded by an agreement between the RI State Conservation Committee (RISCC) and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (USDA NRCS). The winning organizations can purchase supplies to build their new community garden or high tunnel.

Community gardens help to support resilient, local food systems, nurture habitat for wildlife, create greenspace for neighbors, and teach people how to garden using conservation practices.

Learn more

Two people talking in a garden with sunflowers and other plants, with a tree line in the background.

People gathered in a farm field with purple flowers in the foreground and houses in the background on a sunny day.

Person wearing a face mask, purple shirt, and pink gloves gardening near green bushes, with a pink container filled with plant cuttings in foreground.

A sign in a garden reads, 'The People's Garden at Island Community Farm, Aquideck Community Table.' The garden is filled with yellow and white flowers, and there are green bushes and trees in the background under a clear blue sky.