The Piedmont Environmental Council

Goal: $3,000.00

Specific Need

Despite Loudoun County being one of the most affluent counties in the nation, about 32,000 Loudoun residents are experiencing food insecurity. At our Community Farm at Roundabout Meadows, The Piedmont Environmental Council (PEC) engages volunteers to plant, harvest and pack fruits and vegetables, almost all of which is donated to local food pantries. We are asking for your support today to increase our fruit and vegetable production, and to expand our partnerships with new food pantries and bring our healthy food to more food-insecure households.

Your donation will help us:

Produce 60,000+ pounds of fruits and vegetables this year for donation to local food pantries.
Add two new food pantry partners in Loudoun and northern Fauquier counties, enabling us to bring our food to even more residents experiencing food insecurity.
Recruit 1,000 volunteers to plant and harvest our produce.
Provide meaningful agricultural experiences and educational programs for local residents to grow their skills and experiences.

Mission

Located near Gilbert’s Corner in Aldie, PEC’s Community Farm at Roundabout Meadows has two primary goals: to expand healthy food access for residents experiencing food insecurity, and increase residents’ access to Loudoun’s agriculture-based economy and open spaces through volunteer and educational opportunities.

Since our first growing season in 2019, the Community Farm has produced more than 241,000 pounds of healthy food, almost all of which have been donated to food pantries in Loudoun and Clarke counties. In 2026 we will be adding two new partners, Windy Hill Foundation and Seven Loaves Services, both of whom serve Loudoun and Fauquier counties, expanding the distribution of the Farm’s produce into three counties within PEC’s operating region.

For PEC, the Community Farm is an important door to our community, not only fighting food insecurity in our region but also providing opportunities for community members to experience the sensation of soil between their fingers and to learn the joys of sustaining life through gardening and farming while also serving those in need. Our goal is to engage 1,000 volunteers this year, and we have regular volunteer days at the Farm starting in mid-March and running through October.

Profile

Founded in 1972, PEC works to protect and restore the lands and waters of the Virginia Piedmont, while building stronger, more sustainable communities. We serve a nine-county region of the Virginia Piedmont and Blue Ridge encompassing Loudoun, Fauquier, Clarke, Rappahannock, Culpeper, Madison, Orange, Greene and Albemarle Counties, as well as the City of Charlottesville. We strive to make the Piedmont a model and leader in conserving and restoring our lands and waters, while focusing development in walkable historic communities. At the core of our approach is a focus on educating, engaging and empowering people to effect positive change in their communities.

What We Do

Conserve Land: PEC has helped landowners permanently protect more than 450,000 acres of land in our nine-county region. Our work centers on accelerating the pace of land conservation, ensuring clean water, enhancing wildlife habitat and expanding public access. We are working to protect an additional 100,000 acres in our region by the end of 2030. With the achievement of this goal, 30% of the Piedmont’s lands would be permanently protected, reaching an important threshold for preservation of the Piedmont’s farmland, forests and public open spaces.
Build stronger, more sustainable communities: A thoughtful approach to land use planning, paired with decision making that balances growth and development with natural and cultural resource protection, is vital to a healthy and vibrant Piedmont region. That is why, for each of our nine counties, PEC has professional staff who delve into development proposals, zoning, and comprehensive plans to plan for now and the future, fight bad projects and incompatible land uses, improve livability and strengthen communities.
Shape and advance Virginia’s clean energy future: PEC is working to support an energy system that is smarter, more efficient and better accounts for the impacts arising from the choices we make about energy consumption, generation, transmission and distribution. We advocate for a more distributed system that is less reliant on distant generating sources and incorporates a mix of local renewable power. Recognizing Virginia is in the early stages of its energy transition, we believe now is the time to reimagine and rebuild our energy system in a way that is just and fair to all residents and ratepayers. This includes our solar panels at the Community Farm at Roundabout Meadows, which power all the operations of the farm and form the first crop-based agrivoltaics project in Virginia.
Set an example through land ownership: PEC-owned properties provide a platform to demonstrate our vision, values, practices to community members and partners. We use them as a showcase for civic engagement, a resilient local food system, native habitat restoration and expanded public access to open space. Our conservation properties include the 141-acre Roundabout Meadows, where we operate the Community Farm and host more than 1,000 visitors every year to help grow healthy food; historic Gilberts Corner, where we support the agriculture-based economy through a local farmers’ market; and the Piedmont Memorial Overlook near Sky Meadows State Park, which showcases native habitat restoration practices and attracts thousands of visitors every year.

How You Can Help

Make a donation through GiveChoose! Select PEC as one of the charities you donate to today, so we can engage more community members and provide more healthy food at the Farm.
Volunteer at our Community Farm. PEC welcomes volunteers of all ages to plant, harvest and pack the food we grow and donate to local hunger relief groups. Our volunteer season runs weekly, from April through October. Learn more and sign up at www.pecva.org/farm
Join one of our community events this spring and summer. From grassland bird walks to community meetings about growth and development issues, PEC holds numerous events year-round for you to attend and get involved. Check out our events page at www.pecva.org/events.