Blue Sky Sustainable Living Center

Creative Community Engagement:Our artwork is co-creation. Art that builds relationships, resonates in the community, and inspires action. We open difficult conversations that empower the 1,100 people of the Cuyama Valley with information and ways to express themselves. From our early research, we saw the power of using arts to identify and address Cuyama's rural and systemic issues. In 2024, we hosted Cuyama Song Camp and Cuyama Drama Club after-school programs with our local school district. We opened Paso O Paso, a vibrant community space where Cuyamans identified as artists and entrepreneurs. With an NEA grant, we published ideas from local students and local food producers in "A Post-Carrot Cuyama: A Food System Built on Community and distributed the "Unofficial Cuyama Valley Guide to Broadband Internet." The collective project "Bello Valle" had students celebrating Cuyama's bloom of colorful wildflowers. Our ninth annual Dia de los Muertos celebration raised funds for local students in collaboration with Amplify Arts Project and High Desert Print Company. To close the year, we came together in collaboration with Quail Springs to review artist applications for three upcoming Cuyama Water Justice Residencies, funded as part of a larger environmental justice grant from CalEPA.

Economic Development through various programs including:Explore Cuyama - With our partners at the Cuyama Buckhorn, we are continuing to lay the groundwork to establish the Cuyama Valley as a treasured regional tourist destination through shared efforts and the visit Cuyama campaign. At our 267-acre property, we have expanded our capacity for the types of events and gatherings that we can host. Made in Cuyama - our moto that runs throughout the organization. Economic Development is the umbrella for our work, with three specific arenas: creative community engagement, food security, and community research. These are our strategies for supporting entrepreneurs and building our regional creative and economic resources, so that life for all Cuyama residents is resilient, thriving, and inclusive. At the Blue Sky Center Property, we continue to host local craftspeople in the "Blue Sky Shops." We provide space to work and one-on-one technical assistance for sustaining and growing their unique businesses. Cuyama Beverage Co - We support Cuyama Valley farmers and earn revenue for Blue Sky Center through sales of our dry session-style mead. Each bottle purchased contributes to regenerative economic development in the Cuyama Valley. L88 Airstrip - Now in its third year of operations, the newly resurfaced L88 Airstrip continues to expand its reputation as a regional destination for pilots, aviation enthusiasts, events, and photoshoots. Owned and managed by Blue Sky Center, the L88 Airstrip is stewarded by a dedicated team of volunteers who have been focused on the maintenance and expansion of service offerings. The airstrip has not only been used as a stop for pilots on their routes. Hot air balloons floated above the valley, gliders swooped through, supersonic drones tested their capabilities, R/C hobbyists showed off their remote-controlled model airplanes, and muscle cars flexed their wheels on our pavement! The future of our L88 Airstrip leads towards the horizon, full of possibilities. With planned upgrades and maintenance, it is only made possible by the support, time, and dedication of volunteers and donors.

Community research and development:We often describe our work as "translating." Literally translating between English and Spanish for communication materials, yes, but also translating between the real lived experience of Cuyamans to the stakeholders and resource-providers beyond Cuyama. Through our engagement, we seek to collect honest, thorough, and nuanced stories of real life in Cuyama with the need and opportunities; through listening sessions, surveys, and conversations, we then work to translate that information into the charts, graphs, and spreadsheets that government officials and grantor's depend on to be assured of the quantified and validated need for their investment.

Food and Agriculture:Blue Sky Center has made significant strides in advancing food security in the Cuyama Valley over the last decade. Throughout this time, our work has focused on overcoming the deep-rooted challenges of access to affordable, healthy food in a region defined by its rural isolation and agriculture abundance - that paradoxically lacks the infrastructure to serve its own community's food needs.